Censortec Ireland’s Nedap CowControl system catches the heats of millions of dairy cows every day and helps dairy farmers worldwide to improve reproduction results and labor efficiency. It automatically monitors the activity and tracks the signs of heat and health of all cows 24/7.
“The reality in Ireland is that the average heat detection rates on the national herd in the first three weeks is 65% and the cost associated with a high submission rate and low pregnancy rate are extremely significant,” says Donagh Crowley of Censortec.
“Nedap CowControl is the global leader in heat detection aids and the system, coupled with the correct farm support and training, could benefit a 100-cow dairy herd by up to €8,000 per annum.”
Benefits at a glance:
- Increased heat detection rates;
- Increased submission rates (reduced missed heats);
- Increased conception rates (better timing of AI);
- Increased pregnancy rates;
- Shorter calving intervals;
- More days in milk;
- More milk per cow;
- Reduction of fertility / insemination costs;
- Peace of mind with more control over your herd’s reproduction.
PJ O Donoghue is farming with Censortec Nedap CowControl in north Cork.
“It is like having a person looking after the cows for you, during that busy breeding season,” he said.
Nedap Livestock Management is the global leader in farming automation using individual animal identification.
Nedap’s easy-to-use technology helps farmers manage millions of dairy cattle and pigs 24 hours a day, in more than 100 countries.
Drafting systems
Censortec drafting systems are specifically designed and installed for each individual farm. The system can draft cows into multiple locations. The system is robust and hassle free.
The main benefit of the system is the integration with Censortec Nedap CowControl. This will separate cows that need to be examined for health or heat detection reasons automatically based on the Nedap CowControl software.
Integrating the drafting gate with the animal health monitoring systems is a huge labour saver during an extremely busy time on farm. All cows that need to be examined are penned automatically.
Censortec Nedap CowControl system will monitor every cow in the herd for:
Heat Activity Monitoring
There are only 1.5 mounts per hour per cow and each mount lasts 4-6 seconds. A cow’s heat lasts 6-8 hours.
Collectively, these numbers tell us cows are in heat for one-third of the day and spend just 3-5 minutes standing to be mounted. That’s a very small window to catch a heat.
Heat activity of cows tends to be lowest during feeding and milking times. Approximately 70% of mounting occurs between 7pm and 7am, when cows have limited distractions. That’s 70% of the herd coming into heat during the night-time.
“Activity monitoring takes on the full-time job of heat detection,” says Sean Crowley of Censortec. “These systems also rely on other indicators, like sniffing and chin resting, to make sure heats don’t get missed.”
Resumption of cyclicity
She simply may not be cycling (annovular). With an activity monitoring system, you can act proactively by finding these problem cows quicker, then solving the cause of the fertility problem or providing an effective treatment to resolve it – ultimately, getting them bred faster.
“Instead of missing the heat altogether and waiting for the next cycle, activity monitors give you actionable insights to dig deeper into why a cow didn’t come into heat.”
Conception
“Inseminating cows at the right time matters to your dairy’s bottom-line, so it’s important to catch cows in heat when it’s most productive to breed them,” says Sean Crowley.
“Activity monitors are a tool to track heats 24/7 so you don’t have to spend time watching for heats or worry about missing a heat.
However, to catch cows in heat, cows need to physically show their heats. Having appropriate environmental and management protocols in place will help ensure you never miss a single heat.
To learn more about heat detection with activity monitoring systems and how they can help your farm reach its productivity goals, visit: www.censortec.com.
Interface Software
As it is well documented at this stage, each missed heat can cost an Irish dairy farmer a minimum of €250.
The system is extremely accurate and indicates to the farmer the optimum time for insemination; therefore boosting submission rates and reducing the calving interval.
The system monitors the herd with regards to eating and rumination, allowing the farmer to act quickly with regard to sick cows and therefore significantly reducing veterinary costs.
If the percentage of sick cows in the herd is reduced it will also mean more milk in the tank.
“These are only some of the benefits of the system,” says Sean. “It is very exciting to be bringing the Nedap CowControl system to Irish farmers as Nedap are and have always been the pioneers of animal sensor technology with over 40 years experience in the field.”
More information
Censortec Ireland is a southern-based company with a combined experience of over 50 years in the agricultural technology sector.
Call Censortec today on: 086-8592968; or visit the website at: www.censortec.com.
