Just finished pregnancy checking a few cows, including my recip (recipient) cows. Remember that 10 cows were implanted with Aberdeen-Angus embryos on the 24th and 25th of September. The verdict: of the ten, six are bred! That is 60%! Which is so exciting. It sounds like a low percentage, but consider that these embryos were collected and frozen in Scotland on 17 March 2015, then shipped frozen in August to Los Angeles, passed through customs, then on to GENEX in Billings, Montana continuing to Trans-Ova in Chillicothe, MO. Then thawed and implanted. That’s a LOT of room for error.
These cows are scheduled to calve about 25 June 2016. A lot can happen between now and then and even at calving and during the calf’s growing years. So the risk continues.
Suffice it to say, i may have the most colourful recip cows in the county!
Embryos come from Dunlouise Angus in Forfar, Scotland. The Corriente and Longhorn were bought a few years ago from Bart Albertson and Jeremia Markway and the Dexter/Angus from a neighbour.
Cheers!
tauna
Tannachton Farm 
how do you assess pregnancy in cows? by looking at the belly or urine/blood test? I am curious 🙂
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Palpation in this case. The vet wears a long OB plastic glove and inserts his arm into the rectum and feels for the pregnancy. Going through the rectum eliminates anything foreign being introduced into the reproductive tract.
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wow.. i do not know what to say.. poor animal; this is invasive 🙂 but maybe the best way to assess pregnancy….
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It is invasive, but very quick, too, so less time in the chute by far compared to the other options. Remember, a cow is pretty big, there is discomfort, but no pain. Probably less than getting poked with big fat needle and drawing blood!
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that is good to know re; it is painless 🙂 based on what you have said earlier, I agree that it is a convenient way. I was not judging when I said it was invasive – just an observation. as usual I learn so much from you 🙂
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I did not feel judged – it honestly is the best way or we would do something differently, but unless one is actively involved, it’s nearly impossible to understand. Thank you for saying that, though, i appreciate it. Animal comfort and husbandry is something we strive to improve.
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It can also be done by sonogram as well as blood test. Blood testing is not usually done, because it has to be sent off to be analysed. Sonogram is sometimes done, but takes longer – our vet doesn’t have the machine.
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I see; thanks for the info. looks like palpation is a practical alternative
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Your discussion has been most enlightening to this city girl. Sooooo, did you take eggs from the female ( in your herd) and send them to the farm in Scotland for fertilization to create an embryo ?
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Hi Pam. thank you! hope you enjoy. ET is embryo transfer and not just eggs. Actually, what happens is that the donor dam (she lives in Forfar, Scotland) is superovulated (produce multiple eggs) and then artificially insemenated with the desired sire (in this case, he also lives in Forfar, Scotland). Then the embryos are flushed from her and frozen. So what i receive is actually a baby cow that is 7 days old from conception. Microscopic to say the least! Once my recipient cows are prepared to receive a 7 day old embryo, they are implanted with the thawed embryo. It is quite expensive to do this as you can imagine. So why do it? There are many reasons, but mine is that I want to introduce old Scottish Aberdeen Angus bloodlines (dating back to the late 1700’s) into our herd. I feel that stepping back to the heritage genetics is a way to improve our ‘modern’ cattle. Time will tell – with cattle (they have a 9 month gestation and typically have one calf) it takes many years to see if anything good happens. So quite the investment, but I guess I feel it is important to move forward in producing better cattle by going backwards in time. My recip cows will have no impact on the genetics of the calf. She is a surrogate mother. Since live animal importation is not allowed from Scotland, ET is the only way to get these genetics here. Thanks for you question – it’s a good one.
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Fascinating!!! Praying that you get the best of results!!
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thank you!
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Hello,
I know that this is an old thread, but I am curious how the corrientes worked out as recip cows? It looks like you used mature cows. Did you have any calving problems? How flighty were the cows and did they pass on personality traits to your Angus?
Thanks in advance for the response
-Chip
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I like Corriente cows and although i don’t have experience with how they compare to other breeds as recips, mine were a good choice. my experience is that they tend to calve easily and raise a good calf. Disposition tends towards very quiet and easy to handle. of course, there are outlaws in every breed, but just choose quiet. My cows are not flighty or hard to handle – i’m too old for that nonsense – if one i buy or one goes crazy for some reason, she quickly goes back to sale barn with a warning or becomes hamburger. I have mostly 1/2 bloods Angus or Red Angus now. Impossible to get a good price for Corrientes around here which is discouraging – i’ve had fun raising them. Hope this helps!
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to give some perspective – i’ve purchased or raised some 250 Corriente and Longhorn cows these past 11 years. I could count on one hand the number that were cantankerous and none had calving difficulties. I’m very particular on disposition – a cow which raises her head or in anyway makes me feel like i have to watch her is a candidate for disposal.
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Oh my, so sorry for no response – i’m not sure why i’m not receiving notifications of comments – need to check my settings. I have used Corrientes as recip cows and they make good mothers. Have had very few that are flighty or mean. They go to town quickly if such an animal plays its hand regardless of breed or productivity. Just choose a mum with the traits that are important to you.
I like quite disposition, proven track record, good fertility, and moderate milking ability who can thrive in my grazing practices and climate. I cannot recall having calving difficulties. Somehow, regardless of what they are bred to, the dam seems to moderate the size. I suspect there is a limit to this of course. My calving season is late april through June and there seems to be evidence that regardless of breed that time frame moderates calf size.
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