New Entrants to Farming: Record Keeping (Argyll) Event Summary

Livestock records can be a complicated and daunting aspect of running a farming business to get your head round but it’s a majorly important one for various reasons.

Livestock identification and records are covered by Scottish, UK and EU law. Failure to keep up-to-date and correct records can lead to financial penalties on support payments and in extreme cases it can lead to prosecution.

At the record keeping workshop we covered the rules and regulations on Sheep and Cattle identification and registration, followed by a session looking at ScotEID and ScotMoves.

Top tips for Sheep Tagging & Records:

• Ensure Replacement Tag record is maintained.
• Always replace missing tags ASAP
• Have a stock of ‘Red replacement’ tags on farm
• Ensure all moves are reported to SAMU (you can check this using Scot EID) & recorded in records.
• Do a physical count at each gather and record numbers in the flock register. (You can use ‘missing’ and ‘found’ if less or more sheep are counted)

Top Tips for Cattle Tagging & Records:

• Ensure that missing tags are replaced ASAP
• Report an animal death within 7 days AND return passport to BCMS
• You can print a list of animals that should be present on the holding from BCMS. This is a good check to do to ensure that farm records are accurate.
• New beef calf should be tagged within 20 days of birth and registered within 27 days
• ScotMoves can be reported 48hours prior to or after the move takes place