AI Success Rates

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A few things that I consider important in relation to using AI

1. Next years conception rates depend on this years plan
   1. Calving difficulty - Not all cows have the same pelvis, so match a cows ability to calf with the most suitable bull
   2. Cows that repeat are more likely to repeat next year, cull them or if you can use a stockbull
   3. Double bolus twice a year
   4. A consistent and quality diet helps
   5. I don't like cows to be too fat
2. Post calving/Pre breeding - Preparation for breeding starts the minute a calf is born
   1. Record difficult calvings - if a cow has a hard calving maybe use a bull instead of AI
   2. Record cows slow to clean & treat with a washout/Metricure
   3. Pre Breeding scan
3. When handling keep cows and people calm, no rushing and shouting at cows, cortisol levels don't help conception
4. AI'ing later is always better than too early - sexed semen should be 6 hours later than conventional
5. If a cow repeats I generally use a straw from a different bull the second time
6. If a cow has repeated in the past I might AI the cow with two different bulls - I don't believe semen 'competes' but semen has to undergo a process when it is deposited in the cow and this can happen at different rates, using two bulls can sometimes extend the timeframe when viable semen is present and increase conception rates. Also some bull's semen may be more fertile than other.
7. Fertility is hereditary
8. So is infertility……
9. If you are serious about conception rates learn how to AI yourself, if your numbers are large consider doing the manual palpation part of the scanning training - It is amazing how much information you will get about a cow by being able to palpate her.
10. The two fundamentals with AI are
    1. The semen must go in the RIGHT PLACE (AI skills)
    2. The semen must be deposited at the RIGHT TIME (Heat detection)
11. Knowing the onset of heat is vital - a cow going out of heat can look a lot like a cow coming into heat, so you need to be monitoring twice a day and keeping record of cows activity to be able to determine what stage of heat she is in - It is easy to say a cow is bulling but for AI to work you need to know when she should be bulled.
12. Onset of 'standing heat' is the most important behaviour to determine

A bull works 24 hours a day and seven days a week at his job…….

That's a lot of good information there - thanks for taking the time to put it all together.

The bulls I use are all easy calving and rarely need any assistance. It's one of the main selection criteria I have as the day job means I might not be able to assist, although fortunately that has not been a problem.

I have made the decision that anything that doesn't hold to 2nd service will be culled. I do tend to switch bulls between services. Sometimes I'd use a fertility mix too - although it has failed 1/2 times this year. This year I've started using a mineral drench and I do think it has improved conception. However, I'll admit that I've negated this by holding them on the home farm until they hit 40 days since last service. This has meant I'm running tight on grass.

I was told not to move/stress them beforehand. That's why I've been keeping them on tight going - which I know is bad for hold rates. What is everyone's thoughts on moving cattle before the 24 day window has expired?

TBF - when handling it is very sedate - the cows know the drill and there is no roaring and shouting and use of the blue stick.

In regards to AI'ing myself - I'm not sure that it is feasible for a 10 cow herd. For heat detection we use scratch cards. Find them really good. Cows are monitored x2 daily. I think we're not too bad at catching the heats, I think the issue is either the cows and/or not keeping them on consistent grazing block. Overall this year there have been 16 serves: 7 holds; 5 fails; awaiting 4.

Part of my problem is that the farm is split across 3 blocks. The home block is small and fragmented - so only 1/2 of it has access to handling facilities. Our fields/paddocks are quite small - mostly just about 1ac. So for 10 cows plus calves plus bull it can test the ground in a normal/wet year. So, AI suites from that POV. How it doesn't suit is that when AI man comes can be mid morning so I need to leave work for approx 2hrs to travel to the outfarm, get the cattle in, get them served, and back home again. I've not really squared the circle on how to handle repeats.

Why would you need to leave work? If you see cows on in the morning can you not put in that evening for AI or if on in the evening put in then for AI mid morning (following morning)? Just have water in pen. Or will your AI man not put cow into race and let back out again?

Genetics has a huge part to play. I've a ZAG cow here bulling today. Only calved 17 days. Her mother went in calf this year at 31 days after calving.

Your doing plenty of things very well to be fair.

16 serves with 7 holds and 4 to be confirmed could be ok… if the remaining 4 went in calf you'd a strike rate close to 70%

Would you consider synchronisation? It takes a bit of work and planning but you could potentially have the cows working around your schedule and not the other way around. I work as well so I synchronise at the start of breeding, then use a bull and then synchronise what hasn't been bulled to close off breeding.

Patsy hit the nail on the head Genetics has a big say. There are some pedigrees of AI bulls that have super fertility and others are bred purely for beef and fertility can be poor.

ZAG is from the same family as CWI and goes back to a very good french cow called G7 - I flushed a cow from the G7 family last year and she gave 24 embryos. Gamin (ZGM) is another very good bull to produce fertile cows with calving ability - he has Ionesco in his pedigree as does Cavelands Jolly who is another good female breeder.

That's a good program, I use the same program but give another shot of PG when removing the CIDR - it helps with stubborn CL's. I use 1.5 inch 20 gauge needles for the injections and hold my finger over the injection site for a few seconds to make sure no hormone leaks out.

For sexed semen I'll leave the AI 4-6hrs later and light a candle after that!! To be fair to the AI companies the success rate of sexed semen has improved no end.

I'd say the cows prefer them anyway!! The PRIDS are awkward yokes, but yes CIDR's are still available. Some of the practices favour giving out PRIDs as they can be given to a customer on prescription whereas CIDR's are supposed to be put in by vets. All paperwork nonsense from a licensing aspect, there's actually more progesterone with a PRID than a CIDR.

Agree, CIDRs are better for heifers too

I was using PRIDS one year and when I was pulling them I couldn't find one in a cow and assumed it had fallen out or she got it caught on something. I went ahead with the program and it was only when I was doing the AI that i felt it still in wedged oblong in her uterus. I took it out and AI'd her and she ended up going in calf.

Not if you have all your cows in calf. Pay €5000 for a bull, cull him for €4000 after 3/4 seasons (keeping daughters). AI + repeats = €500/year

why don’t you synchronize all your cows and rent a bull for 6-9 weeks to mop up. Cull any empties

Could lepto be a problem? It's very common

I agree to an extent. I'll probably try sexed AI for some replacements though and sweep with a bull. 1st service hold rates seem to be around 60% for suckler based herds. If you take 60% at each cycle it will take 3 cycles to get all to hold. If I can't better that, then it will definitely be a bull.

As an aside to this - would (m)any of you use tail paint or scratch cards on cows that are running with the bull - just see keep an eye on cows not holding. Or would you all pre-scan that cows before the breeding season to check for cycling problems?

what I find very good is the marking stick crayon that you can buy in the coop with different colours. Around 2 euro each. Mark the tail head. And then when cow in heat and another cow is jumping on them, you can see that colour under the jumping cow, as well as the cow having her colour rubbed off her tail. Agree about the calves rubbing their heads off the cows tailheads. At least you can apply crayon again for relatively low cost. Use all AI here too with very little repeats.