
IoT-Driven Livestock Monitoring: Leveraging LoRaWAN for Behavior
Analysis and Enhanced Farm Management
Khadijah Febriana, Rahul Thakur and Sudip Roy
Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee, India
Keywords:
Livestock Monitoring, IoT, Sensors, LoRaWAN.
Abstract:
Cattle play a crucial role in farming by providing essential resources such as milk, meat, leather, and labor,
contributing significantly to both economic and social stability in rural areas of India. This work develops an
energy-efficient IoT system based on LoRaWAN to monitor and analyze livestock behavior. The system em-
ploys an MPU6050 sensor and TTGO T-Beam microcontroller to capture livestock’s movement and positional
data. This data is continuously transmitted via a mesh network, utilizing The Things Network and ThingSpeak
for remote analytics. A neural network with two hidden layers and ReLU activation functions is trained with
sparse categorical cross-entropy loss. Validation on a 20% subset of the training data demonstrates high accu-
racy in classifying complex animal behaviors. Classification results, including F1-scores, precision, and recall
metrics, highlight the model’s strong capability in behavior differentiation. Overall, this system enhances an-
imal health and welfare, improves farm productivity, promotes environmental sustainability, and strengthens
India’s food security.
1 INTRODUCTION
The Internet of Things (IoT) is a transformational
technology that connects numerous items over Inter-
net networks, allowing for real-time data collection
and exchange (Lu et al., 2024). This technology has
transformed several industries, particularly agricul-
ture, by driving innovation to improve productivity,
resource efficiency, and sustainability. In crop farm-
ing, IoT systems monitor crucial characteristics such
as temperature, humidity, soil moisture, and nutri-
ent levels to optimize resources and increase yields
(Chamara et al., 2022). Similarly, IoT devices provide
real-time monitoring of animal behavior, health, and
location in cattle farming, giving farmers actionable
data to improve herd management and farm produc-
tivity (McClune et al., 2014) (Ladha et al., 2013).
Agriculture and livestock production are critical
components of India’s economy, employing more
than half of the population and contributing signifi-
cantly to the country’s GDP. Despite its crucial rel-
evance, the sector faces several obstacles, including
the negative consequences of climate change, volatile
commodity prices, and limited access to sophisticated
technologies. Livestock farmers, in particular, face
challenges in successfully monitoring animal health
and well-being, preventing strays and theft, and man-
aging their resources. These difficulties are exacer-
bated in rural settings, where animals frequently graze
freely throughout large distances, making them harder
to follow and protect. IoT offers a disruptive solution
by allowing for real-time monitoring of cattle con-
ditions, detecting behavioral abnormalities, and of-
fering early warnings of health risks (Farooq et al.,
2022). This enables farmers to take prompt, proactive
steps to improve animal care, cut losses, and improve
overall farm management.
While IoT applications in livestock husbandry are
still in their early stages in India, its potential to trans-
form traditional techniques is becoming more widely
recognized. Farmers can use IoT-based systems to
enhance resource utilization, reduce livestock losses,
and detect diseases early, supporting efficient and sus-
tainable farming methods. Monitoring animal move-
ments and behavior can provide crucial information
about health and welfare. Changes in activity pat-
terns frequently indicate stress, illness, or injury, al-
lowing for early intervention (Atthari, 2017). This is
especially critical in rural India, where livestock roam
freely and are more likely to get lost or stolen. IoT-
enabled tracking solutions can help to reduce these
hazards, increase farm security, and boost economic
stability in farming communities.
LoRaWAN (Long Range Wide Area Network),
Febriana, K., Thakur, R. and Roy, S.
IoT-Driven Livestock Monitoring: Leveraging LoRaWAN for Behavior Analysis and Enhanced Farm Management.
DOI: 10.5220/0013296600003944
Paper published under CC license (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)
In Proceedings of the 10th International Conference on Internet of Things, Big Data and Security (IoTBDS 2025), pages 273-280
ISBN: 978-989-758-750-4; ISSN: 2184-4976
Proceedings Copyright © 2025 by SCITEPRESS – Science and Technology Publications, Lda.
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