From the Shira team
Blog
Tips, guides, and stories to help you run a more profitable farm.
Farm IoT — Seen. Not Just Explained.
Photorealistic farm scenes with clickable sensors. Tap any device to see what it does, what it costs, and which Shira tier unlocks it. Covers crops, dairy, poultry, and swine.
Open the showcasePoultry KPIs — HDP, FCR, Mortality Rate, and What They Mean for Your Profit
The three core poultry KPIs explained with Kenyan benchmarks — how they connect, what drives them, and how to use them to make better decisions on your layer or broiler farm.
Read moreDairy KPIs Every Farmer Should Monitor Weekly
The six dairy KPIs that tell you whether your herd is productive, efficient, and profitable — with Kenyan benchmarks and practical advice on what to do when numbers are off.
Read moreHow to Read Your Farm Dashboard — A Beginner's Guide to Data-Driven Farming
Your farm dashboard shows production, costs, health, and breeding in one place. Here is how to read it, what each section means, and what to do with what you see.
Read moreFive Farm KPIs That Separate Profitable Farms from Struggling Ones
The difference between profitable and struggling livestock farms often comes down to five numbers. Learn which KPIs matter most and how to track them on Kenyan farms.
Read moreHow Shira Calculates Your Poultry KPIs Automatically
A walkthrough of how Shira turns your daily egg counts and feed records into HDP, FCR, mortality rate, and break-even analysis — automatically, with no spreadsheets needed.
Read moreVaccination Schedule for Layers in Kenya — From Day Old to Peak Production
A complete vaccination calendar for commercial layer flocks in Kenya — which vaccines, when, how, and what happens if you skip them. Includes cost estimates and record-keeping guidance.
Read morePoultry Housing Design for Kenyan Climates — Ventilation, Spacing, Lighting
Housing directly impacts production, health, and FCR. A practical guide to designing poultry houses for Kenya — ventilation for hot lowlands, insulation for cool highlands, and lighting for peak production.
Read moreBroiler vs Layer Farming — Which Is More Profitable in Kenya
A detailed financial comparison of broiler and layer farming for Kenyan poultry farmers — startup costs, operating margins, cash flow patterns, and which model suits your situation.
Read moreEgg Grading and Pricing in Kenya — How to Get the Best Price
Understanding egg grades, pricing tiers, and market channels helps Kenyan poultry farmers maximise revenue. Learn how to grade, price, and sell eggs for the best return.
Read moreWhy Your Layers Stopped Laying — Seven Common Causes and How to Fix Them
When egg production drops suddenly, there is always a reason. Here are the seven most common causes of production drops in Kenyan layer flocks — and what to do about each one.
Read moreFeed Conversion Ratio Explained — The Number That Controls Your Poultry Profit
FCR tells you how efficiently your flock converts feed into eggs or meat. Learn how to calculate it, what good FCR looks like, and how to improve it on Kenyan poultry farms.
Read moreWhat Is Hen Day Production and Why Every Layer Farmer Should Track It
Hen Day Production is the single most important metric for layer farmers. Learn how to calculate HDP, what benchmarks to target, and what a dropping HDP tells you about your flock.
Read morePregnancy Diagnosis in Cattle — When to Check and What to Expect
A guide for Kenyan dairy farmers on when and how to confirm pregnancy in cows — rectal palpation, ultrasound, and non-return methods explained with practical advice.
Read moreHow Shira Tracks Breeding Cycles Automatically — No More Guesswork
See how Shira's breeding management works across dairy, poultry, and swine — automated heat predictions, insemination tracking, pregnancy alerts, and calving/farrowing countdowns.
Read moreSow Heat Detection and Breeding Timing for Pig Farmers
A practical guide to detecting heat in sows, timing natural service or AI, and managing the breeding cycle for maximum litter production on Kenyan pig farms.
Read morePoultry Breeding Basics — When to Replace Your Flock
Layer and broiler flock replacement is a financial decision, not a guessing game. Learn how to use production data to time your replacement for maximum profit on Kenyan poultry farms.
Read moreUnderstanding Calving Interval — And Why 365 Days Is the Target
Calving interval is the most important metric in dairy herd management. Learn what it measures, why 365 days is the target, and how Kenyan farmers can achieve it consistently.
Read moreArtificial Insemination in Kenya — A Complete Guide for Smallholder Farmers
Everything Kenyan smallholder dairy farmers need to know about AI — from choosing a bull to timing insemination to evaluating results. Practical, no-nonsense, and written for the field.
Read moreBreeding Records Every Dairy Farmer Should Keep
A complete guide to the breeding records Kenyan dairy farmers need — from heat detection to calving. Learn what to track, when, and how these records pay for themselves.
Read moreOne Missed Heat Cycle Costs You KES 4,500 — Here Is the Math
A detailed breakdown of exactly how much a missed heat cycle costs a Kenyan dairy farmer in lost milk, extra feed, and repeat AI — with real numbers for Friesian, Jersey, and crossbred cows.
Read moreHow to Detect Heat in Dairy Cows — Signs Every Farmer Should Know
Missing heat costs Kenyan dairy farmers thousands in lost production. Learn the primary and secondary signs of heat, the best observation times, and how digital alerts help.
Read moreUnderstanding Milk Yield Trends — What Your Cows Are Telling You
Milk yield is not a fixed number — it is a story. Learn how to read daily and weekly trends in your dairy herd to catch problems early and make smarter management decisions.
Read moreFrom Notebook to Phone — A Dairy Farmer's Guide to Going Digital
A practical guide for Kenyan dairy farmers making the switch from paper records to a phone app. What changes, what stays the same, and how to make the transition smooth.
Read moreFive Questions Your Farm Records Should Answer Every Month
If your farm records cannot answer these five questions in under a minute each, they are not working hard enough. Here is what to track and why it matters for Kenyan livestock farmers.
Read moreHow to Start Keeping Dairy Records Today — Even If You Have Never Used an App
A practical, step-by-step guide for Kenyan dairy farmers who want to start keeping digital records. No tech experience needed. Start with milk yield and build from there.
Read moreThe Real Cost of Bad Farm Records — What You Cannot See Is Hurting You
Bad records do not just inconvenience you — they cost real money. Here is how Kenyan livestock farmers lose KES thousands every month from record-keeping gaps they do not even notice.
Read moreWhy Every Kenyan Farmer Needs Digital Records in 2026
Paper notebooks lose data, hide trends, and cost you money. Here is why Kenyan livestock farmers are switching to digital farm records — and what you gain when you do.
Read moreShira Is Live
Shira is officially live. A farm management app built for Kenyan livestock farmers to track dairy, poultry, and swine operations from their phone.
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