Prevention may be better than the cure but on the farm, prevention also saves you money. On a dairy farm, a sick animal not only costs money in vet fees but also in lost milk production.
A cow can go down very quickly, making it vital to identify infection before it takes hold. Dairymaster technology has been leading the way in keeping a healthy herd. By installing the right equipment and availing of the best technology, the farmer will see a return on investment not only in the near future but for many years down the line.
Spot the sick cow with MooMonitor+
James O’Dwyer, Co. Tipperary, milks a herd of over 200 cows and knows how important it is to keep his herd healthy. He invested in the Dairymaster MooMonitor+ system, as he saw it as the best way to keep a close eye on his cattle. Every animal is fitted with the sealed-unit collar, which monitors the cow’s behaviour and the easy-to-use equipment sends readings and alerts back to his phone. James can now see how each cow is performing but more importantly, he can see when an individual animal is not quite right. “The system works,” says James, “it’s tried, it’s tested and we’re seeing the benefits of it.”
Not leaving animal health to chance
Not long after the system was installed James noticed an animal’s readings on his phone weren’t what they should be. Rumination was down and her resting rate was way off that of the others. They isolated the cow from the herd, called the vet and a metabolic disorder was identified and treated. In such a herd size spotting the sick animal would not have been easy without the MooMonitor+ collar. As it was they had her back on her feet within a day. “It’s definitely saving,” James maintains, “it’s saving money, it’s saving milk loss, it’s saving animals.”
Why take risks when it comes to infection?
Infections in your herd cost money, downtime and unnecessary work and hassle. Many farmers are looking to systems like Dairymaster’s ClusterCleanse system to prevent the spread of disease. ClusterCleanse rinses each cluster after each cow is milked which results in a more hygienic cluster for the next cow. By keeping the clusters clean the farmer can now reduce inter-cow infection.
Taking the worry out of herd health
Every good business manager knows that protecting your assets is key to ensuring a thriving business. Keeping cows healthy is the only way to protect a herd. It saves money on vet bills, cuts the use of antibiotics and keeps the animal doing what she should be doing, producing milk suitable for sale. MooMonitor+ and ClusterCleanse are some products which show how Dairymaster leads the way in preventing the spread of infection and in identifying it before it takes hold. By taking the worry out of animal health the farmer can concentrate on running the farm and enjoying the returns of a well-run farm.
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