Farmers urged to take care when tagging smaller lambs

8:00am Wednesday 10th March 2010

By Liz Watkins

But with ear tagging now obligatory there are signs of unease among farmers and sheep breeders that it could be a cruel practice for lambs just a few weeks old, causing them some pain and suffering.

The most concern at the moment is for little lambs being sold off the farm with their mothers and which must have an ear tag to be scanned in the market for future identification purposes.

But many feel the tags are too big for such little ears and the lambs are at risk of injury during movement and travel.

Olly Cartwright of the National Famrers’ Union asked farmers at last week’s annual conference about the situation and confirmed there was concern.

But they had to follow the rules and the farmers said it was important the task be carried out as carefully as possible and the ears disinfected and cared for after tagging to prevent infection.

“When you tag a lamb it is an open wound and it is important to watch it in case of infection,” he said.

The last thing farmers wanted to see were lambs travelling with bleeding and wounded ears.

Mr Cartwright urged farmers to search the Defra webside on guide rules for tagging, whicb includes avoiding the cartilage and not doing it at all when the ears are wet.

It was advisable, too, that if lambs were to be moved to market, tagging should be done as soon as possible beforehand to allow the ears to heal.

Herefordshire NFU chairman Lesley Whistance confirmed the anxiety about tagging and its consequences.

She got in touch with the UK EID Association for clarification and was told that lambs did not require tagging for 12 months if they stayed outdoors on the farm of their birth, but did if they were reared indoors.

Lambs being moved from the farm did need tagging, unless they were going for slaughter.

Mrs Whistance, with 300 more ewes still to lamb on the family farm at Garway, is planning for a member of UK EID Association to visit Herefordshire in April to explain and demonstrate the best way to carry out electronic tagging. The venue and date will be announced later.

Ewes with baby lambs at foot have been passing through Hereford Market and auctioneer Richard Hyde agreed there was concern about electronic ear tagging of such small animals.

As well as potential injury during travel ears could be damaged when tags were caught during creep feeding.

But tagging is the law and if lambs remained untagged on the farm owners could reduce their selling options later in the year when they went to market.

Not all would be going for slaughter and buyers wanting store lambs to take on and finish could face difficulties.

It was advisable lamb tagging took place rather than relying on just flock tags.