A Saskatchewan ag tech startup company helps assure livestock farmers that their animals are receiving adequate water.
One of Katlin Lang’s friends wanted to get away to the lake without having to worry that his cattle were out of water.
He asked Lang, who studied electronic systems engineering at the University of Regina, to make him something that he could monitor by phone.
FarmSimple Solutions Ltd, which is run by Lang, now has several products that remotely monitor levels in cattle water troughs. The payback is especially good for farmers who have cattle a distance away and checking on them and their water situation takes significant time and resources.
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He also says a feedlot has found that monitoring water has meant less downtime for the system, which means more consistent gain for finishing cattle.
Lang was one of the speakers at the Livestock Ag Tech Happy Hour at Ag In Motion. He says the company now has developed a sensor for water quality, which it is currently testing with the Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture. It can check the level of dissolved solids, which is a good indicator of the level of contamination in a water trough.
The company also now has an app, which completes the request of Lang’s friend, to easily check the water levels of his calves on his mobile phone.
Making cattle unloading easier
Doug Green knew that having an unloading chute meant more safety for cattle and people.
However, not every barn, feedlot or pasture has a chute.
As a result, Green, of Opend Range, based in Daysland, Alta, designed his CowGo chute, which attaches to the back of a cattle delivery truck. That way each truck carries a chute option with it. Green has spent his life around cattle, including doing some trucking. He says it makes no sense to lose an animal by not having a chute for it to exit the truck, especially at the prices of cattle today. You can find more information at opendrange.com.
Green was also a presenter and described the CowGo during the Livestock Ag Tech Happy Hour at Ag In Motion.
The Livestock Ag Tech Happy Hour is a first-time event at Ag In Motion, which focused on new technology for livestock producers. The event is held each day of Ag In Motion in the livestock events building starting at 2 p.m. Attendees also get a free drink, sponsored by Claas.
