Farm Manager Sarah, runs a 210 cow dairy farm on 80-hectares in the Hauraki Plains, Waikato. Looking for a solution to optimise her farm operation and achieve a better work-life balance, she found Halter.
The adoption of Halter has given Sarah access to real-time visibility and precise management of the farm at her fingertips, allowing her to sustainably increase farm productivity and efficiency, and spend more time with her family.
The cow collar, with unlimited possibilities
"We wanted to get some sort of collar to help with health alerts and mating."
Initially looking at collars with heat and health benefits, Sarah discovered that Halter had the ability to optimise every part of her farm from precise pasture utilisation, automating timely tasks, to heat, health and more.
“Within 10 minutes we decided we want Halter. We could see that we could get value back out of it. Utilising our pasture better with virtual fencing and with the health benefits as well, we could look after our cows better.”
Key results with Halter
Optimised pasture utilisation
“We are growing more grass from it.”
“This season when the cows come out of the paddocks, they're in a better position than they used to be.”
“There’s a cost to having the collars … but we could see that we'd be able to feed our cows better with it, and leave the pasture in a better state."
Increased farm productivity and efficiency
“This year we’ve put milk in the vat 10 days earlier than what we’ve done in previous years.
I’m not having to focus on the small things like putting up break fences. I can focus on more important things like putting milk in the vat.”
“A lot of your time would be taken up putting up physical breaks. Not having to do that for two hours a day means that we can do something else.”
Sarah’s favourite features
Virtual fencing has made calving more simple
Virtual fencing has enabled Sarah to draft calved cows more efficiently this calving season, and with less resource.
"It's made a 3 person job doable with just 1 person.”
“We don’t need to stop to put a standard on the tape fence … we can just drive straight in, the gates open, with your trailer on and pick up the calves.”
“Halter has made a chaotic time of year into a more peaceful one.”
Scheduling breaks in advance and automating herd movements
Setting virtual breaks in advance, and automating herd movements around the farm using the Halter app has given Sarah the freedom to spend more time with her kids, without jeopardising anything on the farm.
“Most of the time I'm getting the kid’s dinner ready, and I'm also setting up the breaks for the next day. Historically, if I was doing that I would still be out on the farm... it's made my lifestyle a lot more achievable to be a mum but also a farmer.”
Sarah’s wrap up
Deciding to opt for the Halter collar has equipped Sarah with a single tool to optimise her farm operation sustainably.
Halter’s virtual fence and remote shift features have enabled her to manage pasture with precision while saving her hours every day by removing the need to physically set up breaks or shift cows around the farm. Plus, she’s able to proactively monitor the health of each individual cow at a glance, and benefit from heat detection and health alerts.
With access to real-time visibility of the farm at her fingertips, she has the ability to strategically plan ahead, allowing her to make the best decisions for her cows and the farm, all while spending more time with her family.
