Tipperary farmers get tips for the tagging season

FRS understands the increased pressure and time constraints farmers are under particularly at this time of year.

That’s why we’ve put together some handy tips and tricks to help you when tagging calves this spring.

Tagging calves is carried out as part of the Bovine Animal Identification System. The aim is to guarantee the safety of beef and beef products by the operation of an effective animal identification and tracing system.

The tagging system requires the application of two identically numbered yellow plastic ear tags to calves born on a holding within 20 days of birth. However, to avoid confusion calves should be tagged as soon as the animal is dry.

Correct application of cattle tags is fundamental to any operation.

Properly placed tags will minimise discomfort for the animal, decrease risk of injury to personnel and last longer in the ear.

The following is some advice for physical tagging:

n Ensure the calf is securely restrained.

n Squeeze the handles of the tagger to check that the pin slides easily into the hole on the opposite end of the tagger.

n Place the male component of the tag on the tagger pin and the female component on the opposite side.

n Make sure the female tag part is correctly aligned with it's male counterpart and squeeze the taggers.

n Remove the tagger and ensure the tag halves are interlocked and placed both securely and comfortably.

The ideal location for a tag is in the middle one-third of the ear, between the rises in auricular cartilage.

Tags placed too close to the head will fit too tightly due to the thicker cartilage, and may cause tissue necrosis. Tags placed too far towards the top or bottom of the ear are easily torn out.

Herdwatch has partnered with all three approved cattle tag providers in Ireland, Cormac Tagging, Datamars Agri and Mullinahone Co-Op to help farmers counteract a major cross-compliance issue by allowing members to record and order missing tags directly from the Herdwatch app on their phone.

All the farmer has to do is select the missing tag numbers and place the order with their tag company of choice through the Herdwatch App.

If you are not a Herdwatch member, ensure that you order replacement tags with your supplier as soon as you notice them missing and keep compliant.

Herdwatch is fully compliant with Bord Bia and EU quality assurance standards, and allows farmers to register calves and manage cattle movements on their phone. It is fully integrated with ICBF so farmers can see their breeding, milk records and EBI/Eurostar information on Herdwatch.

You too can join over 10,000 happy farmers saving time on farm paperwork and managing their farms more efficiently for Free.

The Free-Plan allows farmers to download their Herd from APHIS (NI), BCMS (UK) or Agfood (IRL); record five calf registrations; record their medicine purchases; record heat detection and general tasks.

Visit: www.herdwatch.ie