As we begin another year, I’m grateful for fresh beginnings. Although, I have to say, every new year that comes I personally don’t feel new – and I don’t sense that my life has changed. Yet, that change of the calendar often brings a sense of rebirth and renewal.
Is that same sense of renewal possible in ranching?
Ranching is considered pure in many ways, meaning it hasn’t changed throughout the generations. People graze cattle, move cattle, sell calves and do it again the following year. Tack from long ago is viable and worthwhile. Yet …
- Recordkeeping has changed over the years.
- New tools, such as electric irons, have come along.
- Medicine and immunizations have developed.
- Business models have been updated to help improve profitability.
Also …
- Land prices have skyrocketed.
- And it takes more to do less.
While in some regards ranching hasn’t changed, in many other ways, it has – and it has the possibility of changing more with the implementation of technology. Technology has impacted many sectors of business and economy and has a growing influence in agriculture.
On the ranch where we live and work, we recently started utilizing cattle collars, or virtual fencing. We were on the fence about it (pun intended), but when we realized we could utilize land that has been difficult to graze in prior years due to the inability to fence it, our interest was piqued.
The ranch owns ground near a river that gorges every winter, making permanent fencing that piece of property impossible. We’ve been utilizing electric fence, which has worked marginally. Since we have moose, elk and antelope passing through, an electric fence may not stay up as wildlife goes through it. Virtual fencing opens up grazing opportunities and encourages rotational grazing in hard-to-reach areas.
At first, I wasn’t sure about this option. Putting collars on cows? Isn’t that inhumane? Doesn’t it interfere with natural biorhythms? Is it safe? How expensive is it? My questions ran wild.
The more we investigated and talked to other producers about the option, the more positives spilled forth:
- Less manpower is needed to move cows.
- Gates can be left open. This impacts my job security as “gate girl.” Don’t worry. I’ll be OK.
- Less money is spent on interior fencing and wildlife damage repair.
- Each cow’s number is attached to her collar. You can pinpoint individual cows and find out where they are.
- You can separate cows into different groups utilizing the collars.
- The collars don’t impede grazing. In fact, they encourage cattle to always be on the best forage.
When we were able to sell a carbon credit to purchase the collars, we got excited and the pieces came together. We put collars on our bred heifer group first, and then did two more groups of cattle, putting collars on as we preg checked. (Don’t worry; we had different people at each end!)
When the cows came out of the chute after getting their new necklace, they shook their heads for about 10 to 60 seconds each, then resumed normal behavior. They haven’t changed their habits, and they are getting the best forage at the best times because of virtual fencing. My husband can look on his phone, even if we travel, and tell if the cattle are staying put.
This is certainly new. And I don’t think it’s a bad thing.
As the costs of agriculture continue to rise, anything we can do to decrease daily costs and help keep animals their healthiest, while also minimizing input, is a win.
I honestly didn’t expect to be at this point.
Have we made jokes about being robocowboys? Of course. Yet the evidence so far is favorable.
The collars we chose are solar-powered, and there are now three “cell towers” on the ranch, but you don’t really notice much. The cows are content – and the workers are as well.
There are little things to consider now: For example, you can’t just go out horseback and move the cows without creating a new pasture online because the collars will think they are out of bounds. You must wait about 12 minutes for the new pastures to take effect, then you can move the cattle.
Collaring cattle isn’t something previous generations could’ve envisioned, but future generations may take it even further. The use of technology in agriculture may feel like the industry is “new,” but from my point of view, it is the same purity of ranching with additional resources.
Just like new years keep coming, new options will continue to come and go. We may not feel any different – we can still love ranching and our way of life – while considering new opportunities. Will it stay long term? Unknown. But we are giving it a try.
No matter what happens with technology, though, “A.I.” to me will always mean artificial insemination, not intelligence.
