His idea is similar to a weed wiper -- a dispenser that can be attached vertically to a convenient fence post and filled with products such as natural pyrethrum, aloe vera and manuka oil.
The prototype was made of rubber and the product is dispensed through seepage holes when the animal scratches against it.
The idea is the Scratch'n'Dose stays accessible for livestock to access whenever they have the urge.
O'Dell believes it would be possible to automatically refill the dispenser from a handily placed 20-litre drum.
He did his research into the products and found pyrethrum needs to be protected from sunlight to retain its effectiveness.
His system does just that, providing the quick and effective knockdown for ticks and lice.
O'Dell then adds aloe vera for soothing and manuka oil for its antibacterial and healing properties.
He says the beauty of the formula is there is no withholding period.
O'Dell doesn't believe there is anything else like it on the market and says it provides a stressless, one-stop, round-the-clock shop for animal treatments.
The product is versatile enough to place in barns, sheds or paddocks, giving animals great relief and taking the peaks and troughs out of animal health treatments.
The trip to National Fieldays was to obtain valuable feedback from livestock farmers before refining his product, and to hopefully seek investment to go into manufacture.
He says it was a great move to talk to the dairy farmers, and he even had feedback from the equine industry about possibilities for horses, a factor he hadn't considered.
That feedback has encouraged him to continue development, although a new process is being investigated that would make the product more affordable.
O'Dell says he is also looking at refining the dosage process and hopes to have a second working model to take back to the Innovations Launch Centre at National Fieldays next year.
