Breeding question - HELP??

Here is the story:

I bought a set of bred cows in Jan 2007.  They calved in Feb and we AI'd them in June 2007.  We stuck approx 60% and they calved in March 2008.  We AI'd again in June 2008 and only stuck 5 out of 18.  Chalked it up to bad luck and figured they must have cycled just before we synchronized them.  So we AI'd them again in June 2009 and only stuck 3 out of 14.  Not having very good luck.  Now let me say the AI tech that did these is my father and he breeds every month for a local dairy and gets approx 65-75% so I don't think it is his fault.  We do sync with Cidr's.

I really want to get these cows back to calving in March but not really sure how to go about it as 10 should calve in April 4 will calve in May. I am going to put the cows on Vitaferm's Concept Aid Mineral ASAP. When should I AI this year?  Should I not AI the May calvers and just hope that if I put the clean up bull in right away they breed back right away? 

Can someone help me with a game plan?

I'm not sure where you're located, but in my area 2008 was a drought year with alot of high temps.  Those conditions in general make it hard to get a cow bred.  I know alot of people that had low conception rates that year.  Although, weather-wise 2009 was better,  we were still dealing with the nutritional after effects of the drought and that can affect conception rates too.  The Concept-aid mineral is a good start to getting back on track.  I would think, with a good conception rate, you should be able to get the April calvers to calve in March next year without much problem.  You'll be lucky to back the May calvers up two months though.  Maybe try to sync them to calve in April next year and then try to work toward March.

We AI'd with CIDR's last May and got 10 out of 20 stuck. Was hoping for better, but we are feeding Vita Ferm mineral this year like you and might try to get more stuck on natural heats.
Some cows you just don't have very good luck getting stuck. You need to remember how many hours after detecting heat you bred them and if it worked. Then try to breed her in that time slot.

I have talked to many that are not using Cidrs this year. Seems like every time they use them, they get less conception. Decreases every year.
So, they are using alternative methods or just going on natural heats.

Keep in mind that the following is only my thoughts, but I think eith timed AI, the quality of the semen is very important. In my neighbors small group of CIDR cows, we settled 4 of 5 with Ground Zero, 4 of 5 with Hairy, and 1 of 7 with Johnny Walker Red. In another herd, we settled nearly 100 percent with Aftershock. This leads me to believe that semen quality is very important. JMO

What hour after standing heat does everyone think will get best conception rate.

I would lean towards poor semen quality with those kinds of results. If your tech,(Dad), is getting those kind of #s in a dairy herd, there has to be a reason for the substantially lower #s in a beef herd. Those are extremely high conception rates for a dairy herd. Most dairies struggle to get even close to 50% once they are past the virgin heifers.

Will 4-6 weeks of Concept aid prior to breeding do us any good this year?  Can anyone tell what protocol they use to get better results if they don't use CIDR's?  I am thinking we will breed all the March calvers on June 1 and all of the early April calvers on June 15th and maybe one more round on July 1 to catch the late April calvers.  This would make each group at least 60 days post partum and if they all stuck then they would be all March/April calvers next year.  Any thoughts on this?

oldwood said:

What hour after standing heat does everyone think will get best conception rate.

Click to expand...

well, i dont know what the best is...but we are getting up at 4am tomorrow to breed 12 hours after standing...

what's this concept aid mineral you all are talking about?  anyone have any info or a link to where i can find it?

I have done A.I. for ten years now and the guy I learned from did it since the 70's. It may sound to simple but it works for me. 10 to 12 hours after you see her stand she should be bred. He never got excited about the exact time either. He always said if you see her standing at night , breed her in the morning. I never once heard him ask what time did you see her stand? He would just say I will see you tonight or in the morning lol. I never asked him what his conception rate was but I can promise you it was excellent. He is dead now but I will never forget him and what he taught me. It works for me. 10 to 12 hours <beer>