I started using the Moonsyst health monitoring system in early May. My focus was to capture first time heats in late calvers and repeats from the first round of AI as I wanted to tighten my spring calving dates, with which I was not happy.

I hit the ground running, and with the help of Moonsyst customer care, I started to identify cows on heat and cows with reproductive issues. Breeding reports have been a huge benefit during the breeding season as they highlight natural heats and the cows that have missed their projected heat date or show no signs of previous oestrous activity. These cows were examined and treated by our vet.

For me, heat detection alerts and breeding reports are an essential part of the Moonsyst system, as without the proper detailed information, I was relying heavily on visual signals.

One of my early wins was getting a high-temperature alert on a dry cow that had bad mastitis. She was treated quickly and recovered well. She is now back in calf, which is great as she is due in the correct spring calving window.

Milk quality is a top priority on my farm, and having Moonsyst has allowed me to act quickly on early mastitis cases when I received high-temperature alerts. My vet and I are strong believers in using fluids and anti-inflammatories in the early stage of mastitis. We have found that cows recover faster when they are caught by the system and treated early.

As I move into the dry cow period later in the year, the system will allow me to monitor the cows' udder and general health, plus the added value of calving alerts in early spring.

Both technical support and customer care are excellent, and I like the fact that the company has its global headquarters in Ireland.

I am happy that I decided to go with Moonsyst.

Pat Gough