[chigarden]

I'm seriously considering getting an AI tank and learning to AI my Nigerian Does and have a few questions

How often do the tanks have to be filled ?

When you purchase semen and go to register the kids do you need anything from the previous owner of the male (or the person you are buying the semen from) ?

If I sell semen from my boys do I have to do anything for the buyers ?

Thanks All !

 

[Little-Bits-N-Pieces]

It depends on the tank you buy. It could need refilled every month or ever 7 months.

They normally give you an A.I slip to register the kids.

Now if you sold it, I believe you would have to give them a slip for the A.I

 

[ptgoats45]

My tank has to be filled about every 5 months. I check it weekly though, because you don't want to end up with your tank going through nitrogen faster than normal and have it get too low.

You don't get anything with the semen when you buy it. after you AI the doe, the information you need is on the straw. You print out an AI memo from ADGA and fill it out with the bucks name, reg number, date collected, and the name of the collecter. All of this info is found on the straw. You also put the date AI'd and if you did it you sign as the technician. The above info isn't just handed out because then anyone could register any kids as being AI kids from that buck even if they aren't.

If you sell semen all you need to do is transfer it from your tank to theirs, or if they or you have a shipper tank, put it in the shipper and send it off. When they AI their does they get all the info they need to register kids from the straw.

 

[TDG-Farms]

Our 20/20 tank. Meaning it holds 20 liters i believe needs filled about ever 4 months. But there is a lot of semen in there. The more you have the more often you need to fill it. We found a great place we take our tank to. The guy who used to come around and fill em died and the people who do the nitro for the cow people around here are total jerks. But only costs us 40.00 to have it filled.

ADGA registration applications have places to put the straw number on the app if I am not mistaken. But you want to always keep the straws incase of an issue later on.

 

[Little-Bits-N-Pieces]

Good info, didn't know that, I only deal with friends with the A.I so far!

 

[chigarden]

Thanks ! That is the info I was looking for

still trying to weigh the pros/cons of a tank.

Pro's
1) being able to utilize bucks that are not in my immediate area thus giving me greater genetic diversity

2) being able to collect my bucks and share

Con's
1) success rate of AI (not sure this is a con, as I hear a thousand different success percentages LOL)

2) potential loss of semen if tank dies

3) potential cost of keeping tank running
Both 2 & 3 are unknowns to me which is why I started this thread

Please add your ideas !

 

[ptgoats45]

It costs me about $30 every time I fill mine. Sometimes if I get the right guy (I go to AirGas), he doesn't charge me. He claims they lose so much when they fill the tanks, it's no big deal not to charge me You should be able to have it filled at any welding supply store, just make sure to find one that has already been filling tanks for other people. I checked at one store and they said they would not do it because the one time they did the person had their tank fail right afterwards and lost all of their semen.

The tank failing is probably the biggest con to AI. You can't predict when it will happen, or if it will happen. Even with a brand new tank, it could be defective and fail on you. Most manufacturers have a warranty on the tank, but they do not compensate for lost semen (when you lose it that $10 a straw semen turns into $100 per straw semen ) Buying a used tank can be risky, never get one that has been allowed to go dry, that is supposed to damage the insulation in the tank and make it not hold semen. There are certain surfaces you aren't supposed to set a tank on, I can't remember exactly which ones (metal I think is one) so I keep mine on a piece of cardboard just to be safe. You also do not want to store the tank in a living area/room. If it is leaking it can cause asphyxiation. Nitrogen is also extremely cold ( -320 fahrenheit if I remember right) so you do need to be careful not to ever get any of it on you as it will cause instant freeze burn. You can pick up the canes with your fingers, put you don't want to hold them very long as they are very cold. I keep my tank in the house, but it is in an area that is between the living room and the kitchen and near the front door, so people aren't constantly in the same room with it.

I do know a long time Saanen breeder who had one of his tanks fail while he was at Nationals one year. He said the tank was completely full, most of the semen was from purebred Saanen bucks who were long dead and he was the only one who had the semen from them so it was definitely irreplaceable. He also had most of it sold, pending shipment. He valued the semen in the tank at $10,000 so it was a huge loss for him. There are some places around that will store semen for you, I'm thinking they are insured so if something happens while it is there you get compensated for it. I do know people who store their excess semen at these places, partly so they have more room in their tank and also so that in the event their tank does fail they still have some semen.

 

[ptgoats45]

Thought I would add. when you get a new tank it is recommended to have it filled for a couple months before putting semen in it to make sure it is working properly. You also want to check the level of your semen often (the tank will come with a ruler that you put down in the tank, to the bottom, pull it out wave it around a little and where the frost line is that is how many centimeters of nitrogen are still in the tank).