Feedlot performance depends on consistency.

Every day, producers work to maximise daily weight gain, improve feed conversion and ensure animals remain healthy throughout the feeding period. Yet achieving those outcomes isn’t simply about providing high-quality feed. Consistency of nutrient intake, animal behaviour and day-to-day management all play an important role in determining the final result.

At the same time, labour shortages, rising input costs and increasing pressure to improve operational efficiency are encouraging many feedlot operators to rethink traditional supplementation practices.

Rather than adding more labour to the system, producers are looking for technologies that simplify daily management while delivering measurable production benefits.

One approach attracting increasing attention is precision water supplementation.

Every animal drinks. That’s why it works.

Every feedlot has the same objective: achieving consistent growth across the entire mob. The challenge is that not every lamb behaves the same way. Some settle quickly after induction. Others become shy feeders or take longer to adapt following handling, transport or changes in routine.

Variations in behaviour often translate into variations in feed intake, making consistency difficult to achieve across large numbers of animals.

Water offers a different pathway. Every lamb drinks every day.

By delivering nutrients through the water supply, supplementation becomes part of a natural daily behaviour rather than relying solely on voluntary feed intake.

That simple principle is what led DIT AgTech to develop the uDOSE™ platform and supplements such as uCALM, designed specifically to support calmer animals and more consistent feedlot performance.

The uDOSE system automatically doses supplements in proportion to water flow, helping ensure animals receive the intended amount throughout the day while reducing wastage associated with conventional supplementation methods.

For producers managing feedlots or sheep operations, this also changes the way supplementation is managed.

The result is less time spent on repetitive manual tasks and more time focused on managing the business.

Rather than replacing existing infrastructure, uDOSE is designed to make better use of it.

Built around the infrastructure you already have

Rather than introducing another feeding routine, uDOSE connects directly to existing water infrastructure.

As livestock drink, the system automatically doses the correct amount of supplement into the water line.

Combined with the uHUB platform, operators can remotely monitor:

• Supplement usage
• Water flow
• Dosing rates
• Rainfall
• System alerts
• System performance

Because every dosing unit is connected through DIT AgTech’s uHUB platform,  feedlot operators gain access to much more than automated supplementation.

Real-time data allows them to monitor system performance, receive alerts, review supplement usage and identify potential water infrastructure issues before they become costly problems.

The company also developed Neville the Nutritionist, an AI-powered digital nutrition advisor that will analyse data collected across the platform to help producers make faster and more informed supplementation decisions.

Rather than simply reporting what has happened, Neville has been developed to help identify nutritional trends, recommend management actions and support producers with practical, data-driven insights throughout the season.

This additional intelligence transforms uDOSE from an automated dosing system into a continually improving decision-support platform.

Proven under commercial feedlot conditions

A 28-day commercial trial conducted at Stock Route Rd Feedlot in Ouyen, Victoria, evaluated uCALM across 447 crossbred lambs randomly allocated into two mobs.

One mob received uCALM through DIT AgTech’s uDOSE system, while the control mob received no supplementation. Importantly, no drafting was undertaken, ensuring smaller, lighter and shy feeder lambs remained within both groups throughout the trial.

The supplemented mob recorded:

• 10.92kg total liveweight gain
• 4.06kg additional liveweight gain over the control group
• $15.92 net economic return per head after product costs

 Beyond the numbers, feedlot staff observed behavioural differences between the two groups.

Lambs receiving uCALM were noticeably calmer during handling and settled more quickly in both the yards and pens.

Importantly, feedlot operators also reported no shy feeders within the supplemented mob, while the control group showed more flighty behaviour and greater variation in feeding activity.

For feedlot managers, consistency across the mob is often just as valuable as additional weight gain.

“Lambs are calm and settled.”

“Lambs are calm and settled when handling in yards and in the pen. No shy feeders and no mortalities.”

Jason Elliott

Stock Route Rd Feedlot Ouyen, Victoria

Precision supplementation. $0 for the tech.

Technology shouldn’t be the barrier.

That’s why DIT AgTech introduced the uDOSE™ Partnership Program.

Eligible feedlot operators can access uDOSE technology for $0 through a three-year agreement when sourcing their supplementation program through DIT AgTech.

It has been designed to make adopting precision supplementation easier.

Rather than requiring a significant upfront capital investment, sheep and lamb producers can begin using the technology immediately while implementing a tailored nutrition program designed for their operation.

Better feedlots start with more consistent animals.

Feedlot profitability isn’t determined by a single factor. When lambs are calmer, feed intake becomes more consistent, and shy feeders become less of a problem, better performance naturally follows.

For feedlot operators looking to improve growth rates while supporting animal wellbeing, water-delivered supplementation is providing another practical tool to achieve both.

To learn more about the uDOSE™ Partnership Program or book an on-farm consultation, visit www.ditagtech.com.au.