IceRobotics COWALERT CowAlert System User Manual CowAlert User Guide FCCx

IceRobotics Limited CowAlert System CowAlert User Guide FCCx

Contents

USER MANUAL

© IceRobotics Ltd 2012 Page 1 V0.15 EN(UK)Nov 2012 User Guide V.14 – Oct 2012 English (UK) Information and Support Enquiries: Email: support@cowalert.com Tel: +44 131 541 2010
© IceRobotics Ltd 2012 Page 2 V0.15 EN(UK)Nov 2012 Contents 1 Introduction ....................................................................................................................................4 1.1 The origins of the IceQube and the CowAlert System............................................................4 1.2 Minimum System Requirements to view CowAlert................................................................5 2 Getting connected to CowAlert ......................................................................................................6 3 CowAlert Home Page ......................................................................................................................8 3.1 Navigation Bar Details (User profile and language selection) ................................................8 3.2 Navigation Bar Details.............................................................................................................9 3.3 Search for Cow or IceQube Numbers ...................................................................................10 4 Behaviour Graphs & Summary Information .................................................................................11 4.1 Behaviour graph: Hours view................................................................................................11 4.2 Behaviour Graph: Multi-day view.........................................................................................12 4.3 Behaviour Tables...................................................................................................................13 4.4 IceScore Mobility ..................................................................................................................14 4.5 Interpreting the graphs.........................................................................................................15 5 Heat Alerts ....................................................................................................................................16 5.1 Viewing recent heat alerts and their associated behaviour graphs .....................................16 5.2 Viewing all Heat alerts ..........................................................................................................17 5.3 Receiving Heat Alerts by email .............................................................................................17 6 Lying Behaviour.............................................................................................................................18 6.1 Lying behaviour for the individual cow.................................................................................18 6.2 Lying behaviour for the group or herd..................................................................................20 6.3 Lying behaviour graphs for an individual cow ......................................................................21 7 Managing Cows and IceQubes......................................................................................................22 7.1 Getting started – creating the initial association between Cows and IceQubes..................22 7.2 Generating a list of Cow numbers ........................................................................................22 7.3 Generating a list of IceQubes................................................................................................24 7.4 Attaching an IceQube to a Cow within CowAlert .................................................................25 7.5 Adding new cows to CowAlert..............................................................................................26 7.6 Detaching an IceQube from a cow number..........................................................................27 7.7 Deleting a Cow and its record from CowAlert ......................................................................28 8 Reports..........................................................................................................................................28 8.1 Lying Time .............................................................................................................................28 8.2 IceScore Mobility ..................................................................................................................30
© IceRobotics Ltd 2012 Page 3 V0.15 EN(UK)Nov 2012 8.3 IceScore Mobility Historic Performance ...............................................................................31 8.4 IceQube Population ..............................................................................................................31 9 Site Information ............................................................................................................................32 9.1 User Settings ............................................................................................................................32 10 Help and Support .....................................................................................................................33 11 Feedback..................................................................................................................................33 12 Attaching an IceQube to a cow’s leg........................................................................................34 13 Removing an IceQube from a cow’s leg...................................................................................35
