Closed Circuit Camera Monitors Calving Pens

Closed Circuit Camera Monitors Calving Pens LIVESTOCK Beef 19-4-8 "It lets me check the cows in my calving pen from the comfort of my house," says Bruce Chern, Smoky Lake, Alberta, about his closed circuit camera that's mounted on a 30-ft. high TV antenna pole in the middle of his 3 1/2-acre calving pen. The camera rotates 360 degrees and sends the picture directly to a TV monitor in Chern's house. A halogen light mounted above the camera provides enough light for the camera to "see" what's happening at night. A second camera in Chern's barn allows him to keep an eye on cows that calve in the barn during cold weather. Chern has used his camera system for two years. "There's a remote control joy-stick on the monitor that tilts the camera up or down or moves it from side to side. I can `zoom' the camera in for a close-up view. It really works good. Even when the camera is as far as 100 ft. away from a cow I can read her ear tag. The Halogen light provides an almost perfect view even in the middle of the night. "Before I installed the camera I had to check cows every three or four hours during the night. I've learned that I really don't need to go out to help cows as often as I had been doing. Usually when you disturb a cow in labor, she quits what she's doing and it may take two or three hours before she resumes labor. There's less stress on both the cow and the calf if the labor process isn't disturbed. "I already had the TV antenna pole. I paid about $4,000 for the antenna-mounted camera and $1,000 for the cam-era in the barn. The antenna-mounted camera is mounted in a heated box that's thermostatically-controlled. A fan inside the box cools it off in warm weather. The Halogen light is strapped on top of the box so it moves with the camera. Duskto-dawn light sensors automatically turn the light on at night and off in morning." The antenna is anchored to under-ground concrete footings and also chains to corral panels. A junction box for the power lines is mounted on the pole 10 ft. off the ground. Underground power lines connect the cameras to the monitor and are encased in protective plastic sleeving. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Bruce Chern, Box 315, Smoky Lake, Alberta TOA 3C0 Canada (ph 403 656-3575).

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