Updates In AgTech - Halter System

We had a recent trip over the ditch to our friendly neighbours in New Zealand. If you have any friends over there be sure to let them know they can now become part of the Land Watch family!

Most of our time was spent on dairy farms where we saw the incredible ‘Halter’ system in action.

We have all seen the GPS ear tags that have gained popularity in recent years. A great way to keep track of stock, particularly when used with an Optiweigh station or the likes.

The Halter system takes it to the next level. As the name suggests it is a halter, or collar, that is put on the dairy cows neck. The result is a herd of cows with thick black necklaces looking like something out of an ‘80’s rock band!

The Halter collar is part solar powered GPS and part health monitor, meaning you can know where the cattle are and how they are doing. For the dairy industry this is vital in early detection of any medical issues such as mastitis or determining when they are in heat.

It goes one step further with virtual fencing and shifting. The collar will give an audio cue if the cow is in the wrong place, then a vibration when she is heading back in the right direction. If she wanders too far out the way a little pulse gets her back again. Apparently, it takes a bit of training for them to understand the cues but that is all part of the process. This then can be used to move entire mobs at a time to new pasture or up to the dairy. Imagine the labour saving. I want one for my kids!

As you would expect it is all done through the provided app.

Pair this with a couple Land Watch Station Managers and you are farming from in front of the fire or, in our case in QLD at the moment, the air con!