One Story, Many Farms

No matter where a farm is located, cost is always part of the conversation. In Ireland, dairy farmer Sean Corby put it plainly: “Like all farmers, I’d like tools to be cheaper – but CowManager is a fantastic product and working very well here so far.”

That balance between investment and results is familiar everywhere. Farmers weigh every decision carefully, and value becomes clear only when a system proves itself over time.

For Canadian farmer Lynn Moore, that proof came through years of use. “I believe I’ve had CowManager since 2015 and I couldn’t be happier. It’s an excellent product; keep it up!”

Sticking with a system for nearly a decade isn’t about features on paper. It’s about consistency, trust, and knowing the system supports better decisions year after year.

From Tool to Partnership

With the right results and support, a tool becomes a partnership.

For many farmers, confidence in technology grows step by step. In the United States, farmer Ryan Carbaugh from Waterside Farm described how results in one part of the operation led to broader adoption.

“I enjoy CowManager. It really works. We started using it on our heifers and had instant success: heifers bred on first and second services. We’re now experimenting with it in our tie stall barn and pasture setup. Seeing those results made me jump in.”

That’s how technology earns its place on a farm. Not through promises, but by delivering results where it matters most.

For others, the value goes beyond performance alone. Catching issues early can make the difference between a small intervention and a serious setback – for both cows and farmers.

In Germany, animal welfare is a top priority for farmer Uwe Petzold: “We’re very satisfied. From an animal welfare point of view, I think the system should be mandatory. We were able to treat cows before major problems occurred.”

Why These Stories Matter

Real experiences – positive, critical, and practical – help set realistic expectations and support better decisions on-farm.

As this new year gets underway, these voices reflect what dairy farming truly looks like: constant decisions, tight margins, and a clear focus on tools and services that help keep cows healthier and farms running more efficiently.

A Decade of Growth and Success

Since tagging our first cow in New Zealand in 2014, CowManager has steadily grown to support hundreds of forward-thinking farms across the country. Over the past 10 years, our presence has built a solid foundation, and now, with a direct presence in New Zealand, CowManager is accelerating its efforts and continuing to help farmers thrive with enhanced support and capabilities.

“We’ve seen tremendous growth and success over the years, and now it’s time to take the next step,” says Jared Bekhuis, Managing Director of CowManager NZ.

“By adding specialists and establishing our direct presence in New Zealand, we’re enhancing our capabilities to deliver faster, more expert service exactly where it’s needed. At the same time, we are expanding our portfolio with exciting innovations like Draft my Cow, the Youngstock Monitor, and Find my Cow Flash. These new solutions will provide our farmers with even more powerful tools to optimize their operations and improve herd management. And we’re just getting started-keep an eye out for even more cutting-edge advancements that will further transform the way we support our farmers.”

This transition opens an exciting new chapter for CowManager. With more resources and local expertise, we’re better positioned to offer tailored solutions and increased responsiveness, helping farmers achieve even greater success with our innovative solutions.

“New Zealand’s dairy sector is world-renowned for its excellence,” Bekhuis adds. “We’re proud to contribute to its ongoing success and invest in the future of every farmer we serve.”

What This Means for You

The contracts between CowManager and our valued customers will remain unchanged. Your terms, support, and service remain intact, with no alterations to your agreement.

• All current dealer employees will continue with CowManager NZ, along with additional new team members to enhance our support network.
• Our new office will be located at 3/137 Ossie James Drive, Hamilton Airport.
• You can reach us at our new office phone number: 0800 – 770566 or support@cowmanager.com per Saturday, August 16.
• We’ll be providing new contact details for your respective contact people, including support staff. They will be in touch soon to share their updated contact information, ensuring a smooth transition.

Looking Ahead

With a stronger local presence, CowManager NZ will work even harder to deliver the best possible experience for our farmers. As always, we are here to ensure that you’re well-supported and prepared for whatever comes next in your dairy operation.

We look forward to continuing our journey together and working with you to achieve even greater success.

About CowManager

At CowManager, we are committed to providing dairy farmers with the tools they need to succeed. Our revolutionary cow monitoring ear sensors help farmers stay ahead with actionable insights on herd health, nutrition, fertility, and more. Whether you have 20 or 125,000 cows, CowManager ensures that farmers always have eyes on their herd.

Our promises to you:

A partnership with CowManager is more than just business; it’s a partnership. Just like in a marriage, we stand by our farmers day and night. Consider CowManager your dairy farming partner for life.

