Everything related to technology is easier today than it was a couple decades ago. Think about your mobile phone, your flatscreen television, your computer. Even the most basic process of ordering groceries is much simpler today than it was even just a few years ago.
That same technology advancement has come to your dairy operation. A few years ago, those first herd management software systems were nothing like the user-friendly systems available today. Robotic milkers were available, but they weren’t nearly as advanced as today’s models. And heat detection was still based on someone standing and watching for visual signs.
Activity monitoring systems helped change the way we manage cows, and even those systems have come a long way since first introduced. It used to be that cows had to wear clunky neck collars to capture data. While the amount of data collected was useful—anything is better than nothing—it didn’t really paint the full picture of cow health and activity.
Now, with Datamars Livestock technology, all the data you need to make informed decisions and integrates with your other data systems is tucked neatly in an ear tag. All the features to monitor cow activity and indicate health events is there. That same little tag will integrate with your milking system and sort gates to make cattle handling seamless. It will even connect with your walk over weighing system to collect weights automatically.
If you’re looking for a smarter way to farm, look to Tru-Test by Datamars Livestock for the solution.
The Tru-Test Active Tag eartag is the hero of a fully-integrated data management system. It’s the data collector that drives the entire system, collecting animal health insights such as resting, standing, lying, rumination, feeding and activity. It even has the ability to locate cows.
“We really like working with the tags,” says Joe Sattler, herd manager at J & J Pickart Dairy in Malone, Wisconsin. They have Active Tags on nearly every lactating cow in their 700-cow herd. “You put the tags in and you’re just amazed at the amount of information you get back.”
If the Tru-Test Active Tag is the collector, the Gateway is the hub (WiFi, Ethernet or LTE equipped). But don’t let the little box fool you—this little package collects data from up to 1,640 feet away—farther than any other activity monitoring system. The Gateway collects the data from Active Tag and sends it to the cloud.
Another key cog in the data management wheel is the data dashboard, accessed on any web-enabled device. This is where the data is extracted from the cloud and applied to advanced proprietary algorithms and machine learning that turns the raw data into decision making tools. You can adjust your voluntary waiting period, identify cows in heat and breed cows based off an optimal A.I. window. The natural activity of the cow is monitored, and users get early warning of a health event as soon as behavior changes. Insights into group activity is also available to monitor how changes are impacting group activities over time.
“With the Datamars Livestock system, you know 24-7 what she’s doing. It takes a lot of the questions out of what you’re doing and the decisions that need to be made,” says Sattler. “It’s like having an extra set of eyes and another tool in the toolbox. Having that information just paints a more complete picture of what the cow is doing right now.”
Technology continues to advance. Now you can integrate the Tru-Test Active Tag with a sort gate. ID My Cow Sort Gate is state-of-the-art technology that creates exceptional sorting accuracy in an eartag without interference from environmental noise. The read technology doesn’t require line of sight with a reader or antenna, giving you freedom to know the right cows are sorted at the right time for the right interventions.
The Datamars Livestock cloud-based system allows users to access data anytime, anywhere with a mobile device. You can easily share information with key consultants or dairy employees. It also allows you to monitor compliance to herd management protocols, enhancing the ability to train and reward employees based on actual performance.
The amount of data available for analysis on a dairy is almost limitless. To make sense of it takes a system robust enough to collect the data then distill it into information that’s useful for making decisions. It all starts with the Tru-Test Active Tag, accurately collecting mountains of data from every cow, every day. Then the Gateway, which covers more area than any other activity monitoring system, collects data and sends it to the cloud. The real data transformation happens when the Datamars Livestock dashboard pulls data from the cloud and formats it into reports that can be accessed on any computer or mobile device that’s connected to the internet. Those reports show the cows that need attention, accessed by herd managers and employees.
That’s a complete solution for managing your dairy, and it’s all from Datamars Livestock. To get started on your system, contact your local Datamars Livestock Smart Farming representative. Learn more