Weigh scales and cloud technology have combined to offer a proactive solution to measure and monitor stock on an individual basis, enabling timely decision-making on-farm.

“The combined use of Tru-Test hardware coupled with Datamars Livestock cloud software delivers strong benefits for farmers,” explains Datamars Product Manager for cloud and data solutions Charlotte Bibby. “Using these solutions to individually manage animals, rather than treating them all the same, adds value. Farmers can drench only those animals that need it. You are then able to track your management strategies and make better decisions.”

The system starts at the yard using Tru-Test weigh scales by identifying which animals are at, or close to, target weight. These animals won’t need to be treated, ensuring they’re not under withholding.”

From there, you can ensure animals are dosed at the correct rate. “Drenching for your top animal weights and, if necessary, splitting them into different groups if there’s a wide weight range”. The benefits here are avoiding drench resistance and preventing expenses on excess drench. The solution also gives the ability to track the average daily weight gain of animals by identifying which animals are growing fast. “We can look at those weight gains to see which animals are performing and which are not thriving, and make decisions based on that. This might include deciding those that are heavier and growing faster are not drenched and become refugia animals.” 

Once the physical process has taken place, the software comes in. “Take the data off the weigh scales using the Datalink mobile app to automatically sync to the cloud, ready for you when you get back to your computer.” Logging into the Datamars Livestock cloud software gives you the ability to easily analyse the information you’ve collected. “You can put animals into groups, usually by stock class, and set a target weight against that group. From there, you can track growth over time against that target weight and easily see if you’re on track, or whether you need to review your management strategy.”

Farmers have the ability to drill down and view animals with lower average daily gains. Farmers identify stock to keep for breeding, which animals are consistently gaining weight and also show potential resilience to worm challenges. “Being able to track each animal’s growth over time means you can quantify if your management practices are working. You can have a gut feel, but this puts hard numbers in front of you.”

The weigh scale and cloud software combination also enables developing historic data overtime, offering a deeper level of analysis by comparing growth across years and monitoring how management strategies are impacting on animal growth rates.

To learn more about the Tru-Test Weight Scales, or Datamars Livestock cloud software, contact your local PGG Wrightson Technical Field Representative.

Supplied by Datamars