Thursday, March 28, 2024

Drafting cows as easy as

Avatar photo
Being environmentally friendly while farming happy and healthy cows and achieving a high in-calf rate were the three main drivers for Jonathan Power’s decision to install an autodrafter at his shed.
Reading Time: 3 minutes

Power milks 530 Friesian-cross on 143 hectares at Lismore, Mid Canterbury. 

When he took over the property as the sharemilker five seasons ago the 40-aside herringbone was completely refitted with new plant. His earlier experience in an 80-bail rotary with a competitor’s drafting gate meant he already knew the value of autodrafting.

With his farm goals in mind and the opportunity for a complete refit he wanted to make the best choice. He installed a Tru-Test autodrafter supplied by Dairy Technology Services (DTS).

“We drove around a few farms and had a look at their systems. We were quite happy with what we saw and went with the Tru-Test one.”

He says there are a string of benefits to the quiet, three-way pneumatic drafter.

“Foremost, it simplifies operations in and around the shed keeping work flow and cow flow streamlined.

“Secondly, the drafter helps me manage cow health, in particular proactive management of lameness and seasonal activities like dairy cow mating and calving.”

He also loves the ease of putting a cow’s visual ID number into the MiHub dairy herd management app on his phone, farm computer or in-shed keypad then walking away knowing the job will be done. 

“It’s uncomplicated freedom — time freed up for other jobs on the farm and away from the shed.”

Compare that with manual drafting. Constant interruptions to the routine in the shed and to cow flow out of the shed, having to remember every cow and be there physically to draft her. 

At mating season, for example, even identified heats can be missed because of pushing and shoving and divided attention in the shed. One missed mating cycle because of a missed draft or a draft not going in the right direction can leave farmers $170 or more per cow out of pocket for future milk production or possibly result in an empty cow altogether.

That is where the autodrafter is a critical support tool for managing mating. 

Tail paint, Kamar, Estrotect and other heat detection patches are the go-to visual aids to help farmers and staff identify cycling cows. 

Still, there is a gap. 

Identification is only half the process. It is all for nothing without reliable drafting. Power uses the autodrafter and patches and it’s a breeze.

“For mating I don’t really need to do anything as long as I have got my patches and the cows are ear tagged. The autodrafter will draft those cows that are on heat for me,” he says.

Another particular benefit of the automatic drafter in a herringbone set up is that staff do not have to leave the pit, intervene or sort animals when they exit en masse. Once the autodrafter is in place both mental and physical stress in the shed can be greatly reduced. Staff can stay focused on milking, looking for the visual signs of mating and keep an eye out for any other animal health issues.

Drafts can be set up from anywhere, in the shed on the keypad, at home on the office PC or in the paddock with the DTS Tru-Test’s MiHub Smartphone app. Farmers can have instant online access to a wide range of cow data that can be used to draft using whatever criteria wanted. Jonathan loves this ability to draft on the move and in the moment.

“If I didn’t have the autodrafter I would miss the autonomy,” he says. 

“If I have lame cows or cows on heat I can put it in my app and forget about it. The gate will catch and draft those cows. There might be a cow you see out in the paddock and you can note it in the app right then and there or put the cow number in the key pad at the start of milking. The gate will draft her after milking rather than you having to think about it and find that cow physically.”

Power is already seeing good results from using the system as the in-calf rate has increased and the animals are all good healthy cows. 

“The gate has given us more time to work on creating a more sustainable operation,” he says. 

“What’s more, over four years there’s been minimal maintenance and throughout the season there’s pretty much a constant job for the gate.

“This coming September we will be using the gate for drafting cows for Metrichecking and pre-heats as well as the usual, looking for lame cows.”

Total
0
Shares
People are also reading