You can achieve the following with this feature:
Link a Dam with its current offspring and record into the offspring lifetime information.
Record other information for the offspring and/or Dam such as DOB, Breed.
Optionally record weights either by connecting to a load cell/ load bar or by manually entering.
Look up the statistics of the lambing (or calving) percentages to monitor reproductive performance.
📝 The Offspring Pairing feature is only available on the XR5000 model.
Setting up offspring pairing
Go to the Settings screen.
Press
In the Weight Recording drop down list, select Offspring Pairing.
Go to the Weigh screen to start.
In offspring pairing mode, you will notice some changes to the Weigh screen:
The right hand pane provides status information on the current Dam.
The size of the weight has been reduced and you have the option to manually enter a weight.
The left hand pane remains the same as in other modes. You can configure what information you want to display and record.
A new soft key is displayed that you use to set or clear the Dam.
A table at the bottom of the screen provides a quick view of the last four records. This enables you to check where you are in the pairing sequence and quickly fix any data entry errors.
Capturing offspring against dam
Set the dam:
Enter or scan the ID of the dam, record any details, then press
.
~ OR ~
In the animal table at the bottom of the screen, select the ID of an existing animal, press
, then select Set As Dam from the menu.
The ID of the dam is displayed at the top of the right hand pane.
📝 For every custom ID you create, the weigh scale will automatically create a “Dam” ID version that is used by this feature.
Record ID and details of each offspring.
📝 When an offspring has been paired to a Dam, the D/O column is populated with either “Off” – Offspring or “Dam”- Dam to provide you with a quick check that you are in the correct sequence.
When all offspring for the dam have been recorded, press
.
Capturing additional information
You can display or capture additional information by adding it to the Weigh screen. This uses the same settings screen as in other modes - Settings > Information to display and record.
You can also customise new information to display and record as in other modes.
Examples of custom information may include: Colour, Heart Girth at birth, Shoulder Length at birth Hip Height of calf at birth, Cow Weight at calf birth, Hock to Dew Claw at birth, Birth Size (L/M/S), After Birth Observation.
You can also edit the information on the Animal or Session screens.
Reviewing offspring pairing information
You can view offspring pairing information on the following screens:
When the offspring pairing feature is turned on, Session > Session Animals displays a Session Animals table of Dam-Offspring records.
📝 This is the same table that is displayed on the Weigh screen.
Animal > Lifetime and Animal > All Animals screens - displays the Dam IDs.
Session > Statistics - you can display offspring pairing statistics.
Getting information off the device
You can save animal lifetime data and selected session data to your computer using the Data Link apps or USB drive.
Fixing errors
Offspring is recorded against the wrong dam
To reassign an offspring to another dam:
On the Weigh screen, press
.
Select the dam that you want to assign to the offspring, and set it as the dam.
Type or scan the ID of the offspring that you want to reassign the dam to and
press.On the Reassign Dam screen, press
.
Dam is recorded as an offspring
To remove a dam set against an animal ID:
In the table on the Weigh screen or the Animal > All Animals screen, navigate to the Dam ID assigned to the animal record.
Press
, then select Remove pairing from the menu.
Having trouble?
If you need help, click on the Live Chat bubble in the bottom right-hand corner of this screen or email sf-support@datamars.com