AI Practice Aid

[Mueller Show Cattle]

This might sound like a stupid question but figured I would ask. Is there any type of AI aid or anything to practice AI'ing with. I finished with AI school and just finished with AI'ing my cattle and only have a small number of cattle I breed for club calfs. Everyone around me are finished with AI also shooting for an early March calf. I am afraid I am going to loose the touch come next year when breeding season rolls around and I'm trying to get as much practice as I can and they said in school to get your hand in as many cows as you can. But that is difficult for me now around this part of the country. I did not know if there was any type of training aid out there but don't think it could be that difficult for some company to make a synthetic type of training aid that would be realistic. I would pay a couple hundred dollars for some type of aid that was realistic as practice is hard to come by for me now as every ones cows have been turned out with the clean up bulls that were AI'd. So if anyone knows of any type of training aid or anything to practice AI with, please let me know as I am a 1st year AI student and need more practice plus our breeding season is a long time away. Your help and response is appreciated.

 

[ZNT]

This might sound like a stupid question but figured I would ask. Is there any type of AI aid or anything to practice AI'ing with. I finished with AI school and just finished with AI'ing my cattle and only have a small number of cattle I breed for club calfs. Everyone around me are finished with AI also shooting for an early March calf. I am afraid I am going to loose the touch come next year when breeding season rolls around and I'm trying to get as much practice as I can and they said in school to get your hand in as many cows as you can. But that is difficult for me now around this part of the country. I did not know if there was any type of training aid out there but don't think it could be that difficult for some company to make a synthetic type of training aid that would be realistic. I would pay a couple hundred dollars for some type of aid that was realistic as practice is hard to come by for me now as every ones cows have been turned out with the clean up bulls that were AI'd. So if anyone knows of any type of training aid or anything to practice AI with, please let me know as I am a 1st year AI student and need more practice plus our breeding season is a long time away. Your help and response is appreciated.

Check withthe local packing house to get some repro tracts.  You can never practice threading the cervix too many times.  You can get some really interesting ones if you get some from old killer cows.

 

[Bulldaddy]

Volunteer to breed your neighbors cows for free.  The more cows you are in the better you will get and your confidence will go up.  Maybe the AI school you took will offer a refresher couse.  You should take advantage of it.  As ZNT says you can buy some tracts from a packer for practice.  Just keep at it.  Good luck.

 

[chiangus]

Volunteer to breed your neighbors cows for free.  The more cows you are in the better you will get and your confidence will go up.  Maybe the AI school you took will offer a refresher couse.  You should take advantage of it.  As ZNT says you can buy some tracts from a packer for practice.  Just keep at it.  Good luck.

Yep, really nothing else but doing the real thing.

 

[Mueller Show Cattle]

I was planning on AI the neighbors cows plus a couple large size ranches around here come next year as everyone has finished with the AI for this year and are out with the clean up bulls. Everyone shoots for an early March calf around here with the winters we have they don't want them any earlier but want the calf as big as possible by weaning and shipping around late September early October. I thought about approaching a couple packer house asking to reproductive tracts, Is there anything you can do to try and preserve them? Also do you just close you eyes when practicing with them as you can't see the tract when you AI your cattle also how different is the feel through the rectal wall compared to with the tracts in you hand? Thanks for you guys advice and I'm going to approach some packer houses to ask for the tracts and try to preserve them some how to try and keep them from spoiling too fast. I am just trying to get as much practice as possible but getting into cows now is difficult without traveling for me now. I went to AI class in Texas and live in Wyoming even though they don have refresher classes, just a little far away but I'm sure there are closer classes. Thanks again for your input guys.

 

[CAB]

You may want to see if there are any techs in your area that are still mass breeding some herds and would like help. If you know that you are getting the semen deposited the correct spot this year, you won't have any troubles with it come next season. You can freeze the tracks and get them back out as you want. It wouldn't matter if you close your eyes or not IMO, it's more about what things feel like as you go through the cervix for me anyway. Good Luck. Hope that you get a bunch of great AI sired calves next spring.

 

[Mueller Show Cattle]

I have been looking for AI techs in my area but have not located any yet, know of some down in Cheyenne but still looking for some around me. I usually hit the spot once I hit the cervix, my problem has always been getting started in the cervix as I'm always hitting the vaginal pouches. So once I get in the cervix, I'm fine as I keep pressure on the AI gun and move the cervix around on the gun to pass it through. It just takes me for what seems like forever getting started in the cervix as my arm gets fatigued, as you can imagine after I have done several and have problem getting in the cervix, my arm starts to kill me. I'm gonna need to start doing to forearm exercises for my arm I have in the cow and just more pratice getting the gun started in the cervix. This is something that is very important to me to get good with AI and just looking for ways to improve when I don't have any cows to practice on.

 

[JSchroeder]

Somebody should copy your last post and print it in any instruction manual on AI to describe the feeling everyone has after their first few cows.

 

[Mueller Show Cattle]

Somebody should copy your last post and print it in any instruction manual on AI to describe the feeling everyone has after their first few cows.

And I thought it was just me having these feelings,  ???. On the bright side Nasco does sell a preserved cow reproductive tract that I bought. Kinda a little expensive with almost $80 shipped, oh well I'm committed to getting good at AI and hoping this will help along with asking some local packing houses for any cow reproductive tracts, plus practice, practice and more practice- got to build up them forearm muscles  .

 

[LN]

I have a tract from NASCO, not even close to the real thing but it helps. I practiced on cows that weren't going to be bred due to age or other problems and at preg check time I kept open cows to practice on. I guess you could see if your neighbors have any cows they aren't intending to breed or if they will let you practice on open cows after pregnancy testing.

 

[Mueller Show Cattle]

I can remember the 1st day at AI school, I was soo confused, I swear I could not find the cervix. Now I find it really fast, my practice I need is closing off the vaginal blind pouches around the entrance to the cervix to keep from going in the blind pouches. It is like the cervix keeps slipping out of my hand and I try to pin it against the side of the pelvis to help but it likes to slip out of my hand. Getting started in the cervix is my problem as once I get it started I get the gun fished through the cervix, but just getting it started gets me frustrated and mad some times cause it takes too long and the cow gets to trying to move along with a fatigued arm. So my hope with the Nasco cow tract is just closing off the blind pouches and getting the gun started in the cervix, I don't care if I have to practice with that tract everyday while watching TV to get this down as I'm 100 % committed to getting good and proficient at AI.