Ear tags and movement licences

Yesterday the ear tags and Animal Movement Licences (AMLs) arrived in the post. The slaughterhouse is booked and soon the lambs will be gone.

As the lambs are only 6 months old they only require one plastic ear tag for slaughter, despite a recent change in the law that brought about electronic tagging for older sheep. I do have plenty of the plastic tags but, typically, they are yellow, the colour of the new electronic tags and so now can no longer be used. My new colour - green.

The AMLs are changing at the end of the year to included individual identification and Food Chain Information. As the slaughter house requires the FCI already it was easier to use the new AMLs than fill out a separate sheet. The start of this year also brought in a new holding register that has to be filled in within 36 hours of an animal being moved.

With all the legal side covered I now need to address the practical side. A new tyre has been ordered for the trailer. At the weekend I will need to tag the lambs and also crutch and belly clip them. We need to consider where we might house them, should the weather turn wet, as the stable is in use and the slaughterhouse won't take wet sheep.

All that is left to do then is to write up a cutting list and make the final journey.