A Question for the Forum Members

Help Support CattleToday:

Would you use a Camera System to monitor your calving process?

  • Yes

    Votes: 9 34.6%
  • No

    Votes: 9 34.6%
  • Depends on the Cost

    Votes: 8 30.8%

  • Total voters
    26

SecurityMatt

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Hello Everyone,

I do not mean to spam the forum and my apologies if you view it that way, but I would like to know if people use video systems to monitor the Calving process? The reason for my inquisition is that we're a company that has been doing Security Systems in the farming industry for the past 12 years, but have found a possibility in Wireless Barn Cameras. Would this be a product that you would use?

I would love to hear back from the people that would potentially use this product, as I value the opinion of "Real" people.

Thank you all very much for your time!

Kindest Regards,
SecurityMatt
http://www.Rostech.com
 
Most of my cows calve on their own outside.
If I for some reason need to see the progress of a cow/heifer calving I will be there.
 
Most of my cows calve on their own as well. However, I like to keep an eye on them just in case. If I were using a camera I could watch them without going around them and distracting them. This isn't a big issue with the cows, but the first calvers tend to be very nervous so I try to balance the number of times I check them with the risk of them having issues with me not being there. I feel a camera would be a valuable tool that would likely pay for itself in a short order.
 
I would like a camera both inside of our barn and out. Being able to check the progress without upsetting the cow would be great. Also if help is needed, such as a breech calf, we could get there in a hurry. If everything goes fine we would know it.
 
Thank you everyone for your feedback it is greatly appreciated. Our cameras also come with embedded microphones so you can leave the TV on and you would be able to hear any kind of distress.

Thanks again,
Matt
 
I think for the cattle industry that would go bust but for foaling that might be something of interest for some people.
 
Unless the cameras can see for a half mile or so in the dark I don;t see where they would be of much use for most producers
 
I don't think I would use a camera for calvings-if I am going to watch on a screen I may as well be out there checking on her. But, I think cameras do have their place on a farm, I would consider one at the entrance or another area where a lot of visitors were present.
 
My cows don't know what the inside of the barn looks like. Now if you perhaps had a long range transmittable pine tree camera that would know which tree to be mounted in, then that might work.
 
I think for those that have a few yard ornament type cattle and they worry sick about them. Maybe set up cameras all over and have a vet on speed dial.
 
I kind of would rather have perimeter fence cameras. Something that could see a quarter mile down a fence row for trees down on the fence, cows out, people cutting the fence, electric fence grounded out, wild animals, etc. Something that was wireless and cheap I could check every morning and every evening on the computer and yes I probably would buy 8 to 10.
 
Night vision cameras would be nice too, especially when we have the cows locked in the corral because of bad weather.
 
At the dairy we had cameras in the freestall barn for heat detection and also in the calving pen , they were the old style but you could move them remotely and zoom in if need be. The monitor was kept in the kitchen and the herdsman had to keep in mind where the camera was at all time before whizzing.. :lol2:

Last spring I bought a system, it has night vision ,is wireless up to 500 m and is supposed to be good up to 2000 ft of line of sight. I have 3 cameras that will be mounted ,one in each calving pasture and one in the pole barn. I am hoping to use it for heat detection as well. It still needs to be mounted and tested but I think if it works I will love it. It cost me a little over a thousand for the sysytem and 3 cameras ,I need a small monitor still. The thing I do not like is that I can not pan around ,,,that would be very handy.

I will let you all know if it works, it is supposed to be good up to -40 weather but we'll see.
 
Hillsdown,

There are two solutions to your problem. The first would be to get a automated panning mounting bracket. These brackets allow for a static camera to pan at whatever degree required and that would solve the issues. The other solution would be to replace your static camera with a PTZ camera (Pan Tilt Zoom); they're the ones that are shaped like domes, but that would not be cost efficient if you have already purchased the cameras.

Hope that helped! :D
Matt
 
We used the closet circuit camera system in the dairy parlor and milk room.....really more to keep our eyes on the milkers than anything else. You might check with dairy folks for best luck.
 

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