NZ Dairy Winter 2021

| 91 nz dairy DAIRY PEOPLE » Chad & Jan Winke CowScout collars prove their worth Dianna Malcolm U S-born dairy producers Chad and Jan Winke sharemilk 800 cows on 215 effective hectares (240ha total) for Preston Wills,near Matamata. The 800-cow herd is split into three herds. The CowScout collars have allowed staff to intervene early with sick cows – often at the subclinical level – minimising losses in production, condition scores, and (within the bigger picture) fertility by traversing any transition challenges at calving. GEA’s CowScout collars monitor individual cow activity, eating, rumination, and resting times – comparing them to the previous week’s rolling average. New Zealand’s temperate climate is a world away from the punishing minus 42 degree winters in Iowa for sharemilkers Chad and Jan Winke. Conception jumped from 50% to 57% in the first season – and short returns from the season before were halved – when the GEA CowScout collars were introduced. Data adds confidences A US dairyman farming in New Zealand has been so impressed with GEA’s CowScout cow collars, he has fitted them to his yearling heifers. Chad Winke sharemilks 800 cows on 215 ef- fective hectares (240ha total) for Preston Wills at Walton, 10 minutes north of Matamata. He has used the collars – which monitor individual cow activity, eating, rumination, and resting times – for three seasons, and says he’d never go back. Industry has often assumed CowScout collars are used primarily for heat detection. While Chad confirms the technology has had a significant impact on herd conception, it has also proved to be a powerful ally for herd health. The collars compare a cow’s data to the previous week’s rolling average. If there are any irregularities a health alert is automatically sent to nominated people. It has allowed their team to confidently intervene – often at the subclinical level – minimising losses in production, condition scores and, within the bigger picture, fertility, by traversing transition challenges at calving. Chad’s wife, Jan, is perfectly placed to process the data. She is New Zealand’s Herd Management Solutions Manager. And, she will soon step up to a new position with Dutch multinational com- pany specialising in technology, Nedap Livestock Management. Chad defers to her breakdown on their in-calf rates. They mate for eight weeks in the spring, and nine weeks in the autumn in a split calving pattern. “Our six-week in-calf rate compared to last spring went up two to three percentage points,” Jan said.“We weren’t looking to improve those, because we were already operating at a perfectly acceptable level. “What did increase was our conception rate. It went from 50% to 57% in the first season. And, our short returns halved from the season before – which obviously contributes to our conception rate.” Chad said not having to use tail paint and “scratchies” during mating had not only saved them a lot of work, it had erased his observation time. “Before we got the collars I was physically having to be at the shed for multiple hours a day to make sure that I got the pregnancy results that I wanted,” Chad said. “Putting these collars on did all that work for us. It just picked out the cows, they were auto-drafted, and I turned up at the end of milking and they were there waiting for me.” He said a recent pregnancy check by their vet proved that they can have full confidence in the technology. They submitted 250 cows from their autumn mating. “All but three were pregnant,” Chad said. “Two had recently slipped and hadn’t shown a heat yet, and the other cow had a massive cyst on her ovary. At the end the vet looked at us and said, ‘Why did you just pay me to tell me what you already knew?’ “It did confirm exactly what we thought. I also think that every time you yard cows outside of milking times, it is an interruption to their day that is clearly expressed in the data. “They spend less time eating, less time resting, less time ruminating and they make less milk over the next few days. “The data makes that completely obvious to you.” He said the results in the milking herd made it logical to extend the technology’s reach to their yearlings. “I was trying to do tail paint and scratchies on the heifers, and I was getting short returns, and all that annoying crap, and I just decided it was stupid. “So we just got some more collars, and the problem was solved.” CowScout collars have had a significant impact on herd conception and herd health for Matamata sharemilkers Chad and Jan Winke. Chad and Jan Winke sharemilk 800 cows near Matamata for Preston Wills. ELECTRICAL KING 24 HOUR EMERGENCY SERVICE www.kingelectrical.co.nz MATAMATA Phone: 07 888 7578 TIRAU Phone: 07 883 1130 » Water Pump Sales & Service » Water Reticulation System » Field Irrigation Systems » Water Filtration Cnr Tui & Tainui Sts, Box 48, Matamata p 07 888 7524 e admin@ag-worx.co.nz w w w . a g - w o r x . c o . n z