Frequently Asked Questions

Ovum pick-up is extremely safe, with very low risk to donors. Prior to the procedure, the donor will receive epidural anesthesia, blocking all sensitivity of the ovaries and ensuring maximum comfort.

Donors must be physically mature enough for the technician to perform the OPU procedure. Because our process does not require hormone injections to set up donors for OPU, a qualified donor can be any female in your herd, including heifers as young as 6 months of age, open cows past 15 days postpartum and pregnant animals up to 100 days of gestation.

There is no set-up required prior to our IVF process, as we do not use follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) at any point. This allows producers the opportunity to select any donor, at any time, for IVF, while providing several benefits for the animal, the product and your operation.

No hormones added here! Our IVF process is open to all organic cattle operations.

Our OPU procedure can be done as early as one week post breeding and continue up to 100 days of gestation. Keep in mind that the embryo is most susceptible to stress between days 5 to 42. Stress from transportation is likely greater than stress from the OPU process itself.

On average, OPU takes about 10 to 15 minutes per donor, but varies by the amount of follicles.

Ovarian tissue is capable of extremely fast regeneration, allowing safe collection from the same donor as soon as seven days after the first collection. Work with a Vytelle technician to customize an OPU schedule for each donor, dependent on embryo needs. For best results, we recommend most donors be aspirated every two weeks.

On average, dairy cattle produce around 23 oocytes per OPU, while beef cattle produce around 25 oocytes per OPU.

Yes. Young and prepubertal donors can produce many oocytes, although they typically have a lower embryonic conversion rate. For mature cows, the oocyte to embryo conversion rate is estimated to be around 25-30% (grade 1 embryos only). Prepubertal females tend to have lower conversion rates, around 15-20%.

We can collect from animals as young as 6 months of age, but results tend to improve once a heifer reaches sexual maturity or first heat.

There is no difference in the number or quality of oocytes collected, with or without the use of FSH. FSH simply increases the follicle size; it does not increase the quantity of oocytes available. Vytelle certified technicians are trained to aspirate small follicles, which allows them to achieve consistent collection rates, comparable to those animals given FSH.

There is no difference in the number or quality of oocytes collected, with or without the use of FSH. FSH simply increases the follicle size; it does not increase the quantity of oocytes available. Vytelle certified technicians are trained to aspirate small follicles, which allows them to achieve consistent collection rates, comparable to those animals given FSH.

Yes. If more than 30 oocytes are recovered from a donor, multiple sires can be used to fertilize the oocytes.

Final embryo numbers are available 9 days after the OPU or 8 days after fertilization takes place.

Embryos can be exported, but if you plan to export your embryos, please inform Vytelle prior to the OPU process as every country has different requirements and factors involved.