FarmRanger Proves Its Worth
“I received an alarm on my cellphone just after midnight on the 25th of April 2025. My sheep, which are locked in a kraal at night, were being disturbed,” Roos recalls.
“The kraal is equipped with an electric fence as well as cameras – I could see how the thieves were moving around in the kraal, disturbing the flock. I simply acted on the High Activity Alarm notifications and followed the live GPS route indicated on the FarmRanger app, as one of the sheep was equipped with a FarmRanger collar.”
A neighbour accompanied Roos to investigate the alarms. It took them some time to reach the final location, as indicated on the FarmRanger app, where they found his sheep tied up but still alive.
“I suspect the thieves didn’t notice that the flock was equipped with a FarmRanger collar, due to the thick wool. Apparently, they only saw it when they started tying up the sheep, approximately two kilometres from the kraal. They waited to see if they were being followed and disappeared when we arrived at the scene.”
Roos emphasises that the entire incident – from the time he received the first alarm on his cellphone to finding his sheep – took less than an hour.
The Price of Theft
Roos believes that the financial losses he could potentially suffer from livestock theft make FarmRanger an essential tool for successful sheep farming.
“This time 25 ewes were taken, at an average price of R2 200 per sheep, the direct financial damage would have exceeded R50 000. This excludes the financial loss of the wool as well as future income from lambs.”
This is not the first time FarmRanger has helped Roos prevent livestock theft. “Previously, 40 ewes and 30 lambs were stolen, which I fortunately recovered alive. Over the past seven years of using FarmRanger, I have been able to prevent between 12 and 15 theft attempts.”
Before using FarmRanger, Roos regularly lost sheep to theft. “My farm is located quite close to town with easy escape routes to the Sandveld Nature Reserve. This makes the farm an easy target for livestock thieves, and I have suffered huge financial losses.”
“If I had to guess, each incident would have cost me around R25 000 and R40 000. Beyond the value of the animals, there are other costs involved, such as repairing fences.” he adds.
Experience with FarmRanger
Roos views the app as an excellent tool that enables him to see exactly where his animals are at all times on the Google Map.
“It works, and even I, who am not very computer savvy, find it easy to use and understand. The app is accurate and shows the exact route and location of the animal equipped with the FarmRanger collar. Tracking at night is much easier, as I can locate the animals within a distance of 5 meters.”
“I receive prompt and professional service from FarmRanger. They respond quickly with solutions or answers to any problem or question.”
Advice to Livestock Farmers
Roos emphasise, “I would recommend FarmRanger to every livestock farmer in South Africa struggling with stock theft. It is the only tool that works to proactively combat livestock theft by giving early warnings, allowing you to act and investigate immediately.”
