Am I the only idiot that didn't know about the upcoming requirement (Mar 2002) that all goats (and maybe sheep and pigs too) will have to be ear tagged or tattooed prior to sale, and records kept five years? (For tracking Scrapie, evidently). I just found this out from an auction barn I have used, they are discontinuing ALL goat, hog and sheep sales because of the hassle, and told me other auction houses in the area are going to follow suit. Sad. A Small Time goat raiser in OK

-- J Wilkinson (okwilk213@juno.com), February 12, 2002

Answers

All BREEDING GOATS have to have this. Wethers do not. It is not just on goats you sell either. Any goats that you own have to be either tattoed or ear tagged if they are intact males or females. It is not such a big deal to tattoo or ear tag a goat, so I really don't see why the auction barn would make such a fuss over it..The owner would be the one tagging it and keeping the records, not the auction owners, from what I have read.

-- Rebekah (daniel1@itss.net), February 12, 2002.

For my education:

Won't special eartags be required? They would somehow have to permanently identify the seller. Custom eartags get to be expensive, especially in small lots. I'm lucky to get a cattle eartag to stay in two seasons.

What happens if a goat gets resold each year? Is a new tag or tattoo required? Do all previously tags have to stay in?

I suspect the producer will end up eating the additional cost.

-- Ken S. in WC TN (scharabo@aol.com), February 12, 2002.

How do you ear tag a LaMancha? Her tail web is tatooed but because she's 6 you can only see a green blob and hope it used to match her registration papers!!!

-- Chandler (Providencefarms2001@yahoo.com), February 12, 2002.

The scrappy eradication program is really easy. They are giving out the tags for free and want you to ask for enough tage for your herd for 2-3 years. If your goat is registered (then they have tatoos) and then you dont have to use tags. THe tags they give you will have the state, your personal tatto ID (like from breed registries)and your choice of numbers. This program is free at this point, you will have to pay later for tags, so it's better to start now.

For the information on scrapie - www.animalagriculture.org/scrapie

-- shari (smillers@snowcrest.net), February 12, 2002.

Oh yeah, about the Lamancha. Just tattoo the center tail and make sure that you update her papers with the breed registry. Or if you can read her tattoo then you don't have to do anything else but have her papers with you if you sell her or travel out of state.

-- shari (smillers@snowcrest.net), February 12, 2002.

I read Shari's link. It doesn't seem to me that most goats will need IDs unless they're shown or if they've been exposed. Am I missing something here? Is there some other ID program besides this scrapie one? Please clarify, someone. Thanks!

-- Georg in TN (dgkotarski@bledsoe.net), February 12, 2002.

Chandler, if you have the registration papers than why not just re- tattoo?? I had to do that on one of my older does. It should not be a problem as long as the tattoo matches the papers. People do it all the time at the shows when they see the tattoo is fading for one reason or another.

It was my understanding that we needed id to show or to sell breeding stock. Guess I better study up.........thought the meat goats could be moved to the sale barn without id.

-- diane (gardiacaprines@yahoo.com), February 12, 2002.

About eartags. This info is for sheep. They will send you, free of charge, as many tags as you can use in three years, and they will also give you the applicator.

Even though they are "sheep" tags, some think they are too big for Barbados Blackbelly lamb ears. They do have smaller metal clip-style tags that they also will provide for free.

However, when one gal spoke to her state vet, she was told that Colorado only provides the plastic tags free. Each state, apparently, has set its own criteria for tagging. The metal tags can be purchased from Nasco. They are $22.00 for 100 tags that contain the flock number as well as the sheep's ID number.

If you NEVER plan to sell a sheep to someone in another state or you NEVER plan to purchase a sheep from someone in another state, then you don't need to worry about the scrapie program--at least not yet. If there is even a remote chance that someone from out-of-state will purchase your sheep, then you had better get yourself registered, get the free tags, and start keeping records. Nobody likes it, but it's the law now and you don't want to lose any potential customers because you didn't make a simple phone call and get signed up.

Click Here For What You as a Producer Need to Know About the New Scrapie Eradication Program

This is a very good publication that lists the eight steps you need to take to register your flock, get eartags, and keep records. It also provides some sample record forms.

-- ~Rogo (rogo2222@hotmail.com), February 13, 2002.

sorry Rogo...............goats have been included also. Sure wish you were correct, save me a big bunch of bother.

-- diane (gardiacaprines@yahoo.com), February 13, 2002.

And, keep in mind that, in the USDA's own words, "The emphasis this year will be in informing and educating about the program, - not inforcing."

Our local auction barn has the tags(Ohio) and they put them in. Went to another auction barn Monday (PA) and they had no tags at all. This program is going to be a while getting in place.

-- homestead2 (homestead@localnetplus.com), February 13, 2002.

Call 866-873-2824 which is USDA TAG, it sends you to the vet services office in your state. They ask you a few questions, name, addy, number, what kind of goats or sheep, how many etc. If you have registered stock, tell them and tell them what association. Our goats will be tracked through the Amercian Dairy Goat Association tattoos, but also get your premise ID number. They send the tags and pliers to put on the tags for free. Put them in a drawer if you have registered stock. If you are going to sell something without paperwork than put the tag in the ear. This is all about tracking right now, so if I sell J Wilkinson a goat, I will write down all his information including his premise ID number and keep this info for 5 years. If J Wilkinson desides to sell the goat to Rebekkah than he not only keeps my info on the goat, but who he sold her to, and Rebekkah's number, the goat does not change tattoos or tags. If the tag gets lost than you just keep the number. My number is TX10041, which means I am in Texas and am the 41st herd signed up. You will have to have a premise ID to get a health certificate, which you need to show, export, sale, or go across state lines. I simply am not going to sell to anyone after April 1st who will not get on the phone and get themselves a number! Without a number I can't prove I sold the animal to you to protect myself if you have sheep and let my goat get scrapie! If a couple of years down the road my goat was to get scrapie at Rebekkah's house, I could prove by my tracking that the incubation period is long gone. Quaranteen and testing for scrapie means handing over a portion of your herd for testing, testing that includes death, and compensation that is minimal. Only 7 goats in the last 11 years have ever had scrapie and it was only from contact with sheep. We are tied to the sheep through the USDA, something alot of us are going to try to change. This is all about the sheep losing all their export of semen, stock and sheep offal (dead carcasses for animal by products :) that are shipped overseas. If they can't say "from a scrapie free country" on their health certificate they can't ship overseas, so the rest of us are dragged kicking and screaming along with them. The law is federal but for some reason each state was allowed to make slight variations to this law, so find out what yours says. Vicki

-- Vicki McGaugh TX (vickilonesomedoe@hotmail.com), February 14, 2002.

this was a big issue here (OK) a few weeks ago-just found this thread- don't know if anyone will even get this info-according to the folks up high, goats and sheep are pretty much the same animal ?!?!?!?! i din't know that myself-i thought they were totally different. anyway, since they are so closely related?!?!?!?!?! they are treated the same. if you're goats are registered w/adga or one of the others and individually tattooed and traceable to your herd, you do not have to ear tag them. they have no answer on the lamancha, by the way. the sale barns will not handle them because they do have to keep paperwork on who sells and buys them. too much for them to do for the income they get. the problem is the sheep, we are being dragged along with them. most people don't know, because we aren't being informed until we try to go to a sale or show. are you talking about bristow, j? don't know where in ok you are but some auctions will still handle goats-some will accept tattoos, some require tags. all breeding animals must be id'd. wethers don't. stinks we are being punished for another type of animal, doesn't it. i have more info if you need it for OK.

-- laura (okgoatgal@hotmail.com), April 03, 2002.