Further your genetic gainSexed semen ticks the boxes for Canterbury farmer
Use sexed semen on heifers to help achieve good quality early replacements
Sexed Genetics
Sexed Genetics
High genetic merit heifers
- Further your genetic gain
- Increase value of surplus calves
- Use on your best cows
Sexed Genetics
Use CRV’s sexed genetics to lift herd performance and get replacement heifers from your best cows.
Reasons to use frozen sexed genetics from CRV include:
- Each pregnancy from sexed genetics gives a 90% chance of a heifer.
- Sexed semen is available from CRV’s highest indexing bulls, recognising that farmers want quality replacements from their best cows.
- You’ll have more control. Get exactly the sire you order and manage their mating allocation on the day.
The use of sexed genetics continues to grow in New Zealand with CRV continually investing in technology to give farmers access to what they need, when they need it.
Interested in using CRV Sexed Genetics?
Fill out the form below and we’ll put you in touch with your local field consultant.
Get in touchKurt and Katie are breeding success
“We’ve found no difference in our in-calf rate using sexed semen and the nominated sires have worked well for us in building a solid uniform herd that will last the distance. Using sexed semen also means we can be 90% sure we will get a replacement heifer calf.”
Kurt Parry, Taranaki Sharemilker
Ian Hopping’s herd fertility is a top priority
“The key reasons I chose sexed semen was for faster genetic gain, easier calving and early replacements”.
Ian Hopping, Dairy Farmer Canterbury
Ian's Experience with CRV Sexed Semen
Many farmers are also using sexed semen to strategically improve herd replacements, and then mate the remainder of their herd with dairy-beef genetics.
Mount Maunganui based farm owner Ian Hopping invested in sexed semen for the first time last season. He chose it as an easy calving option for his heifers that would help ensure replacements from his genetically best animals. After an unexpectedly high conception rate, he is thrilled with his return on investment.
Ian owns two converted dairy farms in Canterbury and lower order sharemilkers manage 1000 cows on each property, milking twice a day. The predominantly Friesian herds average 550kgsMS per cow.
“We wanted high quality Friesian calves from our Friesian yearling heifers which have some of our best genetics,” says Ian.
“In the past, if we had calving difficulty with a heifer, 90% of the time she would have a bull calf. So, we took bull calves out of the equation by going to sexed semen.
“Calving of our heifers this Spring has gone really well, with approximately 400 heifer calves born in July and 10% bulls, which we expected. Until we get DNA results back, I can’t confirm how many heifer calves resulted from the sexed semen, but looking in the calf sheds, we are more than happy with the result.”
Ian says using sexed semen also allowed him to get enough replacements early and mate a larger percentage of his milking herd with short gestation Belgian Blue, to help condense his calving.
The milking herds are mated to CRV conventional Friesian straws for 4 weeks and the Belgian Blue for 5 weeks. Ian says the Belgian Blue had proven to be easy calving and the calf rearers loved them.
Podcast: Driving Genetic Gains Using Sexed Genetics
Rosanna talks about the ins and outs of sexed genetics with Marleen Broekhuijse from CRV HQ in The Netherlands and Canterbury dairy farmer Ian Hopping.
Listen nowFrequently asked questions
How are sexed genetics produced?
- The semen is put through a preliminary quality control process to make sure it is viable and motile.
- The cells are then stained and loaded onto the technology platform where we identify the sex skew in the sample.
- A sperm cell containing female DNA is heavier and more dense than male DNA. When cells are passing by detection laser, the software can then detect the difference in DNA content.
- The system will then identify the female cells that we’re interested in and use another laser to inactivate the unwanted cells. The desired cells and the inactivated cells are combined and included in the straw. Cells are prepared with the right buffers for freezing and packaged at the right concentration.
- The straws are then frozen. Each batch must pass stringent quality control criteria and is then ready for transport to customers on farm.
What are the recommendations for pre-mating if I plan on using frozen sexed genetics?
Pre-mating management will be similar to conventional semen. To get the best possible results:
- Ensure cows are in good condition from calving to mating.
- Make sure all staff are up to scratch with identifying cows on heat and your farms heat detection process.
- Record pre-mating heats so you are utilising sexed gentics on cows that have cycled prior.
- Utilise CRV ESTROTECT heat detectors to help you and staff identify cows on heat.
- Breed cows at the right time, when a cow first shows signs of estrus it is still too soon for her to be inseminated for optimal conception rates. The optimum time to inseminate is 18-22 hours after first signs of standing heat.
- If you question if the cow is really on heat, put her to conventional genetics.
- We do not recommend using sexed genetics in any synchrony programme.
Should sexed genetics be handled differently?
Our AI technicians are trained on handling sexed genetics. If you are a DIY inseminator, make sure you’ve had your AI technique reviewed in the past three years.
For more information check the guide here.
What about conception rate of sexed genetics?
While there is a slight reduction in cow conception rates when compared to conventional semen products sexed genetics is a great option.
Each pregnancy from sexed genetics gives farmers a 90% chance of a heifer calf. This means getting replacements from elite cows, building herd numbers, or creating value through excess heifer sales is a real option to drive herd improvement progress and profitability.