Robin White, owner of the Hightae Farm, has been using the smaXtec system since 2023 for safeguarding the health of his cattle herd with 170 cows. For him the greatest advantage of the smaXtec system lies in the early detection of diseases. He highlights the importance: “My biggest reason for recommending smaXtec would be for the health alerts, without any doubt. We’re always one step ahead, because we’re alerted sooner than problems materialise. Having that early warning of an issue, before there are any visual signs, allows us to treat the cow, keeping her healthy, keeping milk in the tank and money in my pocket. With a reduction in antibiotic usage of nearly 66%, this alone has made the cost of buying the system well worth it.”
Detection of potential issues by inner body temperature
According to Robin White, the bolus technology’s ability to measure the cow’s inner body temperature “gives precise and accurate readings and enables potential issues to be detected before they can be seen by eye – and negatively impact herd health and performance.” For him this parameter has been integral to early intervention. “As soon as individual cow temperatures change, even if this is extremely slightly, I’m sent an alert,” he says. “If a cow’s temperature increases I can take a look and give her an anti-inflammatory almost immediately, which minimises the risk and impact of diseases such as mastitis.”
He mentions that the system also detects the early signs of milk fever and ketosis in freshly-calved cows by picking up a decrease of inner body temperature: “We can give calcium to cows showing signs of milk fever much earlier than we would have done previously.”
Increased efficiency through automatic heat detection
Besides the early detection of diseases, smaXtec also increased his efficiency in heat detection, Robin notes, “We used to walk the cows 7-9 times a day to look for bulling events, which was why our fertility rate was already good, but now we just do the check at 9 am and let the system do the work for us. Now smaXtec notifies us when a cow is in heat.” Automating heat detection reduced manual labour, allowing Robin to focus on essential tasks. This streamlining enhances productivity and resource use, as he remarks, “the system allows us free time to do other jobs on the farm, with peace of mind the fertility is being watched for us.”
Saving lives through timely alerts
The smaXtec system doesn’t only help the Hightae farm with heat detection but also sends timely calving alerts: “The smaXtec calving alerts have already helped save calves’ and cows’ lives, through intervention at the right time.We notice when we need to be on standby and this also helps to facilitate smoother calvings. Once we have had the alert, we know that the calf will be on the ground within 24 hours. The result of being on hand for difficult calvings allows us to help out, and keep that cows healthy and back to work and cycling, because they have been looked after at a crucial time.” For Robin White smaXtec has helped to focus on the cows that need attention: “With smaXtec we are able to concentrate on the cows that might need our help rather than having to watch ones that are still a way off calving. We have been very pleased with calving alerts.”
Increased profitability and more milk in the tank
Addressing cost-effectiveness, Robin White explains, “the timely alerts enabled massive saving on antibiotics and vet bills. Regarding antibiotic usage, in the past we would give an IV pain relief, a bottle of antibiotics and 4-5 days of antibiotic tubes. Now we do a one-off pain relief jab. This saves us both time and money.”
smaXtec’s alerts enable efficient treatment protocols and reduce expenses. For Robin White ‘using smaXtec has meant the milk in my tank has remained steady, none of the ups and downs we used to have. The bottom line, it’s a steadier income.’ With fluctuating milk prices and dairy market uncertainty, for Robin White the consistent production of top-quality milk has been a game changer. “Seeing consistent milk levels has given us confidence in the stability of our dairy business and allowed us to forward plan. It’s invaluable and I would recommend anyone considering the system to give it a go.” This illustrates smaXtec’s role in improving sustainability of herd and business while optimising farm expenses, as Robin White states, ‘the system allows you to keep cows healthy, save lives, save on stress and money.’
