# Ear tags



## breezy2u (Mar 13, 2019)

So I am relatively new to goats. I've had mine for about two years and last year my doe gave me twin doelings. I recently purchased a billy and I am going to breed all three this year. When I got the doe she had an ear tag, but I didn't like the way it looked so I took it off. I have not planned on tagging the twins. But I may be selling some of the kids I get this year. Do I have to tag if I am selling them? Or is it ok to leave them untagged? I'm in Alabama if that matters.


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## secuono (Mar 13, 2019)

All sheep/goats over 6mo old must be scrapie tagged and all animals that leave your property also must be scrapie tagged. It is illegal to remove these tags.
Someone else can correct me if I'm off on that.


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## breezy2u (Mar 13, 2019)

Are there any alternatives to the ear tags? If the point is just to track that they were born on my property, couldn't I put a tag on a collar?


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## Mike CHS (Mar 13, 2019)

You don't have to do a tag at all as long as your animal never leaves your property or goes directly from your property to be processed. 

This is the way the law reads:

*Regulatory Program*
To comply, producers must insert an official tag in an ear of show sheep and goats, sheep and goats over 18 months of age, and intact sheep and goats under 18 months of age not moving into slaughter channels prior to leaving their farm of origin/birth.


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## goatboy1973 (Mar 17, 2019)

breezy2u said:


> So I am relatively new to goats. I've had mine for about two years and last year my doe gave me twin doelings. I recently purchased a billy and I am going to breed all three this year. When I got the doe she had an ear tag, but I didn't like the way it looked so I took it off. I have not planned on tagging the twins. But I may be selling some of the kids I get this year. Do I have to tag if I am selling them? Or is it ok to leave them untagged? I'm in Alabama if that matters.


Our farm is part of the USDA Scrapie Eradication Program so this subject is near and dear to my heart. If you buy or sell goats or sheep an animal should have a USDA scrapies tag. If your goats leave your farm for whatever reason for any amount of time theoretically they should have one of these tags. In the state of Tennessee where I live, if I sell a goat to my next door neighbor, the goat should have a tag. I personally think this is government overreach but sometimes you just have to jump through hoops to accomplish your goals. I really don't like the government being all up in my business but even the Spanish Goat Association I belong to requires each breeder to register their farm with the USDA Scrapie Eradication Program and make sure each Spanish goat is tagged when being sold or leaving your farm. The process is fairly easy...Google USDA Scrapie Eradication Program and follow the links and it is totally free, even the tags are free. We pay for a better quality of tags and use Premier One for our tags because the ones the USDA gives are the metal ones that are hard to read. Call them and they can hook you up with the small plastic ones for goats that last forever. We got lime green USDA Scrapie tags. Either way, goats and sheep must be tagged if they leave your property and most livestock auctions, goat shows, and breed associations require it now. If the government ever decided to enforce this, a producer could be fined and untagged goats/ sheep confiscated and destroyed.


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## rachels.haven (Mar 18, 2019)

My vet used my goat's adga tattoos and registration as scrapie id to get us the pass to travel with my goats. No one had to be tagged. It went okay with the govt-vet said he'd come back out and tag if it wasn't, but he called ahead of sending paperwork to be sure, and everything came back okay. Not sure about the details on this but it may be a possibility for consideration.


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## frustratedearthmother (Mar 18, 2019)

When I showed and crossed state lines tattoos were ok.


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