Fertility might not be the flashiest topic on a dairy farm, but it’s the one that keeps everything else turning—and this week Dave hands the mic to the man who makes it happen. Meet Mal, the farm’s long-time AI technician, whose “walk-and-chalk” service starts at 4 a.m. every morning. From the shed gates he studies the herd’s body language, fresh tail-paint marks and data in the Uniform app before deciding which cows need checking, scanning or serving.

Mal’s work is a true partnership. The whole Halton team watches the herd throughout the day, snapping photos and notes to a dedicated WhatsApp group so he can fine-tune tomorrow’s plan—because even the tiniest shift in diet, a hint of mobility issues, or a change in the weather can knock a cycle off course.

The conversation widens into  ...