smaXtec system hones in on herd health, reproduction

from smaXtec

Measuring inner body temperature, activity, rumination and drinking behavior directly inside the cow, the smaXtec Bolus provides health data that gives producers valuable insights into their herd’s health and fertility, enabling them to increase efficiency and profitability.

The ability to react to the first internal signs of illness while cows still appear healthy aids in a smooth transition phase and higher start-up milk production. The unique calving alerts provide an approximately 15-hour warning for imminent calving, allowing for just-in-time calving pack optimization and more control over potentially problematic cows. Continuous temperature measurement provides the chance to get on top of infectious diseases, like mastitis or metritis, and metabolic diseases, like milk fever or ketosis, before they have a chance to escalate to more severe clinical cases. Ultimately, this enables a clear overview of animals needing support and peace of mind for the rest. The individual and group level rumination monitoring from inside the reticulum, as opposed to estimating rumination via secondary metrics, enables feed management and ration optimization, while being a direct indication of rumen health. If farmers ensure consistency in energy consumption and that this energy goes to milk production as opposed to mounting an immune response, they not only make smart decisions for our animals’ welfare, but also for their own wallets. The bigger picture here is that these cows will have more of the tools needed to cycle normally and be performers for their second and third lactation. Look at your KPIs – how many first lactation cows are unnecessarily leaving your farm, especially early in lactation?

Once we have secured healthy animals that are approaching a positive energy balance, efficient timing of insemination and herd fertility management are essential to the economic success of any dairy farm. With smaXtec, farmers can not only improve their heat detection rate but can also:

• easily cherry-pick cycling animals
• reduce the calving interval
• improve services per conception
• use the best genetics with more confidence
• identify cows with fertility issues
• spot open cows that were confirmed pregnant

How does the heat detection work?

Heat notifications and clearly structured working lists, with ideal insemination time windows based on each individual cow’s behavior, take the guesswork out of breeding cows. Naturally, some animals will need extra help and with the automatic heat detection and repro work lists, it is easy to find exactly the right protocol for the farm, while significantly reducing hormone usage and labor.

Savings and peace of mind

Adam Hurtgen of Hurtgenlea Holsteins in Elkhorn, Wis., considers his cows the profit center of the dairy which is why he installed smaXtec on his dairy farm: “The smaXtec system is as accurate and precise as I have ever seen. From temperature alerts, rumination decreases, calving alerts to activity monitoring – all four of which help add the level of care required to maintain a profitable enterprise.”

Since then, smaXtec technology and its bolus have had a big impact on daily routines at Adam’s farm for heat detection:

“Before, we did 90% of our breeding with Ovsynch protocol and maybe 10% were natural observed standing heat. With the smaXtec system in place, we are now breeding only 10% on shot protocols.”

Only a healthy herd brings success

Early detection of diseases and improving overall herd health is equally as important and a key factor of reproductive success on any dairy. By measuring cow health data continuously and precisely, the smaXtec system allows for early disease detection, allowing for the earliest possible intervention when necessary, reducing the risk of serious disease progression and significantly lowering the use of medications - customers report up to a 70% reduction in antibiotic use.

By continuously monitoring key health parameters – inner body temperature, activity and rumination – smaXtec enables farmers to protect their herd, while ensuring milk yield stability and cost savings. 

Visit https://smaxtec.us/en/ to learn more.