Page 9 - MWC 4-21-2022s

Breeding Protocol Considerations The Midwest Cattleman · April 21, 2022 · P9

By Steven Hughes, DVM, AETA Certified, Nebraska Veterinary Services

Cattle producers have breeding) or heat stress. If breeding can
many options when it comes a cow’s body temperature also negatively
to breeding their cows. They climbs to 105° F for 5 min- affect concep-
can use natural service, turn- utes, fetal loss may occur. tion.
ing the bulls they have care- Many of the estrus synchro- Semen Quality
fully selected out with the nization protocols will bring Semen qual-
cows that will benefit most a thin, non-cyclic cow into ity is extremely
from the genetic pairings. heat, but poor body condition important when
They can use artificial in- may prevent pregnancy. Vac- trying to get the
semination (AI), allowing for cination with a modified-live When choosing a breeding protocol, it’s important to con-
a more careful and specific vaccine within 20 days of continued on sider time, labor, skill, cow condition and cost.
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pairing of cows or heifers to
bulls. They can also use es-
trus synchronization to assist
in narrowing the breeding
season (and the subsequent
calving season) as well as to
concentrate their labor in-
puts. When choosing a proto-
col, it’s important to consider
time, labor, skill, cow condi-
tion and cost. Below are some
considerations for each of
these protocols and pointers
for having the most success
in your breeding season.
Synchronization
Considerations
There are many protocols
for estrus and ovulation syn-
chronization. Most protocols
require the use of hormones
and specific administration
timing of these hormones.
Once estrus is synchronized,
heat detection is important.
The heat detection protocol
with the lowest cost is natu-
ral heat detection using heat
patches. For assistance with
synchronization, consult
your veterinarian or a qual-
ified breeding service.

Conception
Considerations
Natural breeding usual-
ly gives the best conception
as live semen is better than
frozen semen, and the bull is
much better at heat detection
than any human. However,
natural breeding does not
typically allow a producer
the flexibility of using multi-
ple sires in one group of cows.
Bull-to-cow ratios vary based
on pasture terrain, stocking
density and bull age, with
younger bulls covering fewer
cows.
Poor conception rates can
be very frustrating for pro-
ducers and can result from
poor quality semen, stress at
breeding, stress at embryo
implantation (15 days after