Merck Animal Health expands SenseHub monitoring to bucket-fed dairy calves
Monitoring for additional calf-rearing systems
SenseHub Dairy Youngstock was introduced in 2024 to monitor bottle-fed calves. The system now also covers bucket-fed, preweaned animals, allowing dairy operations to use the technology with either liquid-feeding method.
The service records calf behaviour continuously, around the clock, for animals kept individually in hutches or housed in groups. Bucket-fed calves use the existing software, ear tags and LED light feature. Merck Animal Health said producers do not need to install a software update or complete extra activation steps to use the expanded function.
The technology is intended to provide information that can help producers and veterinarians identify calves that may need attention because of possible health problems. Automated records can be used alongside direct visual checks, helping farms direct labour and other resources towards animals requiring intervention.
Research figures cited by the company
Merck Animal Health cited research linking use of SenseHub Dairy Youngstock with a 63% reduction in mortality compared with a control group monitored through visual observation. The monitored group had nearly two fewer deaths per 100 calves. The research estimated replacement-cost savings of about $6,000 for every 100 calves, using replacement heifer prices from March 2026.
The same research reported that eliminating visual observation of 140 calves saved 56 minutes of labour per day. Merck Animal Health also cited research stating that calves diagnosed with bovine respiratory disease produced 267 pounds less milk during their first lactation. The company said heifer replacement costs average roughly $3,000 per animal.
Dashboard for herd-level data
SenseHub Insights is a web-based dashboard that connects to existing SenseHub Dairy data and automatically analyses trends in selected key performance indicators. Its monitoring areas include health after calving, fresh-cow rumination, disease-risk indicators, herd heat-stress trends, consistency in milking routines and changes in herd lock-up patterns.
The dashboard is designed to shift analysis from individual animals to broader herd performance. It reduces the need for producers to review historical data manually and presents changes that may require further investigation or management action. Merck Animal Health said SenseHub Insights is available to SenseHub Dairy users without an additional charge.
Producers can share dashboard information with trusted advisers, including veterinarians and nutritionists. The company said its customer-success and technical-service teams support implementation, answer questions and assist with troubleshooting.
