[Bramham Wiltshire Horns]

This is just a general question


How much does it cost to inseminate a cow or how much do people sell sperm for?

I'm sure depends on the breed and quality of the bull

So let's say a a best of breed/best in show

What would it cost

I ask this because I was watching country file last night and they was talking about AI

I no nothing about it so the question goes out to those that have used this  process

Thanks

[SallyintNorth]

Our local guy charges a modest callout to regular customers, plus an amount per straw, which depends on the bull.

We've used bulls that had been sold for tens of thousands of guineas, and we only paid £25 all-in for the service!

Some straws are even cheaper.

I don't know what his callout would be to infrequent customers.

[Rosemary]

I can't rememebr how much we paid for the AI technician to come out (it was back in 2011) but a straw of Shetland semen from RBST was £10. We also had to pay so much a month - £6.15 is in my mind - to store the semen.

We used seven straws for our two heifers - each had a double insemination the first time; then both had a single insemination, then Blizzard had a third and finally got in calf through natural service. Breeze held to her second AI. So £70 plus about 4 months storage £24.60 plus five technician appointments / seven inseminations (they were synchronised for the first round of two but by the second attampt they were out of synch  ).

Plus the cost of the vet visit for the PRIDs.

It's more cost effective for us to buy a bull calf, use him two years then eat him  But that's Shetlands; with other breeds, AI does give you access to excelent breeding that wouldn't otherwise be possible.

Now that our cows are more mature and maybe more amenable to AI, I might try it again, so that I can access some of the older bulls in the RBST semen bank.

[SallyintNorth]

Our bloke seems to be pretty efficient, and I guess we know our cows pretty well.  One service is effective probably about 80% of the time for us.  We've never had a good experience using PRIDs and so on; we always try if we've got one that's difficult and it hardly ever works out.  So most of ours have a natural cycle and we call the fella in when we see them standing.  So sometimes it's the same day, often it's first thing the following morning.

I should add that we don't have any need to use PRIDs in the normal run of things, so our experience of them is with cows that were proving tricky in the first place.

Most of our cows are beefy types, Angus and Hereford crosses.  Some 1/2 Friesian, many 1/4 dairy, or less.

I think it's generally held to need to be more specific and harder to achieve a good hit rate with dairy types.  I struggled to get my first Jersey back in calf, then realised that changes in routine upset her, so now I don't even get them served unless I know I can keep things the same for 5 weeks.

Also, our AI bloke knows which semens he has are high fertility.  Some are single bull and he has some that are a mix of three, which he often uses if we have one that's proving difficult.  Downside with the mixtures is you don't know who is the father, only one of three, but you get your cow in calf.  Using mixtures wouldn't be any good for pedigree breeding stock, of course, but may be useful for a first calf if you've a heifer proving tricky.  Calf would have to go for meat, of course.

[Rosemary]

The problem with a very small herd is observing standing heat, especially if you are inexperienced as we were. We tried Kamar heat detectors but I was never convinced - sometimes they'd rub them off on the trees 

[PhillipWillie]

Rosemary have you considered/tried any of these options?


-Raddle on their chests too show when bulling
-Estrumate to bring them on
-Condition score them so their not too fat/thin
-Supplement minerals into their diet to increase fertility


Hopefully this might be of some help 

[Rosemary]

Rosemary have you considered/tried any of these options?


-Raddle on their chests too show when bulling
-Estrumate to bring them on
-Condition score them so their not too fat/thin
-Supplement minerals into their diet to increase fertility


Hopefully this might be of some help 

Aye, the bull does all that now. We used AI in 2011; 2012, hired bull and now we keep our own bull. Last summer, all three calved on consecutive days - 23rd. 24th and 25th May - earliest calving date possible - 22nd May. All four in calf this year - again looking ike they're all due at the same time, from the scan. Our two originals are expecting their fourth calves 

[PhillipWillie]

Ahh great job! Had a bit of bother with AI this year myself, got fed up and threw them in with a bull! Alot of hassle for 2 cows!

[Paul Sill]

We get charger £6 a service but are serving 150. straws can vary between £3.50 to over £100 each.

[waterbuffalofarmer]

With buffaloes it is highly unsuccessful. I prefer to use a bull. Its all about timing and generally you have to give them a period of prosteglandin. You might have to speak to your vet about it all, he/she will be able to tell you what the costs are involved. When the buffaloes were ai'd I spent a fortune on the stuff and the genus  guy who came out, the cost for one calf was huge. If you have a bull use him, that is the best option. Another option would be to buy an incalf cow or heifer which is in calf to a top bull and if she gives a bull calf then keep him and use him, or you could buy in a really good bull calf, as someone has already said, and use him. It really depends if you want a herd with very good genetics or normal.