© IceRobotics Ltd 2012 Page 4 V0.15 EN(UK)Nov 2012 1 Introduction 1.1 The origins of the IceQube and the CowAlert System IceRobotics has been supplying animal science institutions worldwide with specialist behaviour monitoring solutions since 2005. Its IceTag and IceQube sensors are used by leading livestock researchers in over 20 countries to enable research into health, welfare and behaviour, principally in dairy cattle. Research based on these sensors appears in highly regarded journals such as the Journal of Dairy Science and the Journal of Applied Animal Behaviour Science. Recent published papers have covered diverse themes including oestrus expression, lameness patterns, different bedding types, hoof trimming methods and feed intake. The IceQube was developed in 2008 from the proven IceTag platform to provide a sensor that is suitable both for large-scale research and commercial farm applications. It was launched in 2010 after extensive field-trialling across many herds and sites. The IceTag and IceQube are designed to be fully compatible with each other to ensure that ongoing research insights can be extended into practical applications in commercial farming. Both sensors use a 3-axis accelerometer, capturing precise data on the cow’s movements several times per second, providing highly detailed activity and behaviour information. The CowAlert system was developed to provide advanced management and analysis capability for the data generated by the IceQube. The system’s internet connectivity allows large amounts of data to be securely stored and extensively analysed. Users can keep information over several generations of animals if they wish and complex mathematical analysis and calculations can be performed which would not be possible on older-generation stand-alone systems. Information from different sites can be compared or combined and users can access the system from any location with an internet connection. Information can therefore be shared remotely with third parties such as vets or feed advisors if desired. The IceQube’s excellent heat detection performance has been verified through a series of scientific trials involving progesterone testing. With the IceTag established as the market leading choice of dairy animal scientists, the award winning IceQube and CowAlert system is now being selected by the most progressive dairy farmers. CowAlert and IceQube are Registered Trade Marks of IceRobotics Ltd
© IceRobotics Ltd 2012 Page 5 V0.15 EN(UK)Nov 2012 1.2 Minimum System Requirements to view CowAlert Using your unique User ID and password you can access CowAlert from anywhere there is a reliable internet connection and a modern web browser, whether that is the farm office or from the other side of the world. There is no software to be installed and all updates are automated so the most recent version will always be available. Accessing CowAlert through an internet broadband connection is preferred as this provides good speed and reliability. CowAlert can therefore be viewed on any internet-enabled device such as a PC, Mac, laptop or tablet PC. It is suggested that equipment with a reasonable sized screen is used to ensure full benefit from the advanced graphing capability. Recommended web browsers include: • Firefox version 4 • Google Chrome (this updates itself so the latest version should always be installed) • Internet Explorer 8 • Safari for mobile devices
© IceRobotics Ltd 2012 Page 6 V0.15 EN(UK)Nov 2012 2 Getting connected to CowAlert 1. You should have a modern internet browser (such as Google Chrome, Firefox 4, Internet Explorer 8 or Safari) installed on your PC or equivalent. 2. Ensure that you are connected to the internet 3. Open your internet browser 4. In the address bar, type this address and then press enter www.cowalert.com 5. You should now see this login screen:
© IceRobotics Ltd 2012 Page 7 V0.15 EN(UK)Nov 2012 6. Click on Client login which will take you to the login page. 7. Enter your username and password and press Enter – this will take you to the Home Page of the CowAlert system for your farm. Your username and password are unique to you. Please do not share these details with others as they will then be able to make changes that may affect your data and therefore the effective functioning of the system. If however, you would like to authorise someone else to have access, please email support@cowalert.com and a separate username and password can be issued for each additional user. If you forget your password or believe that it is no longer secure, please email support@cowalert.com and a replacement will be issued. TIP: Bookmark your CowAlert page, or set it up as your Home Page on your browser, so you can access it quickly in the future
