If you work in the corporate world, or just exist in the year 2025, you can’t walk five feet or scroll the internet without hearing about AI. Artificial Intelligence, data centers, energy loads, and the wildly unnecessary overuse of the em dash, it’s everywhere.

But here at Deer Creek Pastures, while I may work in technology by day, I’m much more bullish on a different kind of AI: Artificial Insemination (see what I did there?).

The tech world is certainly abuzz, but my immediate, real-world focus is on two very important ladies, Blanche and Betty, and getting them ready for motherhood, round two.

The Post-Partum Program

Blanche, the proud mom of Beatrice (born in August), and Betty, the equally proud mom of Bunny (born in September), have delivered two beautiful, healthy calves as first-time mothers (heifers). Now, the clock is ticking.

Running a seed stock operation and committing to a closed herd, meaning I’m keeping all the heifer calves born here until I reach my target size, requires an annual calving cycle. Generally, the best practice is to give the cow about 60 days post-calving to recover before she gets pregnant again. They’ve served their time, and it’s time to get back to work.

Note, I may change my mind on keeping a closed herd at some point, but for now it feels like the easiest way to keep my farm biosecure following the sheep fiasco I’ve been dealing with. 

No Boys Allowed

When it comes to impregnating cows, you have options. There’s the old-fashioned way: turning them out with a bull for a few months (usually long enough to catch two heat cycles). Then, there’s the more scientific route: AI, or even going full science-nerd with embryo implants.

I’ve chosen AI for now. The simple truth? I’m still too green in the cattle industry to safely house and contain a bull. Bulls are large, they can be aggressive, and they can challenge fences in search of female companionship. Securing a creature that size within my fencelines is an undertaking I’m just not ready for yet.

So, for the safety and sanity of everyone on the farm and neighboring herds, we’re doing this the modern way and will be impregnating Blanche and Betty via AI.

The Art of the Heat Cycle

Once they have made it past their post-partum window, the next step in the AI process is tracking the ladies’ natural heat cycles. You can try to synchronize the whole process using a CIDR, which involves implanting a hormone device to bring them into heat, but I’ve opted to track their heats naturally. And I’ve already noticed Blanche displaying a few of the telltale signs since Beatrice arrived.

What does a cow in heat look like? Well, imagine a 1,000 pound moody animal suddenly realizing they need to go somewhere, right now. They run the fence line, pacing and looking for a bull. They may even try to ride each other. It’s a sight.

To catch that perfect moment, I’m placing Estrotect patches on their tail heads. These patches have an indicator that gets rubbed off when the cow is in “standing heat.” Once that happens, we bring in the AI technician for the main event, inserting the semen straw 12 to 18 hours later once standing heat was detected, with the timing depending on whether we use conventional or sexed semen (semen optimized to give a better chance of a bull or heifer calf, depending on my needs). When tracking heats, you have to monitor the cows closely morning and night so that you can time insemination appropriately and optimize the chances of the pregnancy catching.

From Research and Carpentry to Semen Straws

Preparing for this has been a serious labor of love. I’m talking about more than just researching patches and perspective sires, I had to completely overhaul my barn setup.

With a kind neighbor’s help, we built a proper alleyway leading through the barn. Then, I tested the absolute limits of my amateur woodworking skills by building my very own head catch at the end of the alley. This secure spot is where Blanche and Betty will wait patiently for the AI technician, who will perform the insemination right behind the secured cow.

The two hardest parts of the entire process, though, have been choosing the sire and coordinating the logistics. Five years ago, I didn’t know there was an entire market, literal catalogs (both digital and print) dedicated to bull semen. The popularity of a given bull can depend on such variables as the marketing of the farm that owns him as well as whether he is still alive along with his Expected Progeny Data (“EPDs”).  Now, I have gone deep down the rabbit hole of EPDs for countless potential sires to explore what might match well with my girls for a genetically optimal calf.

• Blanche: She’s a bit smaller, so I need a bull with a low birth weight EPD to ensure an easy delivery.
• Betty: She’s a big girl, but she doesn’t shed her winter coat well in the summer. For her, the “hair score” on the EPD is a real consideration.
• Both: For both girls, I am aiming to choose a sire with good calving ease and high docility scores, both of which are tracked via genetic data by the American Angus Association.

Bunny’s sire was Broken Bow, and Beatrice’s was Hoover Dam, both formidable and popular choices. But I am eager to try a variety of sires to truly optimize the genetics of my burgeoning herd. Getting the semen straws in small quantities (since I don’t have my own liquid nitrogen tanks) has been its own logistical challenge.

Thankfully, through a fellow cattle farmer, I connected with a bull semen dealer, who then put me in touch with a local AI technician. He’s already visited the farm to check out the setup, meet the cows, and discuss my plans.

Bullish on AI

I work in technology, so the AI buzz is something I hear about on the daily. But let me tell you, I’m much more bullish on Artificial Insemination in cattle. The process has been an extreme learning curve. I’ve spent more hours than I care to admit researching different bulls and running numbers, trying to figure out how the sire’s EPDs match up with the dam’s for the most promising calves.

As of now, I’m on track to catch both cows in their next heat cycle and successfully breed them. The final sire selection is still TBD, but healthy calves in the Fall of 2026 will be a blessing, regardless of who the baby daddies are! Let me know in the comments if you have a favorite sire that you’ve used in  your herd.