Dairy cow monitoring is a disruptive technology, to say the least. Since its introduction, this tool has turned traditional cow management upside down by providing actionable insights into cow health and behavior often unseen by human eyes. These data are then used to hone dairy herd performance while saving time, labor and costs.

The concept of using cameras to watch your dairy isn’t new, but with the arrival of artificial intelligence and significant players actively investing in the U.S. dairy industry, artificial intelligence (AI) systems are truly transforming the management of cows. New offerings create even more value for producers who have installed these systems.

Herd management software can make it easier to gather, organize and use data to make profitable decisions. However, this often means being tied to your office where the software lives. But what if technology can help you leave the office behind?  

U.S.-based beef cattle operations face unique challenges ranging from labor and time shortages to water source and feeding management issues. More than ever, technology is confronting these obstacles.

“Most of these farmers do not have a technology or means to understand they have been attacked until the impact has become obvious. There are many cases that, when we are called to go for an investigation, we find that attackers have compromised the business years back, and producers are not aware of their existence in the network.”

Failing to record accurate data about an event on your dairy is a small error. However, this small act can have a significant impact and lead to something bigger.

Dairy farm management gets more complex every day. If you do not already have a dedicated tech specialist on your farm, now is the time to decide who should take charge of managing these systems for your farm and integrating data to help your team make informed decisions.

Big data is extremely useful because it helps paint a picture of what is really happening on farms. In a sense, it’s like paint by numbers. Each data point we collect is a number that must be filled in.

The dairy business is at an inflection point where technology is advancing at a such fast pace that the opportunities to move the industry forward seem limitless.

“Big data,” a term that can be defined as enormous amounts and various types of data that can be used to analyze patterns, trends and associations, has allowed researchers to better understand how dairy cow health, growth and milk production have changed over time.