Ear Sensors: A No-Brainer
Choosing CowManager’s ear sensor system was a ‘no-brainer’ for Cameron, who had been through the full round of visual heat detection systems; putting stickers on cows in a herringbone, which posed occupational health and safety risks for staff. It also meant they had to work with fixed time systems, which didn’t really add up with a small herd.
“I liked the ease of the ear tags but one of the clinchers for choosing CowManager was that Paul (Quinlan, from World Wide Sires Australia) got a personalised quote through to us in just four hours.”
That meant they were able to apply immediately for a government digital technology grant which paid for around 50 percent of the installation cost of the CowManager system. For the family, this made all the difference.
“The grants go out the door pretty fast, so Paul’s quick response made it possible for us to get an application in and receive the grant.”
Keeping Dairy Cows Healthy
Since using the CowManager system, the Bawdens have relied on the Health Module to keep their dairy cows healthy, and have let the Fertility Module guide them through reproduction. They’re well aware of the other modules and extra functionalities, but haven’t had a chance to try them out yet.
“If anything, I would say we are probably not using CowManager to its full potential yet, but we are definitely getting good value for our dairy cows and for ourselves.”
Paul and Cameron installed the ear tags and set up the solar routers around the farm. The system integrates easily with their management system, EasyDairy. One of the benefits of the integration between CowManager and EasyDairy is that there is only one set of data to be input and this is updated once a day.
“CowManager links in very easily for small herds with little automation”, Cameron says. The Bawdens use CowManager mainly for heat detection and cow health alerts.
“I learned very early on to believe the health alerts”, Cameron tells. “At first, when a cow went down, CowManager sent an alert, and I did not act quickly enough. But now, if we’re away, it’s all on the iPhone. If we get a health alert on a cow, we can advise the worker which cow to check.”
He continues: “If we suspect a health problem ourselves, we can check the cow’s health and its rumination in the CowManager system to confirm.”
Saving Time and Money on Repro
Heat detection has also become more precise using CowManager and once again, the system can be used to meet their lifestyle choice, as well as improving in-calf rates and making savings on semen.
Since installing CowManager, Cameron says they have halved their semen use. The system tells them exactly when to inseminate, which saves the family a lot of time and product.
“One of the advantages with CowManager is that it gives us optimum timing for joining. This is critical when we’re using sexed semen. In other situations, I can decide whether to use conventional or sexed if I know I’m going to be at basketball. That way, we can work the joining around our lifestyle and optimise our chance of a pregnancy.”
Although he has not ‘crunched the numbers’ on CowManager, Cameron knows they are getting cows in calf quicker. This is because he can look on his phone, check the cow and mate her at the optimum time, ensuring more successful pregnancies.
Enjoying More Family Time
One big benefit for the Bawdens is being able to always keep an eye on their dairy cows with CowManager, while enjoying time off.
The Bawdens are a ‘sports mad’ family and love going to sporting events. Getting the CowManager system means they’re now able to enjoy their sporting commitments without compromising the success of their dairy business.
Their two daughters, now 10 and 12, play basketball in Gippsland, Melbourne and in other country regions. It’s not unusual for them to play or train every night of the week and on weekends. Ainsley, the older of the two, is now in the state development program and Cameron also coaches, having been a talented junior basketballer.
“We have one full time and one part time employee,” Cameron says. “The full timer milks in the evenings and that allows us to go to basketball with the kids.”
He continues: “We both enjoy being with the kids and watching them play. CowManager has allowed us to be on the go with the kids five nights a week, and on weekends, when we do a lot of travelling.”
Dairy News Australia
This article was written by Richard Meredith and previously published by Dairy News Australia.