Guide · Tasks

Setting up task protocols

An hour up front, a year of "didn't forget" tomorrow. The brain behind the Tasks page — define your routine once, and the right calves appear in the right list, on the right day, for the rest of time.

By The Calfmate team6 min read

Do it once. Forget for ever.

Most calf-rearing operations have an animal health plan that lives in three places: the vet's PDF in your inbox, a laminated sheet on the shed wall, and your manager's head. Task protocols are the way to put it in one place — and then have Calfmate enforce it automatically. The work is mostly upfront. Most farms spend twenty minutes on this on day one and never touch it again.

Who can do this

Admins only. Workers can complete tasks but can't change the protocols that generate them.

Where to find it

Top nav → Tasks → Protocols (top right). Or directly: /tasks/protocols.

What's a task protocol?

An age-based event template. When calves (or pens) reach the trigger age, they appear on the Tasks page, ready to action. It's the difference between "I'll remember to vaccinate at 4 weeks" (you won't) and "Calfmate puts the right calf on my list at the right age, every time."

The fields, plain English

Define a protocol

Name (required) — what you'd say in the shed. "First clostridial booster", "Disbudding", "Halocur scour prevention".
Trigger age (days) — how old the calf needs to be. 0–900.
Applies to — Whole pen (avg age) or Per calf.
Description (optional) — technique notes, vet instructions.
Drugs / components (optional) — one drug per line, with optional withdrawal override.
Repeat every (days) — for daily courses like Halocur. Blank = one-off.
Until age (days) — for courses. Pairs with Repeat every.

Whole pen vs per calf

Whole pen (avg age) — fires when the pen's average age hits the trigger. Use for batch jobs (disbudding, weaning checks).
Per calf — fires individually as each calf ages in. Use for vaccines on mixed-age pens, or any time you care about each calf hitting the exact age.

The default scope for new protocols comes from Settings → Farm details. You can override per protocol.

Worked examples

Disbudding (one-off, whole pen)

Name: Disbudding
Trigger age: 42
Applies to: Whole pen
Drugs: Lignocaine | 0, Meloxicam (s/c) | 0

First clostridial booster (per calf)

Name: First clostridial booster
Trigger age: 28
Applies to: Per calf
Drugs: Bovilis 7in1 | 21

Halocur scour prevention (repeating)

Name: Halocur scour prevention
Trigger age: 0
Applies to: Per calf
Repeat every: 1
Until age: 6
Drugs: Halocur | 0

Pestivirus vaccine (per calf)

Name: Pestivirus vaccine
Trigger age: 120
Applies to: Per calf
Description: First dose. Booster 4 weeks later (separate protocol).
Drugs: Pestiguard | 0

Not a prescription — your animal health plan and vet should drive the numbers. The point is the shape of what a protocol looks like.

Editing, disabling, deleting

The All protocols table at the bottom of the page lists everything. Tap a row to edit. Disable stops a protocol from generating new tasks but keeps historical records intact. Delete wipes the protocol entirely — but past records on calves stay (showing as completed in the passport history). Calfmate confirms before deleting.

Start with your existing routine. If your health plan says "first 7-in-1 at 4 weeks", that's one protocol, three minutes of setup.

Three tips worth a coffee

Start with your existing routine. Whatever your animal health plan already says, type it in. Don't try to redesign your shed at the same time as setting up software.
Don't model every edge case. Cover the 80% that runs your shed. The weird ones stay in your head or in calf notes.
Pen-scope saves taps. Great for pens of similar-aged calves; saves ticking 20 boxes. Per-calf is safer when ages are mixed.

What's not built

Triggers are age-only. "7 days after weaning" or "14 days after a positive scour test" aren't supported. If you need event-driven triggers, set up a one-off treatment when you flag the calf — see the treatment workflow guide.

One thing to take away

The best time to set protocols up is the day you start with Calfmate. The second best time is now. An hour today is a year of "didn't forget" tomorrow.

One hour. A year of "didn't forget".

Define your protocols once. Calfmate puts the right calves on the right list, on the right day, automatically. 30 days free, no card.

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