Synchronized Cow
October 7th, 2015 · 2 Comments · Posted in farming
Here’s the latest twist in our efforts to impregnate our Jersey cow, Emily: Starting Sunday, we will begin giving her a series of hormone shots what will culminate in artificial insemination on October 21.
How can we be so sure of the date? In fact, if I took a couple of minutes to make some calculations, I could even narrow down the hour when the inseminator would do the dirty deed, as Emily at that point will be “synchronized,” meaning timed to ovulate according to the hormone shots we give her.
That’s just the miracle of today’s modern bovine breeding science. Well, maybe not so miraculous. Our vet says the odds of a pregnancy resulting from synchronization are just north of 40 percent. It would be much more certain if Emily were to give some definitive sign she is in heat–such as standing in the pasture and bellowing for no apparent reason–but lately she hasn’t, despite the interventions of various artificial breeding techniques.
I’m guessing most consumers are unaware of the role pharmaceuticals and modern technology play in producing that gallon of milk they pluck from the cold case at the supermarket. Cows can’t give milk, after all, unless they’ve first given birth, and there ain’t no bulls standing around the modern dairy farm.
Besides these hormones, some cows wear electronic necklaces or ankle bracelets that alert the dairy technicians to any unusual movements that might indicate they are coming into heat.
Seems it’s not so easy being a small-time farmer.
Our cows go to visit a neighbor’s bull for a vacation. We have not had to resort to modern technology 😉
You are so lucky. Wish we had a neighbor like that.