March 15, 1989

Just a quick note to relay the breeding information on our Fall calving herd as per our phone conversations in December. The cows failed to synchronize with syncromate implants, In fact, upon probing the cows at the time of the implant removal, the readings from the Ovatec indicated the cows were already in heat (i.e. values less than 90) while carrying the implants. This is physiologically impossible but we continued to probe every 12 hours. Readings fluctuated over the next 4 days from 74 to 50 with no visible signs of standing estrus, This is where I called you and after checking the machine malfunction, you suggested that it appeared to be copper deficiency as outlined on page 14 of the manual for operation of the Ovatec.

After consulting the nutritionist at the feed mill where the mineral supplement was purchased and some calculations based on mineral intake, these cows were indeed short on copper. They received only 1/1000 of the required for 4 months prior to breeding. We immediately injected Copper glycinate and started the inclusion of Copper sulfate in the mineral. Three weeks later the cows were resynchronized and the readings again followed the expected pattern for normal estrous. To date I have not palpated for pregnancy as cleanup bulls were not removed until January 20, 1989. Palpation should be done by the end of March and I'll let you know the outcome. During breeding however, the cows did show riding behavior so I assume all went well.

Hair samples from 3 cows were obtained before and after copper supplementation and are waiting to be sent for mineral analysis. This is definitely a subject we wish to pursue in the near future.

Thank you for your assistance and time and I'll be in touch.

Sincerely,

Dr. Glen R. Wehner, Associate Professor Animal Science
Northeast Missouri State University
Kirksville, MO 63501

Testimonials

".....it's been quite a while since you have last heard anything from us here in the Netherlands. We have had a chance to use the Ovatec and we really surprised with it's results. All of our mares have foaled now, and we were surprised to see that the predictions which we have made as to the sex of the foal were all correct! We were also able to get our 24 year old mare inseminated and yup, she's pregnent! We were able to see that she had an infection that we treated thanks to the Ovatec."

"I have had my Ovatec since 1987, and except for the battery being replaced a couple of times, it still works perfectly!"

..."The Ovatec is indeed accurate in predicting sex....I have found it very accurate in pinpointing ovulation time in mares...With the advent of A.I. in certain breeds, it is very important to have an Ovatec.."

"I own a 20 year old Paso Fino mare that I had been trying unsuccessfully to breed for four years. The vets had treated her for infections...still no results. They recommended that I give up trying and replace the mare...the Ovatec showed that the mare was still infected...and that she was ovulating a couple days before she showed any signs of heat...she was bred according to the Ovatec readings and she settled on the first breeding"

• Fine-tune synchronization Ovatec can be the final link in a successful, efficient program, and it eliminates the cost of second shots on non-ovulators.
• Clues to nutritional problems Unusual Ovatec readings have already helped overcome calcium and phosphorus excess, copper deficiency, and inadequate Vitamin A intake.

"Since purchasing the Ovatec, we have been able to improve our conception rate from 76% to 92%. We have changed our calving interval from 13 to 12 month. Also, by breeding specifically for heifers with Ovatec, we have had 90% heifers born. We have also been able to detect health problems that we were unable to detect with our previous procedures, and monitor our mineral balances in the herd. Needless to say the skepticism we originally had was quickly over shadowed by the precise reliability of the Ovatec system"

"We have been have been using the Ovatec for the 13 years. Our goal when we started using Ovatec, was to get the problem cows in calf. The first few days showed us a lot of health problems we didn’t know we had and it made a believer out of our Vet. The Ovatec is not only accurate, but it is a time and money saver as well. We’ve been rolling out the heifers ever since.