Keeping tails clean now’s a ‘Switch’
Any dairy farmer who has taken a smack in the face from a dung-encrusted cow’s tail on a frosty morning will know the feeling and wonder how to stop it happening again.
By using the right tools, said Drury dairy farmer Sue Dyer, speaking at recent CRV Ambreed workshops on how technology can be better used to achieve herd improvement goals.
Dyer has used CRV Insight online herd recording app since its launch in 2012 and says it has helped her increase her farm’s productivity.
“I carry my smartphone with me everywhere, so having access and being able to enter data about my cows wherever I am on the farm – in the paddock, shed or at home – is a no brainer.
“I get a great snapshot of how my 370 Friesian, Friesian-cross cows are performing, information about my individual cows, and a full range of reports.”
Global growth consultants Frost and Sullivan recently predicted that by 2018 New Zealand would have 90% smartphone and 78% tablet ownership.
Andrew Singers, information management and information technology manager at CRV Ambreed, says the dairy industry needs to keep up with a growing demand for technology on the go.
“There is still a huge amount of work to do to help dairy farmers adopt and use herd management technology to its full capacity,” he says.
CRV Ambreed herd improvement products and services for dairy farmers include the free workshops referred to above.
