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3.7 Generates efficiency indicators
Software can be programmed to automatically
generate productive, reproductive and economic
efficiency indicators like persistency of milk yield,
milk yield/day of lactation, milk yield/day of calving
interval, milk yield/day of body weight at calving,
lifetime milk yield, growth studies etc. which can aid
the manager in making decisions regarding selection.
A similar exercise using registers would be
prohibitively time-consuming, error-prone and laborious.
3.8 Allows comparisons
The manager can compare performance of two
individuals, two groups of animals, or the same
animal/group over different time periods of time to
assess superior performance of individuals/groups and
managerial measures which can increase productivity.
This feature can be of great help in the evaluation of
any new technology before implementation in the
whole herd. E.g. a new feed additive can be added to
the diet of one group of cows and their milking
performance compared instantly with a similar group
which is not fed the additive. Traditional history
sheets and other records do not permit this type of
comparison unless lot of manual computing is done.
3.9 Reminders
Herd management software can remind the farm
manager every morning about the scheduled activities
for the day like vaccination, deworming,
ectoparasiticide application, insemination, pregnancy
diagnosis, routine maintenance etc. It will also greatly
assist him in carrying out these operations in a timely
manner and enable him to prioritize and organize his
activities for the day. E.g. on entering data about the
dates of insemination, the program will automatically
remind the manager when it’s time to conduct a
pregnancy test.
3.10 Alarms
Traditional record keeping systems do not warn the
farm manager about potential events that can be
detected by abnormal changes in some of the
parameters. E.g. software can be programmed to
sound an alarm when there is abnormal decrease in
daily milk production of any cow, which can be on
account of estrus or disease.
3.11 Generates reports
Herd management software can generate daily,
monthly or annual reports or reports for a specific
time-period automatically. The format of the reports
can be changed as per the user’s requirements. These
reports give an overall summary of the activities of the
farm and help improve managerial efficiency. E.g.
milking report, breeding report, Sales report,
Expenditure Statement etc. As these reports are
dynamic, any change in the data will be immediately
reflected in the report, thus allowing the farm manager
to conduct “what-if” studies. Such iterative studies are
not possible in traditional record keeping systems.
3.12 Scalability
With today’s desktop computers, there is virtually no
limit to the amount of herd data which can be handled
and processed. It does not make much difference
whether the herd has 20 or 2 000 cows the same
program can cater to any herd size. However,
traditional recording systems become more
cumbersome, labor-intensive and error-prone as the
herd size increases.
3.13 Ease of backing up data
In a large, organized dairy farm, information is almost
as valuable as the livestock. Loss of pedigree and
performance data recorded over a period of years can
be devastating, especially in dairy cattle, where the
generation interval is very large. Traditional
record-keeping systems deteriorate over time, are
difficult to duplicate, and prone to damage and
destruction by way of fire, moisture, insects, pests etc.
However, computerized records can be securely
backed up on a flash drive, a removable hard disk, a
CD/DVD or on the internet at the touch of a button.
3.14 Data transmission for expert evaluation
The entire herd data for a period of many years can be
sent instantly across the world via the internet to
experts for assessment and evaluation. This can be
very helpful in situations like culling where the
manager has to take decisions and a mistake can have
severe long-term repercussions. Other possible