Method and frequency of artificial insemination and turkey fertility

LOW fertility is still a serious problem in producing turkey hatching eggs even though most turkeys are artificially inseminated. Generally, the fertility of turkey eggs is relatively high at the beginning of the breeding season and then declines as the season progresses. Several factors may be responsible for the seasonal decline in fertility. Among these are faulty insemination techniques, as shown by Ogasawara and Rooney (1966), and mechanical spread of infectious organisms from hen to hen by the insemination technique. Many turkey breeders and turkey hatching egg producers are now using a disposable plastic tube for insemination in order to prevent spread of vaginal infection. Although the use of the tube method of insemination has become an established practice commercially, there has been little experimental evidence to show that it is a superior method. In a preliminary report of the present work, Nestor and Brown (1966) observed that the tube . . .