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Information sheets   |   Elsenburg infopaks   |   Animals, management: 14

Artificial insemination Afrikaans | Xhosa

Click to enlarge!		 A good bull can cost up to R10,000 nowadays while feeding amounts to a further R3 per day - in other words an expense of about R1,100 per year. The costs however should be seen against the background that one bull could transfer diseases to many cows, or that the bull could suddenly become ill and die. Artificial insemination (AI) on the other hand is a method of fertilising cows and of getting them pregnant with the semen collected from a well-proved bull. A bull can normally mate with 25 to 30 cows during a season. However, if semen is collected from a bull and diluted, one bull can inseminate thousands of cows.

Click to enlarge!		 A promising bull is put to the test by testing him on cows. When his progeny then perform well and give a good quantity of milk, it is possible for his semen to be sold world-wide.

Farmers use AI for the following reasons:

  • AI can improve animals and herds within a short space of time.
  • Diseases usually transferred during servicing can be prevented, while the transfer of infectious diseases like tuberculosis and venereal diseases can also be prevented because bulls that could possibly transfer these diseases are not used.
  • Infertile cows are identified more easily.
  • Semen from the best bulls in the world can be used in a herd.
  • A bull need not be kept for only a few cows.

Click to enlarge!		 The following is necessary for successful AI:
  • a person trained in AI
  • the correct observation of heat to determine when a cow should be inseminated
  • a crush where the cow could stand

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  • a can of liquid nitrogen in which the semen is kept (± R3,700)
  • semen frozen in straws (between R25 and R65)

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  • the pistolette for putting the semen in the cow (R120)
  • the sheath that is put over the pistolette (40c)
  • an AI glove (50c)

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  • a thermometer (± R20)

The person who inseminates the cow, should understand the reproduction system of a cow as well as what a cow looks like on the inside. During insemination the left hand is put inside the rectum of the cow to hold the cervix. The pistolette is pushed through the cervix and the semen is deposited into the uterus.

Click to enlarge!		 In practice the following takes place:

A cow that remains standing when other cows climb her, is on heat. Dairy cows that are on heat in the morning are inseminated in the afternoon, and cows that are on heat in the afternoon, are inseminated the following morning. Beef cattle that graze in the veld can be inseminated as soon as the cow is on standing heat.

Click to enlarge!		 When mucous from the genital tract becomes visible and 

Click to enlarge!		 there are fresh marks from cows climbing on her back, she is ready to be mated.

Click to enlarge!		 The cow is quietly put inside the crush and palpated to see whether she is pregnant or not.

Click to enlarge!		 The straw is put in water with a temperature of between 32°C and 35°C. It is then dried and put inside the pistolette.

Click to enlarge!		 The end of the straw is cut off. The sheath is put over the pistolette. In order to avoid infection, the front end of the sheath should not be touched. The AI glove is then put on and a lubricant is put on the hand. The hand is then inserted into the rectum of the cow and the pistolette is carefully put inside the female genital tract.

Click to enlarge!		 The pistolette is carefully manoeuvred through the cervix and the semen placed inside the uterus. One third of the semen is placed inside the cervix, because sperms can survive longer there. The pistolette is then removed and the cow is let out of the crush.

Make a note of when and with which bull the cow was inseminated. See whether the cow comes on heat again after three weeks. An examination could be done after two months to determine whether the cow is pregnant.

Click to enlarge!		 A fair amount of practice and experience is necessary to perform AI successfully, but the reward is a fine calf with a very good sire.

AI can only be performed successfully by a trained person. AI courses are presented by semen suppliers, like Taurus and ABS.

R Meeske
ELSENBURG / SOUTH COAST ADC