New Halter technology gives farmers a head start on calving

    Halter’s new calving detection feature uses collar behaviour data to alert farmers when a cow is calving, helping them prioritise checks and respond sooner. Supplied

A new calving detection tool is giving farmers an early heads-up when cows are calving, using behaviour data already being collected through Halter’s virtual fencing collars.

The feature analyses changes in cow behaviour and sends an alert directly to a farmer’s Halter app when signs of calving are detected, helping them prioritise which animals to check first.

Halter says it is the first calving detection feature of its kind within virtual fencing technology and has made it available to dairy and beef farmers ahead of the 2026 calving season.

Taranaki dairy farmer Aaron Fisher has been using the feature for about two weeks and said every alert he had received had accurately identified a cow that was either calving or had just calved.

“For me, it’s been 100% accurate,” Fisher said.

“It’s the busiest time of year and they’re the most vulnerable cows. To have a feature there that’s been 100% accurate is just a game changer for that individual cow around that busy time of year.”

Fisher milks 150 cows on a coastal Taranaki property and operates the farm largely on his own.

He said the new technology had not fundamentally changed the way he managed calving, but it gave him a valuable head start.

“A cow that calves at midnight might not get noticed or checked until five or six in the morning,” he said.

“If that individual cow’s got a six-hour advantage, whether it’s on fresh feed or a cleaner part of the paddock, a bit of shelter by pausing the collar, as opposed to having to wait for me to get up in the morning and check that cow, that’s an advantage.”

Once a calving alert is received, farmers can activate the LED on the cow’s collar to help identify her within the mob.

They can also pause the virtual fencing function for that animal, allowing her to move freely onto fresh pasture or remain with her calf without being virtually contained.

Farmers receive a calving alert through the Halter app and can identify the cow, trigger her collar LED or pause the virtual fencing function. Supplied.

Fisher said the feature could also help reduce some of the workload and mental pressure associated with calving.

Once the busiest part of the season had passed, reliable alerts could potentially remove the need for some additional nighttime or early morning checks.

“You can wake up and know none have calved, or know the ones that have calved and you’ve paused their collar and they’re on fresh grass, so it just allows you to get on with the rest of your jobs.”

Saving 20 minutes or half an hour on individual days quickly accumulated across a week, he said.

The alerts Fisher had received so far had generally come when a cow was actively calving or shortly after she had calved, rather than several hours beforehand.

However, he believed the technology could potentially help identify cows requiring assistance.

“If you got the calving alert and you were to go and check her later and the cow hadn’t calved, you’d probably know then that she’d been calving for that sort of period of time.”

He said that could be particularly valuable for larger farms managing multiple mobs or staff.

Halter Director of Product Toby Hurley said the technology was designed to complement farmers’ existing calving routines rather than replace them.

“During the intensity of calving, every extra bit of visibility makes a real difference,” Hurley said.

“Calving detection is designed to work alongside the routines farmers already trust, giving them another signal to help prioritise their time when they’re out checking mobs.”

Because the feature operates through existing Halter collars and the app, farmers do not need another wearable or piece of equipment.

Fisher, who has been dairy farming for about 35 years, said technology had transformed the way he operated.

“I still wonder how I even did it without Halter now.”

But he did not believe technology could replace good stockmanship.

“You’ve still got to be on farm, you’ve still got to do the physical stuff, but it is a tool that makes it so much easier.

“It makes you a better farmer. It’s a tool in your hand that can teach you as you go.”

For Fisher, who has three young children, the lifestyle benefit was one of the original reasons he adopted Halter.

He said the technology had since delivered improvements in mating and production, as well as allowing him to spend more time with his family.

And despite drawing on 35 years of farming experience, Fisher said the new calving feature had still proved valuable.

“Any head start or any jump-start that you can give to a cow on a day that she’s calving has to be a win.”