Farm tests heat detection technology

Sep 13, 2023

A project underway on a Saskatchewan farm is testing technology that determines when a cow is in heat.

SenseHub Cow-Calf is new for the beef sector, although the dairy industry has used the technology for a while.

Dr. Sam Wauer, associate director of cattle veterinary services at Merck Animal Health, said an Allflex Sense Hub ear tag placed in a female at least two weeks before she is due to be bred will collect data 24-7.

The tag establishes a baseline from movement and behaviour data points, and a change in that baseline indicates the optimum breeding window. The producer’s phone will receive an alert and the ear tag will flash when that occurs.

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Video: 2026 T.K. Cheung Lecture in Animal Science - Dan Weary

T.K. Cheung Lecture in Animal Science: "Using science to assess and improve the welfare of dairy cattle"

Dan Weary is a Professor at the University of British Columbia. Dan did his BSc and MSc at McGill and Doctorate at Oxford before co-founding UBC’s Animal Welfare Program where he now co-directs this active research group. His research focuses on understanding the perspectives of animals and applying these insights to develop methods of assessing animal welfare and improving the lives of animals. His work has helped drive changes in practices (including the adoption of higher milk rations for calves and pain management for disbudding) and housing methods (including the adoption of social housing for pre-weaned calves). He also studies cow comfort and lameness, social interactions among cows, and interactions between cows, human handlers and technologies like automated millking systems that are increasingly used on farms. His presentation will outline key questions in cattle welfare, highlight recent UBC research addressing them, and showcase innovative methods for improving the lives of cattle and their caretakers.