By CELESTE BAUMGARTNER
Ohio Correspondent

OKEANA, Ohio — The Butler County Lamb Assoc. (BCLA) will offer breeding soundness exams this Saturday from 9 a.m.-noon and Aug. 17 from 5-7 p.m.

The testing will be done at Bill and Debbie Lierer’s farm at 2864 Chapel Road in Okeana, Ohio, and is open to anyone in the surrounding area. The Lierers are the owners of Superior Genetics.

The tests will determine if a ram is suffering from heat stress and will also evaluate the ram’s potential breeding ability, said Jeff Korb, vice president of the BCLA. A low percentage of rams are sterile, but many have reduced fertility. Research has shown that 10-15 percent of rams that are given a BSE fail or have questionable fertility.

This summer’s hot weather can cause heat stress in rams. According to The Ohio State University extension specialist Roger High, the primary reason rams go infertile and won’t breed with ewes is because of heat stress. Genetics and the amount of wool a ram is carrying can also be factors.

“The advantage of having a ram tested is herd improvement and herd growth, making sure that you are getting the offspring you wanted and that the rams are ready to breed,” Korb said.

“I had an acquaintance who had a ram that last year was not viable. Instead of having January and February lambs as he had hoped, he ended up with April babies. That knocked him out of the loop for the year.”

The rams will be tested for motility and mobility. Mobility is how active the sperm cells are and motility is the concentration and the quality of the sperm cells, Korb said. The test will take about 10 minutes.

“The main reason for testing is to find out how viable the semen is and what the concentration is,” added Bill Lierer. “It is a good thing for people to do, or you can go the whole year without a lamb crop. It is getting more important each year to do this because of higher genetics being used in breeding.”

Superior Genetics usually travels to the client’s farm for testing. They semen-check between 3,000-4,000 bulls a year and collect from about 150 bulls. For convenience, they are offering these ram tests at their farm.

To schedule a breeding soundness evaluation, contact Korb at 513-939-8753 or e-mail jkorb@gmail.com

For information on Superior Genetics, contact the Lierers at 513-659-3147.