AI question

[jdgraham515]

Anybody ever stick 2 straws in a cows when breeding. I know multiple are used when flushing a cow just didn't know if anyone had tried it when just breeding.

 

[CAB]

  If your heat detection is good, I think it would be a waste of a unit of semen to use 2 straws at the same time. If you are going to use 2 units at least breed twice 12 hours apart. JMO.

 

[cbcr]

I agree with CAB. 

But sometime if you have a problem breeder we have even used 3 units of semen.  Bred the cow when she first came into heat, 12 hours later and then another 12 hours.

Had a cow one time for a dairyman we discovered needed to breed at almost 36 hours to get her bred.

 

[DSCSD]

Not trying to hack your post just trying to get more insight that might help you as well..... If 1 was going to throw 2 straws in and breed 12 hrs apart when would you suggest to breed the first time.... At first sign of heat and 12 hrs or like 4 hrs and 18 hrs after first stand?

 

[GLC]

I can count on 1 hand the number of times I've used 2 straws in 30+ years of AI'ing. It has always been on a problem breeder. Breed 15 to 18 hours after standing heat, put 1 straw toward left horn and the other toward the right. Sometimes they do get a little twisted on the inside.

 

[DSCSD]

I always breed half and half on each side.... I've had some short cycle cows before that needed bred when first standing or you missed them.... Got 5 new cows off the boss last year and only 1 took ai... Bad luck/timing or short cycle idk.... Just want better results

 

[CAB]

If I were going to use 2 straws I would breed @ 12 hours after first observed heat and again @ 12 hours after that. IMO there are more cows bred too early than too late. If I were going to try to shoot with GnRH, I would shoot at first observed heat instead of at the time of insemination. That seems to be a new twist on the use of GnRH, though I don't routinely use GnRH.

 

[SimFarmer]

I always breed my show heifers with two straws at 12hr and then 18 to 21 hours after standing because the extra costs are worth it from a higher valued calf. However, I've heard that breeding at 6 hrs after standing is a higher chance for a heifer (not just a tall tale but backed by years of trials). So now I breed at 6 hrs and then between 12 and 21 hours to give myself a little safety net. Cows ovulate around 28 hours after first standing and semen only takes about 15 minutes to get from the cervix to the ovarian tube so there isn't a big hurry to get them aI'd.

 

[firesweepranch]

We have a nice 10 year old cow that has calved every year, so 8 calves on the ground. We have not been able to stick her AI (we tried several years of AI), so we put embryos in her (we bought her as a 6 year old). I really want a heifer from her before she is too old, so the person we bought her from said to use two straws. He said that her uterus is big from so many calves. So we stuck two straws in her, one right after the other, and she is now 25 days post her last heat. I sure hope we stuck her! I know she sticks an embryo each time... so she is fertile.

 

[Cham2135]

I had a guy tell me when I was learning that it's ok to use two straws if you aren't sure if it stuck. Semen is cheep $25-50 usually. It pays for itself even with a $1500 calf. A lot of producers goal is to get a live calf, an extra $25 is minor

 

[mainecattlemother]

We used 2 straws on sexed Upgrade semen last year.  We got a discount rate $20 a straw for buying so much so we put in three cows and all three took and now we have three very nice Upgrade heifer calves. We did do synchronized breeding and used GnRh.  Two of the cows are very fertile so dont know if it made a difference but the third we had a problem with in the past.

 

[ZNT]

I will sometimes breed cattle twice, 12 hours apart, when I have not seen a definitive standing heat to time my breeding off of.  Some cattle are just shy, and will only show secondary signs.  If the semen is reasonably priced, and I have extra units available, I will just breed them twice to cover my bases.

 

[diioriocattle]

Maybe I am mis-read the opening post, I thought he meant has anyone used 2 different bulls at the same time?

 

[jdgraham515]

No all the answers were great and what I was looking for. I was asking about 2 straws of the same bull just if they were putting 2 in at the same time or waiting and putting the 2nd in hours later. Thanks for all the replies