Murphy ? 2 yrs inThe lad near me had 2, that was fine the 3rd one was a disaster from day one
NoMurphy ? 2 yrs in
What hassle though? Was it an indoor system? I just can't see what the issue is.Farmer here had 3 robots, he took them out and put back in a normal parlour. Too much hassle with the robots
Well that's not the robots fault. What other issues?The 2 original ones were side by side and the 3rd one was put in at the far end of the shed. Milk wouldn't flow properly back to the tank. Other problems too
You need the correct mentality with robots.
You have to be able to switch yourself off and say ittl be fine till morning.
One lad had his heart broken by them, but was getting up for every alarm. 4 times+ a night. Most had sorted themselves by the time he got there. But was always "what iff"ing about each alarm.
I know another who changes settings at bed time so he only gets alerted to serious issues.
Hadn't been called in two weeks when I spoke to him.
He admitted the bots had to work hard to catch up. But sure that's what they are designed to do!
What model of robot have you got? How long are they in?Stop alarms only here between 11pm and 6am so only get alerts if a robot stops. Got less than 10 this year, sorted a couple of them from the phone, a few more were left till morning. Expect less night alarms next year as the herd matures.
When you say alarms do you mean fetching cows that are over their time between milkings?Stop alarms only here between 11pm and 6am so only get alerts if a robot stops. Got less than 10 this year, sorted a couple of them from the phone, a few more were left till morning. Expect less night alarms next year as the herd matures.
10 times in a year.... IF yields are higher on a robot (so they tell us), not to mention the health benefits from the constant monitoring (again, so I'm told!) that is probably made up for?It’s ok turning off alarms but if your up to capacity with cows your soon losing a lot of milk,you can’t catch up like you can with a parlour.
Sorry, I explained that poorly. "Stop alarms" are alerts that notify if a robot stops. These are the only alarms that are permitted between 11pm and 6am. We are at full capacity between April and September so can't afford to have a robot offline for long without creating a backlog.It’s ok turning off alarms but if your up to capacity with cows your soon losing a lot of milk,you can’t catch up like you can with a parlour.
No need to fetch cows when they are at grass which is the majority of the year. Depends on the system but we get "Notification alarms" which alert you if something unusual is happening and "Stop Alarms" which let you a robot has gone offline.When you say alarms do you mean fetching cows that are over their time between milkings?
Mate of mine has 3 bots in now 18 months10 times in a year.... IF yields are higher on a robot (so they tell us), not to mention the health benefits from the constant monitoring (again, so I'm told!) that is probably made up for?
How many paddocks do you use for grazing?No need to fetch cows when they are at grass which is the majority of the year. Depends on the system but we get "Notification alarms" which alert you if something unusual is happening and "Stop Alarms" which let you a robot has gone offline.
ABC system. Don't really use paddocks, just strip graze.How many paddocks do you use for grazing?
ABC system. Don't really use paddocks, just strip graze.
As in they start in A go through bot to B then bot to C then back to A(even if that's a new paddock /fresh strip)ABC system. Don't really use paddocks, just strip graze.
Not dead central but good enough to work.Is your yard central to your grazing block
That's it yeah, 10am-5pm in A, 5pm-1am in B and 1-10am in C. They're only allowed into bot if they have milking permission (usually set at every 8 hours). Otherwise they're diverted on to new paddock without milking.As in they start in A go through bot to B then bot to C then back to A(even if that's a new paddock /fresh strip)
I know nothing hence questions
Not dead central but good enough to work.
Where do you have the gates?That's it yeah, 10am-5pm in A, 5pm-1am in B and 1-10am in C. They're only allowed into bot if they have milking permission (usually set at every 8 hours). Otherwise they're diverted on to new paddock without milking.