• Just like in a marriage, where trust and understanding are key, our ear sensors ensure you’re always in tune with your herd.
• We’re your friend in the field. From tech-savvy solutions to good old-fashioned local advice. Whether you’re tackling tough seasons or celebrating improved results. We’re here for you, 24/7. With local support always at your fingertips, we’re committed to making your farm management as smooth as possible.
• Our lifetime warranty is more than a promise. It’s a commitment to your success. We’re by your side, every step of the way to build a long lasting partnership. Ready to invest in your future dairy cow management?
• We’re all ears. Your needs shape our solutions. Building relationships comes first, so we can keep developing products you actually need. We launch bi-weekly updates, based on your suggestions and feedback. From new system features to local support and personalised advice, we’ve got your back.
• With seamless integration with herd management systems worldwide, you’ll never have to worry about duplicate entries or edits.
• We help you optimise your dairy operations, boost on-farm efficiency, and make sure your herd thrives. And it’s because of your cows’ data and feedback from the field that we’re able to continuously improve. Together, we can do better!

We’re here to build a partnership that lasts. Ready to partner up?

From Tradition to Technology

When it comes to cow monitoring systems, the decision-making can be daunting. Options are endless and methods vary. We’ve got rumen boluses, leg sensors, collars, ear sensors, among many others. All claiming to be most effective, most of them using the same core parameters for measuring herd health and fertility: Behaviour, (in)activity, rumination time and eating time. One of the more unique parameters that sets cow monitoring solutions apart in terms of around the clock monitoring, group comparisons and cow health seems to be ear temperature, obviously only used in ear sensors. Which leads to the question: What is the added value of measuring a cow’s ear temperature? Does it really make a difference?

Let’s take a step back first and look at what traditions led to that technology. Because even the most innovative farming technology ideas stem from so-called ‘old farmer’s wisdom’. For instance, herd managers used to have to keep an eye on cows’ visual behavioral indicators for hours a day to see if she was displaying signs of heat behaviour.

As for ear temperature, back in the day, whenever dairy farmers wanted to make sure a cow was feeling well, they would feel her ears to check for a change in temperature. Having to physically be among your herd nearly 24/7 to be able to tell if something is the matter or to spot a window of opportunity, is something we can’t imagine nowadays. And it’s something we can’t afford to do anymore, with the number of livestock and production increasing in most Western countries over the past decades[1], while number of staff members are declining due to labour issues.

Effective Diagnostic Tool

Iowa State University in the United States also wondered if ear temperature would really make a difference. They did a peer reviewed study on monitoring behaviour as well as temperature, in 2017[2]. In their study, they focused on cow data collected by an ear sensor system at the ISU Dairy.

Ear temperature is not comparable to core temperature, as ear temperature experiences daily variation based on external temperatures. In winter, ear temperature never reaches freezing and during summer hot weather, never goes above 95-98 °F / 35-36,67 °C. Because of this, one outstanding benefit and aspect of ear temperature monitoring is that an individual animal is tracked and graphed simultaneously with the group ear temperature average. This allows dairy farmers and staff to compare one cow to the herd’s average.

Whenever a cow gets an infection, the blood in the ears moves to vital organs. When tracking ear temperature, you catch this change early on, potentially saving yourself and the monitored cow a lot of problems further down the road. Being able to measure ear temperature on group level, combined with measuring deviations in behaviour, is one of the most effective ways to catch heat stress early. Ear temperature as an added parameter allows farmers to assess their heat abatement strategy in a more effective way as well as spot lesser performing cows in the herd, therefore adding significant value to their herd management.

According to the study, the evidence of ear hypothermia is an effective diagnostic tool for significant health events. Or, as they cite in their research findings; a ‘problem indicator’.

Anticipating Cows’ Needs

Jeffrey S. Stevenson, a professor at the Department of Animal Sciences and Industry at Kansas State University, specialises in the reproduction physiology of the bovine. In one of his latest articles[3], he studied the added value of ear temperature in cow monitoring. He states that late gestational ear-surface temperatures were associated with some postpartum health disorders and modifications in daily eating, ruminating, and active times during the transition period of gravid heifers and dry cows.

In other words: Including ear temperature as one of the parameters in cow monitoring technology provides dairy farmers, AI specialists, veterinarians, and nutritionists with even more precise herd information. It’s not only an early indicator for several health issues, but also a tool to monitor recovery. It’s an added layer of real-time cow monitoring and a valuable indicator for making fact-based improvements to your herd management, helping dairy professionals to recognise potential issues or opportunities before they’re observable by the human eye.

