Cattle producers - technology

I'm looking to add technology and cattle tracking info to my herd. I don't run a feedlot, so I don't see a $1500 scanner as a necessity. What I envision is an ear tag with a bar code (and number in case you are too away to scan it) and the ability to scan that with my iPhone or iPad and see the animals vaccination and calving history. These would be things I would add right there as the vaccinations are given.

As I search there are several "pay by the month for our wonderful service" deals along with an expensive scanner which you have to have for your iPhone to communicate.

Does anyone use such a program/app? Anyone aware of one that exists?

Its called HOT or FREEZE BRANDING with a serial number. How many head of cattle do you have? I can't for the life of me understand how modern day technology, that you have to pay for would benefit you. If you have a few cattle, you can manually enter the records, which I still don't know why you need to record every thing you do with a critter. If you have several hundred critters, you have figured out you don't need to record everything you did to her.

notjustair,

I'm not very technologically proficient. I still maintain manual records with Microsoft Excel and Word for calving records and vaccinations. However, do you remember when there was a big controversy about the National Animal Identification System (NAIS)? At that time, I looked into the rfid eartags and scanners since I thought that we were going to be forced to use them. The tags were selling for about $1.50 each and a hand held scanner was going for less than $200.00. The data was recorded in the hand held scanner and could then be downloaded into a computer application. I never looked closely at the computer application, because NAIS was fading away at the time.

My family all uses smart phones and every kind of application imaginable, but I still use a flip phone.

I admire your forward thinking ideas, but for me, manual records are sufficient.

Tom in TN

I don't know that you'll find a cheap one that you'll be satisfied with. As you might know,RFID in cattle has been mandatory in Michigan for around 8 years now. It's only necessary to have them in the cattle when you sell them though,so I don't have any personal experience with readers. You probably did the same search that I did. I came up with an Allflex reader that will read our style of Allflex tags for around $375,but reading the review,it sounds like they're pretty much useless unless the cattle are in the chute. It recommends the wand type,but like you said,over $1100. We just use the ordinary Allflex numbered tags along with the RFID and write everything down on paper. If you really want to cheap out like I do and still keep track electronically,just manually entering the information on a hand held device might be the only way.
Allflex

(quoted from post at 06:58:49 02/29/16) Its called HOT or FREEZE BRANDING with a serial number. How many head of cattle do you have? I can't for the life of me understand how modern day technology, that you have to pay for would benefit you. If you have a few cattle, you can manually enter the records, which I still don't know why you need to record every thing you do with a critter. If you have several hundred critters, you have figured out you don't need to record everything you did to her.

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Why not? If she has trouble settling every year or slips a calf I need to know that. With margins close and vaccinations getting higher you can't just run without data and guess at your herd. I can't imagine not keeping records of which bull they were with on which year - you would have calves that you couldn't keep because you might accidentally line breed them. I want to know the exact date some are put with the bull or breed so that I can get them moved to the dry lot for calving at the right time, but I sure don't want them all there "just in case". If I have a cow that isn't a good milker I need to write that down so that when that baby is weaned she can go to the sale. Currently I keep everything in a cattle book in the pickup, but I am looking for something easier. I've got about 100 head right now. I can't imagine not keeping good cattle records - I'd end up with a herd that would always have issues of some sort. I just don't have the memory for all of that!

I hate to violate one of my own personal pet peeves by responding to this even though I have no advice to offer on the original question you asked, but here goes. I'm not sure why you want to over-complicate a simple business not to mention add cost to a business in which margins are already tight. I double tag all my cows (both ears in case one comes out) with the biggest tags I can get and I have a SUPER simple numbering system. I know how old they are by their tag number and what bull they came from with a quick check of a spreadsheet (which I have on my phone and tablet). ALL decisions on culling a cow are based on fertility. PERIOD. I write down when the bull goes out, figure when my calving window should be and wham, if a cow doesn't calve within that window (give a week or so), she gone. If she loses a calf, she's gone. If she raises a scraggly calf, she's gone. If she can't stay in decent body condition on decent hay and pasture, she's gone. If she is a perennial parasite problem, she's gone. THAT'S IT. I've been managing the herd this way for 7 or 8 years now and yeah, those first few years were a bugger because the herd took a hit, but now my herd is younger, more fertile (I calve out 55 cows in 40 days), and the cows are easier keepers. I calve in May (except for first calf heifers, they go a month before the rest of the herd) so there's no need for a calving lot and my cows are in the chute ONCE a year and they're NEVER in a barn, the rest of the time they're out grazing. So, I'm sorry, I just don't see the need for all that technology, but hey, that's just me.

Instead of needing a scanner, just use numbers and either find a program to enter the number manually and have your info come up. Or just use a spreadsheet like Excel on your smartphone. You should be able to move the spreadsheet to and from your phone to the computer and back. Or just open the file that's on the phone with the computer. I do it all the time with notes and shopping lists.