You can set up an activity alert to be notified about changes in behaviour for a group of animals. This means that you can respond promptly to any unusual activity or potential issues, benefitting the health and well-being of animals and the efficiency of your farming operation.
Every farm is unique and what is considered to be normal behaviour will differ for every group of animals. For this reason, alerts are highly customisable. You can set up one or more alerts to track different behaviours (Rumination, Feeding, Standing, Lying or Resting)
There are two types of alert for a group:
Daily alert - The system compares the current behaviour against the daily average recorded in the past 14 days. Daily alerts are useful when trying to identify issues caused by a change in management e.g. swapping to a different feed type, increasing the stocking rate in a paddock or pen.
Hourly alert - The system compares the current behaviour against the average recorded for the same hour of the day in the past 14 days. For example, you can compare a group's Rumination behaviour between 10:00-11:00 am against the average recorded for that same time period in the last 14 days. Hourly alerts are useful when trying to identify issues caused by a change in the usual routine e.g. milking time has been extended, the group is out of feed, the group has been locked-up too long or awaiting . Hourly alerts are only suitable for farms where there are standard, predictable daily routines.
To set up a daily alert:
Click on Activity, then click on a group of animals.
Select an activity (Rumination, Feeding, Standing, Lying, Resting).
Click on ... then Activity Alerts.
Click on Add Daily Alert, then select a behaviour e.g. Rumination.
Decide when you would like to be alerted and set the parameters. For example, you may want to be notified if the group's rumination activity deviates from the 14 day average for more than 60 minutes per day for more than 30% of animals.
📝 If you are receiving too many alerts, increase the number of minutes or the percentage deviation.
📝 If you are not receiving as many alerts as you need, decrease the number of minutes or the percentage deviation.
To set up an hourly alert:
Click on Activity, then click on a group of animals.
Select an activity (Rumination, Feeding, Standing, Lying, Resting).
Click on ... then Activity Alerts.
Click on Add Hourly Alert then select a behaviour e.g. Rumination.
Decide when you would like to be alerted and set the parameters. For example, you may want to be notified if the group's rumination activity deviates for more than 15 minutes of a two hour period when compared to the average recorded for that same time period in the last 14 days.
📝 If you are receiving too many alerts, increase the number of minutes or the hours deviation.
📝 If you are not receiving as many alerts as you need, decrease the number of minutes or the hours deviation.
To view activity alerts in the Datamars Livestock web app:
View Group Alerts on the Home screen. This is the number of animal groups where alerts have been triggered.
You may also be interested in:
Changing notifications to configure the way you receive alerts when a group alert has been triggered.