Sources

• [1] Hannah Ritchie and Max Roser (2022) – “Farm Size and Productivity”. Published online at OurWorldInData.org. Retrieved from: ‘https://ourworldindata.org/farm-size’ [Online Resource]
• [2] Corujo, G. & Timms, L. L., (2017) “Uses of an Ear Tag Based Behavioral and Temperature Monitoring System (Cow ManagerR) at the ISU Dairy”, Iowa State University Animal Industry Report 14(1). doi: https://doi.org/10.31274/ans_air-180814-391
• [3] J.S. Stevenson (2022) – “Late-gestation ear-surface temperatures and subsequent postpartum health, activity, milk yield, and reproductive performance of dairy cows”. Published online at sciencedirect.com. Retrieved from: ‘https://doi.org/10.1016/j.theriogenology.2022.01.022‘ [Online Resource]

A life-changing tool

“It’s an easier way of doing things and it allows us to pay more attention to the care of individual cows. We have better control. We can keep an eye on them, and nothing slips through the cracks.” Trevor’s life has changed since using cow monitoring, and he’s not the only one.

Across the pond, in Southland, New Zealand, the life of farmer Dayna Cunningham has also been made easier due to cow monitoring technology. “It enables us to have one less person in the cowshed. So, we haven’t had to have that person standing on the stand picking cows, which then allows us to take care of other jobs during mating that we wouldn’t normally be able to do.”

Family man and dairy farmer Sander Penterman from the USA agrees and adds that using tech isn’t only better for your business, it also contributes to your personal life. “In your house, with your kids at a sports event: You can still monitor, you always have a bird’s-eye view of what’s going on. It gives us more freedom, more opportunity to spend time with my family.”

Better for the Farmer, Better for the Farm

Better control, more time for other odd jobs – which there are always plenty of on any farm – and a more fulfilled personal life, thanks to peace of mind. Cow monitoring really does seem to have it all from a farmer’s perspective. But what about the cows and production?

According to South African farmer Pieter Barnard, using a cow monitoring system can even save lives. “In the past we would have to physically walk through the groups every day to detect sick, cycling and lame cows. Currently, we can flag the cows on the system, instantly decide and act early on.”

Herdsperson Tiffany Schneider weighs in: “We have decreased our labour bills because we’re not locking up these cows as much and decreased in our veterinary bill too. We’re letting them keep up with their routine which is what they like to do. That has also given us time to do other things that maybe weren’t getting done as much before. It has freed up hours within our day to better manage the cows.” Tiffany works at Paulus Dairy, Wisconsin, USA, and has been using the CowManager system for years. As all farmers in this story have, actually.

Where Accuracy and Efficiency Meet

Not only does CowManager save time and money on labour, but it also allows them to manage their herd and business more accurately and efficiently. USA farm owner Chuck Fahey: “We’re picking up cows that we normally wouldn’t see. You can’t be out here all the time. CowManager’s out here all the time. And your employees are busy enough milking and moving cows. They don’t have time always to write down one. Whereas CowManager gives you that little window when they need to breed them, and it just works spectacular.“

Ruurd Dijkstra from the Waikato in New Zealand says using CowManager has made a ton of difference in his business management. “In the past we’ve had some less motivated people that didn’t really look at what was happening or did not really know what to look for. An automation system looks at cows 24/7, which no person ever can do as well as the computer does. We found that things got a lot more accurate, and it saves us an awful lot of time.”

Precise Insights

Mike Paulus, owner of the American family business Paulus Dairy: “When the kids get here in the morning they can check the computer and they see which animal needs the most attention. They then can go right to that animal. It eliminates a lot of walking of pens looking for sick animals.”

Less Labour

British dairy farmer David Edwards about running his business more efficiently: “It doesn’t miss a thing. CowManager has been a big help on our farm because like most farms at the moment, we’re all short on labour. Anything that can be so thorough and save you money, I would recommend it to other farms.”

Better Rested

For New Zealander Mike Marshall, work-life-balance is key to increasing on-farm efficiency. “We’re able to spend more time at home with family. We’re more rested and able to notice things that we wouldn’t have noticed otherwise.” And of course, sharing data with his staff is a big plus. “All our staff have the app on their phone, so everybody can use it, everyone knows what is going on.”