© IceRobotics Ltd 2012 Page 8 V0.15 EN(UK)Nov 2012 3 CowAlert Home Page The Home Page allows you to access the different functions of the system – it is like a Table of Contents to direct you to where you want to go in the system. The functions are: • Animal activity graphs • Heat alerts • Health alerts if you have subscribed to receive them • Average herd lying times • IceQube management functions The illustration below provides an overview of the CowAlert front page. 3.1 Navigation Bar Details (User profile and language selection) Navigation bar allows you to access different features of CowAlert The number of cows in heat. Click on any number takes you directly to the detail for that cow (see section 4) Average lying time of the herd over 24 hours The middle section shows the download performance and the latest downloads and times. Click on your farm name on any page to come back to this front page. It acts as a “Home” button. Click here to logout from the system and select your language preference. Users can logout from any page. Click this link to email the heats summary to someone. A pop up window will appear and you enter the email address IceScore Mobility. Average Mobility Score of the Herd, plus indicator of the number of animals flagged as green, amber and red. Poor mobility scores may indicate lameness or another health problem. measure of a.user The Dairy Farm
© IceRobotics Ltd 2012 Page 9 V0.15 EN(UK)Nov 2012 3.2 Navigation Bar Details Separate sections will be covered in more detail below. Click on orange button to open up user profile options such as language selection and to logout. Other languages will be added as they become available. Heats: Accesses list of heats – see section 5 Manage: Associating cows with IceQubes, removing attachments, adding cows – see section7 Help: Send an email to support@icerobotics.com – see section 13 Cow / IceQube: Search directly by Cow or IceQube number Reports: Accesses lying time, IceScore and IceQube reports - see section 8 The Dairy Farm Site: Accesses information and settings – see section 9
© IceRobotics Ltd 2012 Page 10 V0.15 EN(UK)Nov 2012 3.3 Search for Cow or IceQube Numbers Use the same process to search for an IceQube number, using the IceQube field. Search by Cow: Entering a number 1 shows all cows that have the number 1 in cow number Adding a second digit, in this case a 2, searches for the number 12 and displays all cow numbers with this number pair. Select the cow you wish to view and left mouse click to select, or enter a cow number and <enter>
© IceRobotics Ltd 2012 Page 11 V0.15 EN(UK)Nov 2012 4 Behaviour Graphs & Summary Information The behaviour graph page is divided into a graph and several tables. 4.1 Behaviour graph: Hours view The Hours activity graph provides more detailed information on the animal’s behaviour. This view is particularly useful when looking at heat events or suspected health anomalies. The Hours graph can be accessed either from: • Selecting a heat event and clicking on the chart icon (see section 5) • Selecting the Hours tab on the main cow activity screen Behaviour shows detailed behaviour information for the cow. See more in section 8.1 Select the time period (15 hours to 90 days) to view the data for that period Scroll back/forward in time Options to print and export the graph Standing/lying time is denoted by the yellow line. Here the cow is standing. The pink line shows the MotionIndex. This is a measure of how active the animal is. Note the raised activity level during oestrus. The blue line shows the Step Count. Note that the MotionIndex is a more accurate measure of activity. Clicking on any of these headings hides/shows them on the graph The blue triangle shows when the IceQube downloaded. The Hours view is fixed width. Data will progressively fill the window.
© IceRobotics Ltd 2012 Page 12 V0.15 EN(UK)Nov 2012 4.2 Behaviour Graph: Multi-day view An example of a 30 day activity graph is shown below. The activity graphs include the following information: • MotionIndex – how active the animal has been (thick pink line) • MotionIndex 7 day average (thin pink line) • Lying/standing (thick grey line) • Lying time 7 day average (thin grey line) • Steps (thick blue line) • Steps 7 day average (thin blue line) • IceScore Click on any of these headings to show or hide that feature on the graph Lying time (higher values indicate that the cow is lying for longer) MotionIndex IceScore: Numbers above 2 denote a potential health problem Lying time average. Note that this is very consistent for this cow.
© IceRobotics Ltd 2012 Page 13 V0.15 EN(UK)Nov 2012 4.3 Behaviour Tables Several tables are shown on the screen along with the behaviour graph. The Events Table provides a list of the dates of previous Heats. The IceQube Attachments table provides details on when IceQubes were attached and removed from the cow, and the associated IceQube numbers. The Summary Information Table provides summary information for the current day, the average of the last 7 days and the average of the last 14 days Summary information on the cow, including optional Group allocation and Eartag number. The table shows the number of the IceQube that is currently attached, when the IceQube last downloaded, and when the last heat event occurred. Delete a cow by clicking here . Note that this will remove the animal from the cow list along with all its data. The data can not be recovered, so this function should be used with caution. Click on Edit to edit the Cow Number, Group or Eartag fields. Use Cancel to exit without saving.
