Post by Mitra on Jan 19, 2009 13:28:07 GMT -5
On Friday, three weeks to the day that Helen acted up and hopped into the pig's pen and acted all squirrelly, she acted up again. Then on Saturday we saw a long string of slime wrapped around her tail like a Barber's Pole We called the vet, Dr. Cooper, to come and palp her. He arrived within the hour. He said, "There is nothing in the uterus." SUCH disappointment. I thought she was 5 months bred. I'm totally kicking myself for not doing the biotracking three months ago. He gave her a shot (I was too stunned still to even ask what it was). I did ask if I should have the AI tech come and he said, "No, wait for 21 days from today."
Heavy sigh......
I have a couple of theories going and would like comments on them or additional ones.
Theory 1 - She was pregnant and a couple of months ago slipped the calf. I give this theory the most weight because she stopped having heats and her milk production went down and never came back. In hindsight, the reduction of milk could simply have been natural and in keeping with the length of this lactation, now 17 months.
Theory 2 - The mini jersey bull semen we used is no longer viable. If that's the case she would have not been pregnant at all and I can't explain why she showed no signs of heat after getting AI'd.
She was AI'd two days in a row, August 26th and 27th by two different techs, same semen, and they both thought she felt "perfect".
The straws from this batch DID work the last three breedings on both Helen and Jasmine. Jasmine's two bull calves, Jeremiah and Wesley, and Helen's calf Oakley, were sired with this same batch of straws. Then.....the AI tech who kept the straws in his tank, left the company. His tank and the straws were transferred to the tech who took over his area in Maine. When and how this transfer was done, is an unknown. Because of the transfer, I now wonder about the viability of the semen because Helen was AI'd twice and is open and Jasmine was AI'd using these straws and she's open too.
When Liz was over here yesterday, we had to lock Helen in her stanchion because she was really in heat, ears back, running through deep snow, and galumphing about. Before we went to visit her, Helen had planted herself by Sophie's gate and was staring into her pen, giving Sophie the hairy eyeball. When we approached her she acted like she might mow us down. Perhaps she could tell that Liz was an AI tech or more likely, she was suspicious that one of these visitors might stick their gloved arm up her as had happened the day before. Either way, for the safety of the guests and in order to visit with Helen, she needed to be locked in her stanchion.
Needless to say, I'm very disappointed about not having a June calf. We do plan to proceed with breeding her in three weeks and will have to live with a November calf in Maine. oh well.
Heavy sigh......
I have a couple of theories going and would like comments on them or additional ones.
Theory 1 - She was pregnant and a couple of months ago slipped the calf. I give this theory the most weight because she stopped having heats and her milk production went down and never came back. In hindsight, the reduction of milk could simply have been natural and in keeping with the length of this lactation, now 17 months.
Theory 2 - The mini jersey bull semen we used is no longer viable. If that's the case she would have not been pregnant at all and I can't explain why she showed no signs of heat after getting AI'd.
She was AI'd two days in a row, August 26th and 27th by two different techs, same semen, and they both thought she felt "perfect".
The straws from this batch DID work the last three breedings on both Helen and Jasmine. Jasmine's two bull calves, Jeremiah and Wesley, and Helen's calf Oakley, were sired with this same batch of straws. Then.....the AI tech who kept the straws in his tank, left the company. His tank and the straws were transferred to the tech who took over his area in Maine. When and how this transfer was done, is an unknown. Because of the transfer, I now wonder about the viability of the semen because Helen was AI'd twice and is open and Jasmine was AI'd using these straws and she's open too.
When Liz was over here yesterday, we had to lock Helen in her stanchion because she was really in heat, ears back, running through deep snow, and galumphing about. Before we went to visit her, Helen had planted herself by Sophie's gate and was staring into her pen, giving Sophie the hairy eyeball. When we approached her she acted like she might mow us down. Perhaps she could tell that Liz was an AI tech or more likely, she was suspicious that one of these visitors might stick their gloved arm up her as had happened the day before. Either way, for the safety of the guests and in order to visit with Helen, she needed to be locked in her stanchion.
Needless to say, I'm very disappointed about not having a June calf. We do plan to proceed with breeding her in three weeks and will have to live with a November calf in Maine. oh well.