Heifer synch. How many hours post prid pull to serve?

[Headless chicken]

My vets are advising me that the protocol is 56 hours after the prid is pulled for them to be served.

Is anyone going slightly less or more hours for any reason? @Bald Rick i know you’ve done a few!

 

[dinderleat]

72hrs here. acegon 16hrs before service is the most important timing.

 

[Beef farmer]

that's for cows

 

[Macus3]

Been getting good results on this programme on both cows and heifers

 

[Beef farmer]

Been getting good results on this programme on both cows and heifers

We estrumate at cidr out, but otherwise the same

 

[Grassman247]

There’s so many programs out there it’s difficult to pin down which is the best for your system.

Always hear plenty of people say “getting good results on this programme”

But we’re are the numbers? Most numbers I hear are from a PD aswell not actual heifers calving to synchro Ai which is the crucial figure if we actually want to be honest.

And doing 10 heifers vs 200 can make a big difference.

We are getting 65% in calf to a 10 day program, one shot of receptal when ciders go in, one shot of Estrumate a week later then cidr out and then Ai on day 10

We do one bunch of 85 in the Autum and a bunch of 190 in the spring, spring group is split into 2 groups for ease of handling.


Biggest single factor affecting results seems to come down to the Ai, plenty of well trained Ai techs has made a huge difference to us

 

[farmer on a bike]

We put Estrotect detectors on as we pull prids. We then serve to the stickers at 48 hours and 72 hours. We get the same conception rate as serving twice but serve once and use less semen as around 10% don’t respond to sync. You are also not struggling to serve heifers that are not actually bulling, so it makes the job easier spreading the serving over 2 days.

 

[Bald Rick]

My vets are advising me that the protocol is 56 hours after the prid is pulled for them to be served.

Is anyone going slightly less or more hours for any reason? @Bald Rick i know you’ve done a few!

For heifers (if syncing we do them in batches of 30-60 depending):

Day O - Prid in (we prefer Prid over CIDR as they are naughty rascals and for some reason they are better at not extracting a PRID although we cut the blue tail as close to the vulva as poss)

Day 7 - 9am 2ml estrimate (sp?)
Day 8 - 9am PRIDS out
Day 9 - 5pm overulum (sp?) 2ml
Day 10 - 9am serve with sexed
Day 52 - PD
Day 53 - collar those not in calf but are thinking of buying a young bull - Hereford for preference to sweep

As for results, far better if they are housed on a constant diet where 65-70% success is about the going rate dropping to 55-60% if outdoors

 

[som farmer]

having had very good results with a full programme, we now estrumate, and use scratchies, conception rates are very similar, and it does stretch the calving out a little bit, which is easier breaking in hfrs.
full sync conception rate 67%, and using estrumate, 65 %, we usually do some cows as well, and they are 60%.

 

[Princess Pooper]

I don't think this routine use of synching is going to do the industry image any favours....

 

[Beef farmer]

I don't think this routine use of synching is going to do the industry image any favours....

I will argue strongly that what we do is very good for the industry, but with heifers I tend to agree with you.

 

[pappuller]

For heifers (if syncing we do them in batches of 30-60 depending):

Day O - Prid in (we prefer Prid over CIDR as they are naughty rascals and for some reason they are better at not extracting a PRID although we cut the blue tail as close to the vulva as poss)

Day 7 - 9am 2ml estrimate (sp?)
Day 8 - 9am PRIDS out
Day 9 - 5pm overulum (sp?) 2ml
Day 10 - 9am serve with sexed
Day 52 - PD
Day 53 - collar those not in calf but are thinking of buying a young bull - Hereford for preference to sweep

As for results, far better if they are housed on a constant diet where 65-70% success is about the going rate dropping to 55-60% if outdoors

With cows we are exactly the same but we take the cidr out at day 7, is the latest thinking to remove the cidr at day 8 ? Seems to be more talk of this now

 

[bigw]

I will argue strongly that what we do is very good for the industry, but with heifers I tend to agree with you.

Its the use of hormones that people wont like, I cant really see how it could be defended if anti dairy groups wanted to highlight it.

 

[Beef farmer]

Its the use of hormones that people wont like, I cant really see how it could be defended if anti dairy groups wanted to highlight it.

Were using empty spring calved cows as replacements, having some fertility work with me to ensure they fit in the 6 week block is far better than a 1 way ticket to the mincer. The use of it on maiden heifers is more questionable but makes management easier

 

[bigw]

Were using empty spring calved cows as replacements, having some fertility work with me to ensure they fit in the 6 week block is far better than a 1 way ticket to the mincer. The use of it on maiden heifers is more questionable but makes management easier

I know that but from a public perception point of view to isn’t great. We do a bit of work ourselves but I always wonder when it’ll be banned

 

[som farmer]

perhaps we should be saying, 'its the same drugs as used on people' to help them get pregnant' then it would take a lot of critics out. But its a point I hadn't really thought about.

 

[Cows 'n grass]

I know that but from a public perception point of view to isn’t great. We do a bit of work ourselves but I always wonder when it’ll be banned

The bit you don't have to wonder is which processor will be the first to ban it...

 

[Bald Rick]

I don't think this routine use of synching is going to do the industry image any favours....

It is not something we do as a routine but we have been strung along by agents assuring us that they had buyers for our surplus heifers so we didn't serve them. In the end, they started to get beyond the age when we would start to serve them so we are playing a bit of catch up.

In any case, just bought a Hereford bull only this morning . He's going to be one lucky bully

 

[Headless chicken]

I don't think this routine use of synching is going to do the industry image any favours....

I agree. Not something I’m keen to do but the only real option this year. I hope a new shed and some locking yokes will rectify that next year if the milk price doesn’t play silly bugas

 

[Homesy]

I don't think this routine use of synching is going to do the industry image any favours....

Cobblers. Anything that increases longevity of our dairy cows should be used. Increased longevity results in fewer dairy replacements and hence fewer unwanted dairy male calves. That is a far bigger stain on our industry than syncing. It will be at least 9 months before milk from those heifers goes into the food chain, not that there is anything wrong with it anyhow. We need to defend sensible practices and give proper science based answers and facts to the anti dairy loons not just anthropomorphism.