SERVICES AVAILABLE BY ROUTE DELIVERY

Service areas

DEAN WITTENBACH of Ionia MI is a full-time route service representative for Mich Livestock Service Inc in the central counties of Michigan's lower peninsula. He gets as far NE as Gladwin, NW as Pentwater, SW as Allegan, SE as Jackson. This route service is provided on a scheduled eight-week interval (in some areas, a monthly call back can be arranged).

Interested customers outside this area are delivered by Greg Palen by appointment. In the Thumb, we are affiliated with Dan Rich, 911 W Forester Rd, Sandusky MI 48471 (ph 810-648-2373) who operates a similar service.

Services available

LIQUID NITROGEN DELIVERY. Dairy customers are recharged every eight weeks. Beef customers are recharged every eight weeks (in breeding season) and then every twelve weeks (in storage season). We also service goat breeders and veterinary/medical clinics, as space is available on the routes. Most billings are done per annual contract rate, unless your situation (as in a clinic use or with seasonal graziers) suggests a per-fill rate.

SEMEN INVENTORY ON ROUTE. We currently have a Semex inventory which we have discounted for a clearance sale. This is being replaced with inventory from Taurus Service, International Protein Sires, and Excalibur Sires, all of whom are independent USA-based sire sampling systems. Breeds in stock (Dairy) are: Holstein, Red & White, Jersey, Ayrshire, Brown Swiss, Guernsey, Milking Shorthorn, Normande, and Dutch Belted. We specialize in sources of polled dairy sires, which is of increasing interest, and in breeding strategy to improve cow fertility, calf vigor, and productive life, which is clearly the major concern of today's dairymen.

MATING CONSULTATION. Greg Palen provides "aAa" (Weeks Analysis) Breeding Guide upon request. This service is very economical ($5 or less per cow lifetime). This provides a phenotype inventory of your herd, from which sires can be directly selected from any AI organization on your own criteria. Dean Wittenbach has an adept recall of transmitting patterns of sires and will advise you on route from his 20+ year experience in the DHIA and AI services, at no charge. We also provide updated charts for self-selection from our current lineup, based entirely upon official USDA and Breed Association data..

ANIMAL CARE PRODUCT LINE. We maintain a "Farm Store" display at our HQ, 110 N Main St, Ovid MI 48866 at which over 200 product items are in stock. We offer daily UPS shipment or route schedule delivery on these products. (Watch for the web file we will develop on this service) To seek an item, just call us TOLL FREE at 1(800)359-1693. We stock probiotics; vaccines; ID supplies: AI supplies: heat detection aids; group calf feeders; dairy sanitation chemicals; show and fair tack; semen/nitrogen tanks; protective clothing and boots; wormers; electrolytes; fly and pest controls.

AI/ REFRESHER TRAINING. Greg Palen is available by appointment. We teach mostly one on one at your farm, but will also do small schools upon request (limit 12 students at one time). New student fee is usually $75. Refresher fee is the same hourly rate as applies to Ov-Synch (below).

OV SYNCH BREEDING. Greg Palen is available by appointment. This works for both seasonal dairy graziers and beef cow-calf customers. We charge a simple hourly rate ($25), plus mileage one way.

CUSTOM SEMEN AND TANK STORAGE. We have capacity tanks at our office for thousands of straws of semen, which is used currently by many dairy, beef, goat and horse breeders to store custom collected semen on their prize bulls, billys or stallions (as well as embryos). We have a supply of UPS vapor phase shipping containers that can be rented to ship semen from this storage to your clients across the country. We also store semen tanks at the office as an economical alternative to off-season nitrogen delivery at your farm (saves you approx 33% on the yearly delivery rate).

SEED SOURCING FOR GRAZING AND HIGH ENERGY FEEDING. Our newest connection is courtesy of the Byron Seed Co, Byron IN, who are the Michigan-Indiana-Illinois-W Ohio Distributors for Barenbrug USA and Jung Seeds . The goal of the Byron Seed Company is to provide the latest in high energy forages, which includes not only grasses but also grazable legumes, brassicas, high digestible corn (for silage) and sudex varieties. While we have a lot yet to learn in this area, we see some of our most profitable customers using these forages and being very happy with the improvement in feed cost and herd health that high energy, high digestible fiber, full season forages bring.

In summary, we can provide every basic service you would ever need in your AI breeding program. As an independent company, we are more willing to work with you on special services no longer offered by large AI cooperatives, where the emphasis is increasingly on selling you something, rather than developing a relationship.