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In autumn 2007 in several dairy farmers around Ireland installed Heatime electronic heat detection system. Heatime has continued to gain popularity as more farmers hear how well it is performing in Irish herds. The system has been developed over a number of years in Israel and is in use worldwide with great success.
Based on a movement monitoring neck collar the system identifies cows with increased movements and has shown to be at least 90% accurate at detecting cows in heat. Given that heat detection rates on most farms are far below this (60% average teagasc profit monitor farms) there is tremendous scope for achieving higher submission rates with the system.
Fertility is becoming a major problem on the Dairy farm and as herds increase in size and the farm workload grows, the farmer has less time to spend watching his cows for signs of heat. Given that heat detection is a key profit driver on dairy farms accuracy is vital. Farmers have been using stock bulls has been proven to solve the problem but this in itself creates other problems and loss of profit.
The HEATIME system consists of a control box, infra-red scanner and neck tags for the cows. The transponder in the tag records and stores the intensity and nature of the cows’ movements, the scanner reads the data and transfers it to the control box. In the control box there is an intelligent programme, which establishes the likelihood of heat and gives a visual indication of the estrus state of each animal. The system will indicate the best time window within which to inseminate the cow.
The HEATIME system is based on continuous monitoring of individual cow activity and identification of changes in normal behaviour to detect patterns related to heat (estrus). The activity is detected by a neck tag with a unique sensor which records the cow movements (not just footsteps) and stores them in its memory. When the cow passes underneath the ID unit, the tag is triggered to send the data to the HEATIME control box.
The HEATIME control box consists of a display and keyboard to enable the user to retrieve information and control the system functionality. The activity data of each cow is stored in the unit database. Each time new data is received, a special algorithm interprets the different movements. If the results show that the cow is likely to be in heat the system will alert the user and, if a sorting gate is installed, the cow can be automatically diverted to a treatment yard.
The system allows the user to view the activity history of each cow in a graphical display up to 60 days back. This gives the user a good overview of the cow behaviour during the last two cycles.
The whole system stands out through its simplicity and accuracy (90%) plus HEATIME is a stand-alone system and does not need an additional computer or any other data.
Following the unprecedented success in the UK, the system was introduced into Ireland in October 2007. The results were more than encouraging: Pallaskenry College farm noticed that after 40 days using HEATIME “35 out of 37 cows scanned were first time pregnant”, "does the job of heat detection completely and accurately".
The farm manager at Ardtrammon Farm, Co. Wexford, Servaas Dodebier, was proud to announce that he saw a 17% increase in submission rate and that 100% of his herd were AI’d within the first six weeks.
With results like this it is no surprise that the system is paying for itself within months both with productivity improvements and improved fertility.
Results from Ardtrammon Farm: system installed November 07
Cows submitted for AI:
Year | ’07 | ‘08 |
No of cows | 103 | 133 |
Sub | 68 | 113 |
Sub % | 66% | 85% |
Scanned on the 25th of Feb.
78 cows scanned, which were more than 28 days served.
62 cows scanned in calf
16 scanned empty. = 20% empty
In ’07 the empty rate was 30%. This is a 33% improvement..
Conclusion:
In this herd heatime has not only increased submission rates but also greatly improved empty rate. All leading to vastly improved profitability.
Comments from Herd Manager:
- Peace of mind
- More cows served
- Big labour saving
Other herds using System:
James Tallon, Ardcath, Co. Meath, milking 300 cows, autumn and spring calving.
System installed November 07 on 100 cows. James says he has more cows being submitted for AI than previous years and heatime has made a big diference.
Michael Darcy, Annagh, Gorey has had the system working since December on his 50 autumn calving cows. Early indications are submission rates are up 18%. What Michael has to say “System eliminates all work, all hassle and all uncertainty with heat detection as well as a big increase in submission rates”.
Sam Rose, Kilanerin, Gorey also has had the system working since December on his autumn calving cows. He is catching more cows in heat than ever before. He says “it’s a fantastic system, I’m very happy, its doing exactly what it’s supposed to do”.
The value of increased submission rates.
What 20% increase in submission rates is worth.
If we take the example of a 100 cow herd with a conception rate of 50%, assuming submission rate improves from 60% to 80% and the breeding season 15-16 weeks. This herd will have, on average, 10 more cows in calf at the end of the breeding season and the herd will calve in on average four days earlier.
| Sub % | Calf from 1st Cycle | 2nd | 3rd | 5th | 5th | Empty
| | 60 | 30 | 21 | 15 | 11 | 7 | 16 | . | . |
| 80 | 40 | 24 | 14 | 9 | 7 | 6 | . | . | |
• Using EBI multiples for Suv & CI
1. 10 cows more in herd = €13,000
2. CI 4 days less(€11x94x4) = €4,100
20% increase in sub rate = €15,700
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Assumes cost of replacement heifer is €1300, current market price if heifer is purchased would be much higher.
Installing the system for a typical 100 cow herd would cost 12500 approx, so the system has the potential to pay for itself within one year. This is pretty impressive when you consider the lifespan of the system is typically 8 years. | 