In March, you may have seen the article “Video game brings cow movement to life,” about our project to improve how people practice cow handling skills. We are excited to share some updates about “Mooving Cows.”

Version 1.0 of the video game is currently private for research purposes and is played on mobile tablets running an Android operating system. We were grateful to recently receive funding from the Wisconsin Dairy Innovation Hub. This will enable us to upgrade the game to Version 2.0 using the feedback we gathered from Wisconsin dairy farm employees. It will also allow us to optimize the game to work on Chromebooks and Apple devices and to release it into the iTunes (Apple) and Google Play (Android) app stores.

We are making improvements to the current game, which focuses on routine cow handling in a parallel parlor and in a freestall pen. We also have a list of great ideas from farm employees, owners, and trainers for future additional scenarios.

Our main audience is people who work on dairy farms and handle cows on a regular basis. Our vision is for this educational tool to be free for all dairy farms in the U.S. We have also been testing it with veterinary students, undergraduate animal science students, and primary and secondary school students in 4-H programs.

Stay tuned in early 2024 for news about the public release. Once the game is public, anyone who might find it educational or enjoyable is welcome to play it. We hope this could also be a way to demonstrate to consumers that our industry is committed to appropriate cow handling and innovative continuing education.

In the meantime, if you would like to preview the game, you can see me present about it at World Dairy Expo in Madison, Wis., on Tuesday, October 3, 2023, at noon. In addition, doctorate student Mónica Ruiz-Ramos will give the same presentation in Spanish on Wednesday, October 4 at 2 p.m. For more details, click here. Come find me at Expo to request a private demo of the game and play it for yourself!