Semen Storage
Semen Storage
Your valuable genetics can be stored in either our tanks or we will maintain your own tanks on site. All tanks are filled with liquid nitrogen on a regular basis. This virtually eliminates the possibility of your tank going dry and the loss of the contents.
The early artificial insemination organizations were largely farmer-owned cooperatives. The first such cooperative in America was organized at Clinton, New Jersey, through efforts of Enos J. Perry, Extension Dairyman, New Brunswick, and began operations May 17, 1938. It began operations with 102 members and 1,050 cows enrolled.
Using frozen semen for dairy cattle has been done since the 1950s. The oldest semen believed to be in existence was from a sire named Cottonade Emmet, who was a member of the American Breeders Service sire battery in 1952. Semen was collected on Emmet in November 1952 and has been used several times to produce offspring. However, the last time any such offspring was born was in the mid-1980s. Osborndale Ivanhoe, who was probably the most famous Holstein bull of the early semen era, died in November 1963. From time to time calves will still be born from his frozen semen. Ivanhoe was a member of The Atlantic Breeder's Co-op Sire battery. His sons who have had considerable influence include, Penstate Ivanhoe Star, Provin Mtn Ivanhoe Jewel, and Fleetridge Monitor. His grandsons who have dominated the Holstein breed include Carlin-M Ivanhoe Bell, and Round Oak Rag Apple Elevation.
Semen in the early days of artificial insemination was delivered everyday to technicians by bull studs as semen was not frozen at this point. It was not until the addition of glycerol to semen extenders that semen could be frozen. In those early days semen was extended by bulls stud into a type of bottle, or test tube, kept at low temperatures, and delivered to technicians usually everyday. The freezing process was discovered by a man named Polge. It was placed in containers called glass ampules, sealed, frozen in dry ice and alcohol and kept in that type of solution until it was needed for insemination. Later the liquid nitrogen refrigerator was invented by Union Carbide with money given to them by John Rockefeller Prentice, who used it exclusively for his bull stud before a number of years later giving it to the entire artificial insemination (A.I.) industry at no charge or royalty. Liquid nitrogen boils at −195.79 °C (77 K; −320 °F), which allows very little deterioration of bovine semen. The ampules were fastened to a cane which was placed inside the canister. The process of insemination involves transferring the ampule to an water/ice bath. The ampule thaws for several minutes and when opened, the semen is drawn up into a pipette.
Other semen packages that have been tried include the "Magic Wand" developed by Badger Breeders Co-op in the mid-1960s. This was a frozen pipette that contained about .75 cc of extended semen. With the use of a connector and adapter which had a syringe or rubber bulb attached it was air thawed or thawed in the cow. The frozen polybulb was another semen package that had some usage. Semen was actually placed in a plastic polybulb and frozen on canes. The polybulb was thawed, sealed end cut, and attached to a pipette. The semen expelled through the pipette. There were several size of ampules used during the early days. The 1cc ampules were used by Curtiss Breeding Service, .75cc ampules were used by Tri-State Breeders Co-op, and the .50cc ampules were almost excursively used by American Breeders Service. The .75 and 1cc ampules were usually attached six to a metal cane. The .50 cc ampules were attached eight per cane.