For many around the country, calving season has kicked off early whereas others are still in the calm before the storm, making as many last-minute preparations as possible. For farmers using FarmIQ, calving is still stressful, it's just slightly less stressful....
To help you fine folk manage the chaos, we've complied some time-saving tips to help guide you through so that you can have at least one spare moment to appreciate the sheer magic of seeing the sun rise over frosty paddocks.
Recording Births
With M. bovis a serious reality and additional stress point this season it is incredibly important for farmers to ensure each calf is NAIT tagged and registered prior to their first movement off farm, or within six months of their birth (whichever comes first).It’s common sense that each birth is recorded as soon as possible, so rather than risk dropping your notebook in the mud, you can record births and deaths easily from the paddock via the FarmIQ mobile app. There is also an Automatic NAIT Reporting feature which, if enabled, will allow us to manage your NAIT compliance for you so that you won't have to interact with NAIT at all. As a result you will have less paperwork and more precious minutes of sleep waiting for you at the end of each day!
Pre-calving Recording
If the calves haven’t started popping up left, right and center for you just yet, then it pays to get your pre-calving recording underway. These records allow you to more accurately anticipate roughly when and when the next calf might appear.
The FarmIQ app allows you to set tasks on your phone so that you will be reminded to go check on specific cows at a later date and make sure their labour is going according to plan.
Communication
Make sure that you and your team have effective methods of communication in place prior to calving beginning so that everyone is on the same page and no time is wasted running back and forward around the farm to find out which cows need tending to.
The FarmIQ app allows all employees to access the same to do lists and records so that important tasks or notes can be accessed by everyone at any time -increasing efficiency and reducing the risk of errors.
Rostering
It is particularly important to make sure that you have a roster set-up for the calving season so that you can keep yourself and your staff happy, healthy and safe over the next few months. The roster and timesheet module of the FarmIQ system allows you to be transparent with your staff so that everyone knows that the whole team is working hard and ensure that no-one is working beyond safe limits. It also allows you to plan ahead so that you are adequately staffed at the appropriate times.
Health and Safety
This is a biggie. During calving there is a lot to think about and when everyone is flat out and tired mistakes happen. Make sure you protect yourself and your team by ensuring your H&S plan is up to date. This can be managed and accessed from the FarmIQ app, meaning you can rest assured that no matter where they are on the farm your team is aware of crucial things like hazards, emergency contact details and any incidents that may have occurred.
Planning Ahead
If you are currently running around like a headless chook and the thought of trying to adopt new processes right now makes you want to cry. Don’t panic, just flick a quick one-line “Help me, Calving is stressful!!” email to info@farmiq.co.nz and we will be sure to give you a call once the chaos is over, ensuring that you don’t feel the same way next season.
