Peace Of Mind For The Price of A Cup of Coffee

Nigel Flannery is a mixed Suckler and Sheep farmer from the shores of Lough Gara in Co. Sligo. Nigel works full time off-farm, and between work and farming, Nigel had little-to-no time to record his animal remedies and farm records.

Even just recording the basics was becoming a nightmare, with scraps of paper or the back of his hand being used as a notebook.

Nigel thought there must be a better way of recording this information but, coming from the west of Ireland internet connection was always a major problem.

On a bad day he would not be able to get any phone signal never mind an internet connection. A software package wouldn’t work for Nigel unless it worked offline, and also stored data in the cloud… because phones have a short lifespan on the farm.

In September 2014, Nigel found the solution he was looking for, he signed up to the Herdwatch app after its launch at the National Ploughing championships and hasn’t looked back since.

Since joining almost 3 years ago, he has seen massive improvements in the app and has helped in shaping how it develops. He was even more impressed when the Herdwatch team consulted him about potential new features.

Recording events and animal remedies as they happen

Nigel told us “When a calf is born, it’s tagged and registered before I come in for the tea…

When I buy animal remedies or meal, I record the purchase before I get out of the van and even if I don’t use the animal remedy for a few months, the withdrawal dates are already recorded and I won’t have to go searching for them”

Nigel loves being able to set reminders for animals which need a repeat treatment, like the blackleg injection which must be administered again after 6 weeks.

The best thing you can do is try it for yourself

Nigel recently attended a Knowledge Transfer event in Ballaghaderreen, County Roscommon where a vet spoke about the importance of recording animal remedies. The farmers in attendance asked what was the best way of recording animal remedies, as the paper work was becoming a serious burden.

Nigel spoke about his experience with Herdwatch and how it got rid of his paperwork for good. He explained that no computer was needed (or computer skills) and no internet connection was needed to record either.

Nigel explained that the best thing to do was to try the 30 day free trial to suss out if it was for them or not! He told them that “The app is fool proof!… Before you finalise any calf registration or movement cert, Herdwatch will ask you to double check info provided. All records can be edited and deleted”

Peace of mind for the price of a cup of Coffee

Some of the farmers questioned Nigel on the cost of the app and he responded by asking “What value do you put on your time and your piece of mind?” The price of Herdwatch equates to €2.50 per week, the same price as a bad cup of coffee in the

filling station. According to a recent survey Herdwatch saves farmers on average 2 hours per week!

Nigel says

“Herdwatch is almost as important as the animals themselves”