.png)
In addition to recording and tracking animal performance, DataMuster has also proved to be a valuable alert tool, quickly detecting injured or ill animals requiring assistance.
The DataMuster system scans RFID tags and records weights of individual animals every time the animal comes in for water.
This provides a mechanism to alert producers to changes in animal behaviour or condition.
DataMuster alerts producers if an animal has not crossed the system in three days, when a cow has calved, and when an animal starts to lose condition – key indicators that animal health and welfare may be at risk.
In one case in Argentina, the alert prompted the producer involved to check his herd where in found a bull with an injured leg and was able to bring in veterinary assistance which saved the animal.
However, there can also be simple explanations for an animal failing to enter the DataYard each day, such as recent rainfall, a lost EID tag or the animal has escaped into the neighbouring paddock.
Producers can also rest assured the equipment is working effectively, with alerts also sent when communication to the database has been cut.
This can be caused by a dead battery, an unexpected system shut down, network outage or cattle or birds chewing through a cable.
Most importantly, these alerts are flexible and can be customized to suit each individual producer’s preferences.