Sheep EID

[GTB]

Very sorry, I know this has been covered before but here we go again...

HCC are offering a voucher for £500 towards buying EID equipment. As someone who has no EID reader/software what should I buy? I don't want to go overboard, just need a simple basic system, ideally portable as we have branches everywhere.

TIA

 

[Cardi]

Be intresting to hear the replies as we are in exactly the same boat as you. I have also been looking at these small portable printers, would these be handy for printing tag no's to attach to movement licenses etc?

 

[Onwards and Upwards]

There is a myriad of different things you can buy and couple together. I had a lot to do with the TAG project in Wales and have seen many different sytems utalized in many different ways. If I can give one piece of advice its to decide what information you want to collect and what you want to achieve from it before choosing anything. If you purely just want to tick the legislative box then a stick reader and pocket printer will suffice but if you want to progress and improve your enterprise then a psion reader is near unbeatable. Each software supplier will give a slightly different functionality and user interface but all fundementally do the same job. You will be amazed at how adictive recording can become but at the same time do not fall into the trap of recording everything for no apparent reason because this is when it becomes a chore and you end up sticking it in the shed and never using it again.

 

[neilo]

And I wouldn't hang about deciding either. There's only 1500 vouchers to be had, almost 500 have already qualified for one from the intensive online training course already.

Shearwell told me today that they've had a hell of a lot of inquiries for various things for the scheme, so it won't be around for long.

 

[hill farmer]

We use agridata, only for movements meds flock registers etc. anyone using this and know of a good reader to go with it.
We were just thinking of a stick reader, but after talking to the man scanning tags in the local market today, we think that something with a keypad would be better as he told us that quite a few tags won't read and you need to type them in. He told us that another market that he works at had agrident hand held readers that were much better than the stick reader that he was using today
Any ideas thanks

 

[GTB]

And I wouldn't hang about deciding either. There's only 1500 vouchers to be had, almost 500 have already qualified for one from the intensive online training course already.

Shearwell told me today that they've had a hell of a lot of inquiries for various things for the scheme, so it won't be around for long.

Am I right to assume that once I've downloaded the voucher I'm one of the lucky 1500 ?

 

[hill farmer]

no don't think so, from what I understand you've got to by your eid stuff, send in your invoice claim form and voucher - and be in the first 1500 to do it

 

[neilo]

no don't think so, from what I understand you've got to by your eid stuff, send in your invoice claim form and voucher - and be in the first 1500 to do it

That's how I understand it too. I'm just waiting on a receipted invoice to come back, before I send mine off. The difficult bit is finding something that you could use that only costs £501.

 

[rhifsaith]

http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/cash-strapped-sheep-farmers-1m-boost-7816883

If 1500 are getting £500 each,where's the other 250grand going???

 

[neilo]

http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/cash-strapped-sheep-farmers-1m-boost-7816883

If 1500 are getting £500 each,where's the other 250grand going???

Administration I expect. £250k to hand out a total of £750k.

 

[Baker9]

Administration I expect. £250k to hand out a total of £750k.

That is not bad by penpusher standards, ideally they would want the full amount, "because they are worth it".
This one of the major scandals associated with these schemes, the amount of money that is wasted on admin, the layers of consultants lining their pockets for devising the scheme and then checking it is being done properly.

 

[gatepost]

I have TAGIE, no on costs such as annuals simple exel based programme basic keypad and touchscreen, very affordable, but who knows which system will still be in business to keep you going for backup? a couple have already dropped out.

 

[rhifsaith]

Administration I expect. £250k to hand out a total of £750k.

Oh I know where it's gone alright Their budget is big enough as it is!!! That's 500 farmers missing out on the voucher unnecessarily.

 

[neilo]

Oh I know where it's gone alright Their budget is big enough as it is!!! That's 500 farmers missing out on the voucher unnecessarily.

It's a good job they've managed to streamline the operation to trim out unnecessary costs. Online 'training' and payments by BACS at the push of a button. Just think what it would have cost if someone had actually had to do something physical.

 

[Only]

That's how I understand it too. I'm just waiting on a receipted invoice to come back, before I send mine off. The difficult bit is finding something that you could use that only costs £501.

What did u buy Neil

 

[quavers]

I have TAGIE, no on costs such as annuals simple exel based programme basic keypad and touchscreen, very affordable, but who knows which system will still be in business to keep you going for backup? a couple have already dropped out.

have you had it long, happy with it and which model did you go for ? thanks quavers

 

[neilo]

What did u buy Neil

Just a new leccy weigh head to go on my digital weigher, one that will talk to my Psion with a tag reader on it. Hey presto, an (old but functional) electronic weigher that can now read & store tag numbers. If I ever feel the need (or future RDP grant) to get a fancy alloy weigher/drafter, the new head unit will move onto that. Cost was £750 before grant, so £250 net.

 

[GTB]

I think I'll just get a stick reader. The shearwell one can upload a list onto my computer so that I can print off. Yes??

 

[neilo]

25 vouchers gone already, according to the website.

Sent mine off today, so hopefully that'll be number 26.

 

[quavers]

I think I'll just get a stick reader. The shearwell one can upload a list onto my computer so that I can print off. Yes??

but can you manually insert a tag number if it can not read it or reading a non electronic and inserting that number with going to your computer ?