© IceRobotics Ltd 2012 Page 14 V0.15 EN(UK)Nov 2012 4.4 IceScore Mobility IceScore is an optional paid-for subscription service subject to a free trial period during its validation phase. It provides an alert for animals that exhibit a change in mobility that is likely to be related to some sort of health issue such as lameness or mastitis. The example below shows an IceScore trace for a cow that was confirmed to have gone lame. See also section 8.2 for further information on IceScore Mobility. Dairyman reported problem here, 2 or 3 days into the problem IceScore identified a mobility issue
© IceRobotics Ltd 2012 Page 15 V0.15 EN(UK)Nov 2012 4.5 Interpreting the graphs To assist in identifying unusual behaviour patterns it is useful to know the expected range of “normal” behaviours. Whilst this can vary between farms, the table below shows the typical ranges for Motion Index, Step Count and Lying Time. Behaviour Measure Indoor Grazing Motion Index 5000-10000 10000+ (can be as high as 30000, 40000 depending on how far cows have to walk to pasture) Step Count 1000-3000 (generally around 1/4 of the Motion Index) 3000-10000 Lying time 8-16 hours. Note that scientific experts recommend that dairy cows should lie for 12 hours per day1 Low herd or individual lying times could be an indicator of several factors including illness or cow comfort issues. 8-16 hours (often higher outdoors than indoors) 1 Jensen, M.B., L.J. Pedersen, and L. Munksgaard. 2005. The effect of reward duration on demand functions for rest in dairy heifers and lying requirements as measured by demand functions. Appl. Anim. Behav. Sci. 90:207-217
© IceRobotics Ltd 2012 Page 16 V0.15 EN(UK)Nov 2012 5 Heat Alerts 5.1 Viewing recent heat alerts and their associated behaviour graphs Heat alerts are shown in the left-hand table on the farm homepage. Clicking the chart icon opens the Hours behaviour graph so the user can view the activity around the Heat This column gives the time the heat started. The search box below it also allows further refinement. Click column header to order by date /time This is the recommended AI window and is set by the farm by selecting Site from the main menu bar, and then Settings (see section 9.1) Click the cow number to show activity graphs for this animal Click on any row to open the details of the highlighted alerts Click to open drop-down menu to select different search criteria Use the Ignore button to cancel the Heat alert (eg if caused by a known event). Use the Info button to view further details and to reinstate an alert (eg if Ignored by accident)
© IceRobotics Ltd 2012 Page 17 V0.15 EN(UK)Nov 2012 5.2 Viewing all Heat alerts A list of all cows and Heat alerts can be accessed by selecting Heats from the top menu bar. 5.3 Receiving Heat Alerts by email In addition to viewing heat alerts at any time via CowAlert, automated email messages can be sent to specific email addresses. To set up automated email alerts, email support@cowalert.com with the following information: • Farm name • Name and email address of the person/people to receive email alerts • When the email alert should be received, eg once a day, sent at 3pm, or twice a day, sent at 6am and 6pm. The email that is sent will include heat alerts generated within the last 72 hours and will look like the example below. Note that clicking on the cow number will show the relevant activity graph. The table can be sorted Cow or Heat Start by clicking on the appropriate column heading Note that the cows within a current AI time window are highlighted in yellow. See section 9.1 on how to set the AI window.
© IceRobotics Ltd 2012 Page 18 V0.15 EN(UK)Nov 2012 6 Lying Behaviour 6.1 Lying behaviour for the individual cow For the individual cow, CowAlert provides: • Cow-level: Graphical overview of lying time and average lying time (Activity graphs) • Cow-level: Total Lying time per day, and as a 7 and 14 day average (table located below activity graph for the specific cow) and as a graphical view (Behaviour view option on Activity graph) • Cow-level: Number of lying bouts each day. A lying bout is when a cow changes from standing to lying to standing. (table located below activity graph for the specific cow) • Herd-level: average number of hours the herd is lying. • Typically she will have a very similar number of bouts each day and any change to that may indicate a potential problem. Below is an example of an Hours graph, showing only the MotionIndex and the lying/standing patterns. Note the increased activity and increased standing time associated with the Heat event. The steps and downloads are hidden by deselecting them in the key. Hours graph with Steps and Downloads hidden from view by clicking on those headings
© IceRobotics Ltd 2012 Page 19 V0.15 EN(UK)Nov 2012 Below is an example of a 90 day graph showing only the lying time plus 7 day average lying time. Hiding the Steps and MotionIndex from view clearly shows the lying pattern and lying time trend of this animal.

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