WILLISTON, Vt. -
Lasers that read udder coordinates, a robot that knows cows betterthan the farmer and an individual computer chip for each cow on the farm. Sounda little unworldly? That's why they've branded this machine the astronaut.
"It can identify which animal she is and at that point the computer knowswhether she can get milked or not" Paul Godin explained the technology tofarmers and prospective customers Saturday.
Godin has been peddling roboticmilking systems to ten farms around the state of Vermont. His job is to make Vermont farmersbelievers in this new type of technology.
"Vermontand New England is ideal for robots, we willnot have 10,000 cow dairies like they have out west" Godin said.
The astronaut is a hands free system that milks and feeds cowswhile tracking their health. Cows walk into a pen, are scanned by the robot andfed grain based on their size and milk production. If they've come too manytimes that day the machine kicks them out. 128 pieces of information come up onthe computer for each individual cow. If something's wrong the astronaut knows.
"The robot actually phones the farmer calls him and tells him there's anissue" Godin said.
"We were milking two times a day the robots have allowed usto milk three times a day or more" Ownan Whitcomb, the owner of Whitcombfarms said.
He calls it the ultimate in cow comfort. It also eliminates theneed for tedious work for farm hands. Whitcomb says production has spiked inthe few weeks they've had the system because they can milk the cows 24 hours aday.
"The average production of all of our cows has increasedapproximately 12-14 pounds per cow per day" Ownan said.
Each machine averages $160,000Whitcomb says with installation it ended up being closer to $200,000. He'shoping this machine will be the farms real cash cow.
