Ledger record of semen collections from bulls across Scotland, 1974-1978

Manuscript ledger, folio. 30pp used. A record of bull semen collections from all over Scotland, 1974-1978. The livestock appear to be privately owned bulls mainly the Ayrshire breed and black and whites, although there are other breeds too including beef breeds. About 33 bulls per page of the ms volume in single lines giving date, name of bull, name and address of owner, number of collections, semen volume, density and motility, straws frozen, and result.

A large majority of dairy cows in the US, Canada and European countries are artificially inseminated. Artificial insemination (AI) of beef cows is also popular, particularly in purebred herds. The advantage of AI over natural service is that it facilitates rapid genetic improvement by allowing use of only the top bulls. Some bulls have sired more than 100,000 offspring via AI. Semen is most commonly collected from bulls in bull studs using an artificial vagina (AV).

Semen collection from bulls using an AV requires three people: one to handle the teaser animal, one to control the bull and one to collect the semen. Successful semen collection with an AV depends on the bull being comfortable around people, and they need to be trained to use the AV

Open to bona fide researchers, but please contact repository for details in advance of visit.

Material acquired May 2012. Accession no: E2012.40.

Catalogued by Graeme D. Eddie, 16 January 2013