Controlling Cows with a Virtual Fence

Feb-17-13 Instead of covering the range with fences to control cattle, a new virtual-fence device could let the cattle “wear” the fences themselves.

Dean Anderson, a US Department of Agriculture research animal scientist, has proposed the idea of tagging the cattle with a wireless device that would give the animal a small shock if it began to wander out of the pre-defined boundaries. While cowhands and wire fences have been the standard way to control cattle, both methods are labor intensive and expensive, and if the conditions of the land change, the physical fences must also be re-arranged. With the virtual system, the shape of the “fenced” area could be changed remotely using a satellite-linked laptop.

Parts of the system, such as how to power the device and manufacture it cheaply, are still in the works, and some areas—such as land near a highway—would continue to require a physical fence.

Image: Scott Bauer/U.S. Department of Agriculture

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[DISCOVERY.COM]

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