Farmers Review Africa March/April 2020 Farmers Review Africa March - April 2020 digital ( | Page 21

resilience in certain landscapes and climates. However, over the last few decades, much of the focus has been on increasing milk productivity. While cattle, like all species, can adapt somewhat to stressors and change, breeding strategies are now being reexamined; additional traits, such as resistance to heat stress, disease or adaptive changes to variations in feed and forage are being looked at more vigorously given they affect productivity and fertility. Lactation alone increases a cow’s body temperature; therefore, when ambient air temperatures climb even 3 to 4 degrees Celsius above normal, heat-induced complications may also increase, including decreases in fertility and appetite which impact milk productivity. Somatic cell counts and incidences of mastitis also tend to increase during warm periods. Providing herds with good ventilation, sufficient water and even sprinkling systems helps keep cows comfortable and reduces the chances of infection or disease. There is also a growing discussion and debate about the use of antibiotics today. While many dairy farmers have stopped using them altogether, this can leave cows more susceptible to disease, including mastitis. Here again, genetics and breeding are playing a stronger role given that cows selected for several traits have a lower somatic cell count and thus fewer instances of mastitis. milking systems, resulting in shortened treatment times for cows and increased productivity. GEA is conducting larger field trials to validate that the amount of antibiotics used during the drying off period can be minimized without causing the onset of mastitis. Earlier trials already suggest that this can be achieved by reducing the amount of milk taken before drying off begins, which in the future can be controlled using GEA herd management software which indicates when milking clusters should be removed. Using sensor-based technology, GEA CowScout tag records cow activity, eating time and rumination, both indoors and outdoors. The data is available via a real-time dashboard which can be set up to send out alerts. This tool allows for the quick identification and treatment of health problems and can also be used to signal insemination times. Reducing costs and improving cow health with precision livestock farming (PLF) Getting precise insights into cow behavior, activity and overall health is much easier today given PLF technologies. These digital tools help dairy operators manage their herds more effectively, which includes diagnosing and treating cows more quickly, keeping down costs and supporting improved cow health and productivity. “To support managers’ goals of monitoring and directing their operations and processes more efficiently, wherever they might be, we’re continually assessing and improving our herd management tools and platforms to further integrate data, while making them easier to use,” assures Dr. Beate Maassen-Francke, Product Manager Farm Management Software, GEA. To help farmers keep a closer eye on udder health in their herds, GEA developed the award-winning DairyMilk M6850 cell count sensor, the world’s first real-time system for early detection of mastitis infection in each teat during milking. Easy to install and low maintenance, the sensor can be used with GEA DairyRobot R9500 and the DairyProQ Over the last decade, a lot of data has been captured on farms. The next step is leveraging AI and better integrating data to help dairy farmers take even more informed decisions to increase cow welfare and optimize operational efficiency.”- Dr. Beate Maassen-Francke, Product Manager Farm Management Software, GEA YOU SHOULD LIGHTEN UP LED LIGTE VIR TREKKERS EN SKRAPERS BESONDERHEDE OP AANVRAAG BE SAFE, SEE FURTHER AND SAVE MONEY WITH OUR QUALITY RANGE OF LED LIGHTS VERKOOP DEUR HARDI.CO.ZA (CAPE TOWN & J’BURG) • E: [email protected] • T: [phone] • W: www. ledlightsforsale.co.uk A5 landscape ad rev2.indd 1 14/06/2019 09:02 March - April 2020 | 19