ARTIFICIAL INSEMINATION

Waikato Times, Volume 117, Issue 19597, 8 June 1935, Page 21 (Supplement)

ARTIFICIAL INSEMINATION

SAFEGUARD AGAINST DISEABE INTRODUCTION. It seems probable that artificial insemination will play an important role in the future of livestock breeding in general, since it will enable breeders to make much more rapid progress towards reaching the goal of their breeding programme. .In any breed of cattle, not more than a few outstanding sires at best exist at any time. Even after their value has become known by the progeny test, their usefulness to the breed is limited by the relatively small number of offspring which can be obtained by natural reproduction. There Is no need of emphasising how much could be gainod if the number of offspring of such animals could be increased five, ten or one hundred times. This is exactly what artificial insemination will enable the breeder to do. Following new methods that have been worked out by the Institute of Artificial Insemination In Mosoow as many as 400 cows oan be inseminated from a single service of a bull, and as many as 1250 cows have actually been inseminated from one bull In the course of a year. Ordinarily the possibilities of utilising the sperm will be limited by the available number of animals which are in heat. Experiments have been made, however, concerning the possibilities of keeping valuable sperm. With a special dilution fluid, and at a temperature of from 10 degrees to 15 degrees G., it was found that ram sperm could be stored for 18 days and still be used for successful insemination. Studies are being made concerning the possibilities of inducing heat periods experimentally. ? If spermatic fluid could be imported, and Improved air transport may make this possible shortly, there would be no need to import live stook and the foot and mouth disease embargo would then be of no detriment to breeding operations in this country.