Applying Sheep Tags

[garfield89]

Guessing it must vary on situation, but what would the best time for tagging lambs?

Would it make sense to hold out as long as possible for ram lambs due for slaughter,compared to ewes lambs that will be replacement breeders?

 

[David.]

As far as I know, the legal requirement is that they be tagged before they are moved, or become a year old.
If the tag info is of no management benefit, I see no point tagging them until they are on the scales being weighed to go.

 

[Al R]

All depends on your system, killers 7-14 days before they go.
ewe lambs, at weaning when they are chosen to be kept.

 

[Jackov Altraids]

I sell virtually everything fat.
Some years I tag them to indicate they are being sold, this means none get lost but may only be on the lamb for a matter of hours.
Sometimes I tag them when they are a tailed at a couple of days old. I have the benefit of them being I.D'd their whole life but some will be 'wasted' if they don't make it.
I still haven't decided which is best.

 

[AJR75]

Will pop a management tag in when ringing if it's a possible replacement. Other than that it's mainly fat lambs so a tag in the night before or morning before they go.

 

[David.]

Apart from anything else, if you tag sheep as they are prepared to be sold, it is easy to record tag numbers in case you need to provide anyone with them, because you have an unbroken run and know first and last numbers.

 

[neilo]

All my pedigree lambs are double tagged at birth, but only because I obviously need to record their id’s accurately.

In my commercial flock, I double tag all potential replacements at birth, so as to link them to sires & dams. Anything else is just tagged with a slaughter tag as they leave the farm. The only advantage I could see from tagging those at birth would be to more accurately record treatments, and to record performance through weight gains.
I’d cry over the waste tag every time one died or ripped out though.

 

[David.]

That is what circlip pliers were really invented for, recycling e-tags.
At 70p each you know it makes sense.

 

[garfield89]

Thanks everyone for the info

 

[FIL46]

The right way should be double tag at birth , for dam/ sire and medical traceability ,If we are to hold our own now brexit is half done the consumer want's to know where the meat comes from full traceability is the way to go imo

 

[Agrivator]

The right way should be double tag at birth , for dam/ sire and medical traceability ,If we are to hold our own now brexit is half done the consumer want's to know where the meat comes from full traceability is the way to go imo

You really shouldn't be allowed out on your own.

 

[Estate fencing.]

The right way should be double tag at birth , for dam/ sire and medical traceability ,If we are to hold our own now brexit is half done the consumer want's to know where the meat comes from full traceability is the way to go imo

What proportion of the world dont know who both there parents are, and your preposing I need to know who’s the farther of my lambs so I can inform the consumer!

 

[neilo]

What proportion of the world dont know who both there parents are, and your preposing I need to know who’s the farther of my lambs so I can inform the consumer!

Easy enough to do if you single sire mate everything and tag everything at birth. We could even go the whole hog and have passports with each lamb. After all, it works with cattle.....

Not quite so easy if you have more than a couple of hundred ewes, lambing outside on a hill of course, but all those will be gone by the time all those trees are planted.

 

[David.]

I can tell you what every lamb has been treated with, and when.
I'm not going to record it electronically, so what difference will a double tag make?