SOUTHRAM - South Iceland Sheep Breeding Centre The South Iceland Sheep Breeding Centre (SOUTHRAM) was founded in 1968 by the Sheep Breeding Clubs in South Iceland. SOUTHRAM is owned by SOUTHAGRI which is financially responsible for SOUTHRAM.
The first autumn that SOUTHRAM sent out fresh semen to farmers and sheep breeders there were total of 2,790 ewes inseminated. The AI participation grew quickly and shortly after the foundation farmers in A-Skaftafellsýsla (sýsla = county) and Kjalarnes became participaters. The fresh semen useage increased till 1983 but when quota was set on lamb meat production the useage of semen declined as a result of lesser breeding interest and downcut in number of sheep in Iceland. In the most recent years breeding interest has increased again and in 2005 over 16,000 ewes were inseminated with SOUTHRAM semen. In 1998 SOUTHRAM started exporting frozen semen to USA.
SOUTHRAM sire facilities at Þorleifskot.
Location SOUTHRAM headquarters are the same as SOUTHAGRI at Austurvegur 1 in the town of Selfoss, South Iceland. The sire facilities are located nearby Selfoss, in Þorleifskot, where the rams are managed and semen collected, handled and prepared for the AI.
SOUTHRAM Policy The policy of SOUTHRAM is to offer semen from a great selection of both horned and polled rams with emphasis is on meat quality, fertility and milk producing abilities of their daughters. Also, now a days there is more and more concern about the wool quality and rams are selected with that in mind. SOUTHRAM is also eager to offer semen of rams with leading abilities and coloured rams, preserving those unique qualities of The Icelandic Sheep.
Conception rate The conception rate difference from year to year and from farm to farm. The average conception rate over a period of years is 72% by one vaginal insemination with fresh semen. Average conception rate using frozen semen by laborascopic AI has been around 75% so we are offering high quality semen. We also offer frozen semen for vaginal AI which the breeder himself can perform himself after a two day course. So far we´ve had about 50% pregnancy rate with frozen semen AI'ed vaginally.
Semen collection The semen collection starts in the beginning of December every year and goes on till after Christmas. In this time of the year the rams are most reproductive which guarentees maximum result of the AI process. Almost all of the semen used domestically is fresh but we also sell frozen semen abroad for both vaginal and laborascopic AI. Semen which is used fresh is collected every morning during the mating season, prepared and sent out as soon as possible. By noon or so the semen is delivered to the inseminators which chill the semen during the day to preserve sperm life. A great maturity of inseminated ewes are inseminated during natural heat, only outstanding breeding ewes are brought into synchronized estrus by PMSG for the purpose of producing breeding rams. The insemination takes place at the farms by vaginal AI.
