During the fall, many ranches look forward to preg-checking. The excitement, the tradition, the camaraderie are all important parts of the day. You have worked hard to manage your cattle and hope for a great preg rate, but are you utilizing all your tools to get the most out of preg-checking? A little forethought in the areas of when to preg-check, the type of ultrasound equipment used, the animals’ feed, the facilities and the level of expertise will allow you to set up for success and manage expectations.

  • Timing — The window in which you present animals to preg-check is important! Work with your veterinarian to determine their optimal window for how far along the cows are. Ultrasound technology can offer more data than just pregnant/open, for example: age, sex, viability, and multiples. If an ultrasound is being used to diagnose pregnancy, there are some factors to consider:
    • Preg-checking the animals when they are between 45-110 days along is the optimal time to get the most data quickly. This is also the ideal window to make preg-checking simpler with an extension arm.
    • If you want to determine A.I. versus bull bred, it is important to preg-check early. A 70-day baby looks dramatically different than a 50-day baby.

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    • It can become quite challenging to determine A.I. vs bull bred once the fetus has dropped over the pelvic brim (see graphic of 110 vs. 120).

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  • Equipment — The type of equipment that is used may affect how much data you can obtain quickly. The probe type determines the size of the viewing window you see through into the cow. A linear probe is a smaller window, while the convex probe is a much larger window. Ask your veterinarian what type of probe they use and time frame they prefer to preg-check cattle in.
    • The type of ultrasound used will affect how much data you can obtain from preg-checking. For example, if your vet is using a linear probe, arm in, it will be much harder to know more than pregnant/open once the fetus has dropped off the pelvic brim. Linear probes excel at preg-checking very early stages but are not ideal for longer breds. Convex probes (also known as curvilinear probes) have a much larger scanning area than a linear probe — up to 7 times. Convex probes are ideal for extension arm preg-checking and determining A.I. vs bull bred.

      Updated linear vs convex

  • A Messy Situation — One thing most people don’t think about before preg-checking is manure quality. The consistency of manure can make a huge difference on speed, accuracy, and the data obtained. Ultrasound utilizes sound waves, and therefore, a liquid medium is required for the waves to pass through. If the manure is too dry, the image quality will be poor. This will affect the ability to see the open uterus or look for details such as age measurements. Talk with your veterinarian to determine the best way to ensure loose manure the day of preg-checking.
    • One of the simplest tricks is not holding the animals off of feed and water before preg-checking.
    • Whenever possible, make sure there is access to water in the holding pens. Often you will notice that the image quality is poorer in the afternoon as the animals dry out.
    • Having J-Lube on hand may also help improve image quality. Just add some to your bucket of water.
    • The best days preg-checking are the messiest.
  • Complete Setup — Before preg-check, consider the entire situation and adjust your level of expectations for the data accordingly. For example, if there are ratchet straps, baling twine and a prayer holding the pens/chute together, don’t expect to fetal sex the herd. Fetal sexing takes a lot of skill and slow, precise movements. If the cow is jumping around in a loose chute and another is climbing through the back gate, those precise movements will be a challenge.
    • Additionally, I recommend that the ultrasound equipment is in a safe location … not right in the way of where the heifer will turn back around. With ReproScan equipment, we recommend that the equipment be mounted onto the chute whenever possible. We have found that we repair fewer machines this way.

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  • Education — Lastly, consider who is ultrasounding and what are the realistic expectations of their skills.
    • The natural progression of learning to ultrasound is: finding pregnants → learning to identify the open uterus → fetal aging → (long gap) fetal sexing. 
    • Learning to interpret what is depicted on the ultrasound takes some time, and training can drastically reduce the learning curve. Check out some of ReproScan’s training resources online.

Overall, ultrasounding cattle will allow you to quickly determine opens and, therefore, offer additional data, allowing you to make more-informed management decisions. A bit of forethought will make your preg-checking day a bit easier.

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Written by Elle Terhaar (ReproScan Technologies, LLC).