Prof. Trevor DeVries and post-doctoral student Meagan King were featured in a June 21 CTV News story discussing their research into early detection of illness in dairy cows using data from robotic milking machines.

DeVries, a professor in U of G’s Department of Animal Biosciences, talked about a new study in which they combed through robotic milking data to look for subtle changes in cow behaviour that could alert farmers that an animal was getting sick.

The researchers now hope to refine health alerts not only to detect illness earlier but also to detect the types of illness, said King.

DeVries, who holds a Canada Research Chair in Dairy Cattle Behaviour and Welfare, studies illness in dairy cows and dairy production and nutrition.

King is now using data from the earlier study to refine robotic milking software to help flag signs of illness in dairy cows earlier.