Heading Into Winter? Know What’s Happening in Your Herd 24/7 with smaXtec

As autumn progresses and cattle move towards winter housing, the demands on herd management change. Animals are spending more time indoors, diets are changing and the cost of winter feeding quickly adds up.

At this time of year, knowing what is happening within your herd as early as possible can make a real difference.

smaXtec gives farmers an inside view of their cattle, providing continuous information that can help identify changes in health, fertility and behaviour and support earlier, better-informed management decisions.

An Inside View for a Healthier Herd

Unlike monitoring systems that rely solely on external activity, the smaXtec bolus works from inside the cow, continuously collecting valuable information.

This gives farmers access to herd and individual-animal insights around the clock, with information and alerts available through the smaXtec system.

For busy farmers, particularly during winter housing, that means you don't have to rely entirely on what you can see during routine checks. smaXtec provides another layer of information to help highlight animals that may need a closer look.

Spot Potential Health Issues Earlier

One of the biggest advantages of continuous monitoring is the ability to identify changes from an animal's normal pattern.

When cattle are housed, subtle signs that an animal isn't performing as expected can sometimes be difficult to spot within a group.

smaXtec can help farmers monitor health indicators and internal body temperature, providing information that may highlight when an animal requires attention.

Earlier information can mean an opportunity to investigate sooner rather than waiting for obvious clinical signs to develop.

Continuous Internal Body Temperature Monitoring

Because the smaXtec bolus sits inside the animal, it can provide continuous internal body temperature monitoring.

Rather than relying on a single temperature reading after you already suspect there is a problem, farmers have access to ongoing data and can see changes over time.

Combined with other information from the system, this can provide a much clearer picture of what's happening with individual animals.

Heat Detection & Reproductive Management

Winter doesn't mean fertility management stops.

smaXtec provides heat detection insights, helping farmers identify heats and make more informed decisions around breeding and insemination timing.

For herds where reproductive performance is a priority, having continuous monitoring can reduce reliance on physically observing every heat and provide valuable additional information for fertility management.

Extra Insight Around Calving

As cows approach calving, smaXtec can also provide calving-related insights.

Knowing that an animal's behaviour or data is changing can help farmers decide when a cow deserves closer attention, particularly when managing larger numbers of animals or when calving coincides with an already busy workload.

It doesn't replace good stockmanship – it gives the stockman more information to work with.

Keep an Eye on Feeding & Rumination Behaviour

Winter feeding represents a significant cost on most livestock farms, so understanding how cattle are responding to their diet is important.

smaXtec allows farmers to monitor feeding and rumination behaviour, helping identify changes in an individual animal's normal activity.

A change in rumination or feeding behaviour can be useful information when assessing an animal's health, diet or general performance.

When you're feeding cattle throughout the winter anyway, having additional data to show how they're responding can help turn feeding from something you simply provide into something you can monitor more closely.

Your Herd Information – 24 Hours a Day

Cattle don't only show changes when you're standing in the shed.

With 24/7 monitoring, smaXtec continues collecting information day and night, with herd insights and alerts accessible from your phone.

That can be particularly useful during the winter months when farmers are balancing feeding, bedding, calving, machinery work and everything else that comes with running the farm.

The aim isn't to replace the farmer's eye. It's to give you another set of eyes on the herd 24/7.

Better Herd Visibility This Winter

Winter housing can be one of the most intensive periods of the year for livestock farmers. With cattle indoors and feeding costs increasing, problems that affect health, fertility or performance can quickly become expensive.

Having access to more information can help you move from simply reacting to problems towards more proactive herd management.

With smaXtec, the focus is on:

Better herd visibility. Smarter decisions. Proactive management.

Interested in smaXtec for Your Herd?

Whether you're considering smaXtec for a dairy or beef herd, Farm Compare can provide more information and a smaXtec quote tailored to your requirements.

🐄 Health & illness detection
🌡️ Continuous internal body temperature monitoring
🔥 Heat detection
🐮 Calving insights
🥛 Feeding & rumination behaviour
📱 24/7 herd monitoring

Get more information & request a smaXtec quote

Speak to Farm Compare today and find out how smaXtec could help you keep a closer eye on your herd this winter.

👉 Get more information & a smaXtec quote from Farm Compare

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