Collection

Keeping sheep, goats, pigs and deer

• From: Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs and Animal and Plant Health Agency
• Part of: Deer farming, Pig identification, registration and movements, and Sheep and goats identification, registration and movements
• Published: 31 December 2014

Find out how to register your holding, record and report animal movements, and about any restrictions after animals arrive on your holding.

Who’s responsible

You don’t have to own animals to be a keeper. You’re a sheep, goat, pig or deer keeper if you have responsibility for the day-to-day care and control of these animals. This includes a single animal kept temporarily or as a pet.

You must follow this guidance as part of your cross compliance requirements. The Rural Payments Agency (RPA) may reduce your Single Payment Scheme (SPS) or Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) subsidy if you don’t.

The RPA inspects 3% of holdings each year.

There are also movement restrictions that apply when sheep, goats or pigs arrive on your holding. Find out about standstill restrictions after:

• sheep or goats arrive on your holding
• pigs arrive on your holding

Wales and Scotland

Find out how to register sheep, goats and pigs in Wales,

Find out how to register sheep, goats and pigs in Scotland.

Sheep and goat keepers

Includes guidance for abattoirs and exhibition and show grounds.

1. Sheep and goat keepers: register your holding and flock or herd

   • 3 November 2016
   • Guidance

2. Sheep and goat keepers: how to identify your animals

   • 1 June 2014
   • Guidance

3. Sheep and goats: types and combinations of identifier

   • 1 June 2014
   • Guidance

4. Sheep and goat keepers: how to report animal movements

   • 18 April 2016
   • Guidance

5. Sheep and goat keepers: how to keep a holding register

   • 1 December 2016
   • Guidance

6. Abattoirs: report and record sheep and goat arrivals

   • 1 June 2014
   • Guidance

7. Report and record movements of sheep or goats to animal shows

   • 1 June 2014
   • Guidance

8. Sample sheep and goat holding register

   • 27 March 2011
   • Guidance

Pig keepers

Includes guidance for owners of pet pigs or ‘micropigs’.

1. Pig keepers: register your holding and animals

   • 1 January 2012
   • Guidance

2. Pig keepers: identify animals before moving them

   • 31 December 2014
   • Guidance

3. Pig keepers: report and record movements to or from your holding

   • 18 April 2016
   • Guidance

4. Keeping a pet pig or 'micropig'

   • 31 December 2014
   • Guidance

Deer keepers

Includes guidance for deer keepers on identifying deer and reporting their movement.

1. Deer keepers: tagging deer and reporting their movements

   • 8 June 2015
   • Guidance

Ear tags and slapmarks: approved suppliers, replacements and feedback

1. Approved sheep and goat ear tag suppliers

   • 10 August 2017
   • Guidance

2. Eartag feedback form for sheep and goat keepers

   • 15 June 2016
   • Form

3. Slapmarking pigs: approved suppliers of equipment

   • 1 March 2013
   • Guidance

Central point recording centres for sheep

Central point recording centres (CPRCs) are holdings that electronically report the arrival of sheep as a service to keepers.

Find a list of approved CPRCs and apply to be a CPRC.

1. Central point recording centre for sheep: application

   • 1 October 2014
   • Form

2. Central point recording centres for sheep: approved premises

   • 1 October 2014
   • Guidance

General licences for moving sheep, goats and pigs

When you move sheep, goats or pigs, you’re moving them under these general licences.

You don’t need to apply for these licences and as long as you follow the guidance on moving animals in this collection, you’ll be meeting their conditions.

1. Sheep and goats movement general licence

   • 1 July 2016
   • Guidance

2. Pigs movement general licence

   • 1 July 2016
   • Guidance

Legislation and data protection

Guidance for sheep and goat keepers is based on EC Council Regulation 21/2004.

The requirements are enforced through The Sheep and Goats (Records, Identification and Movement) (England) Order 2009 as amended by the The Sheep and Goats (Records, Identification and Movement) (England) (Amendment) Order 2014. .

The requirements for pig keepers are enforced through The Pigs (Records, Identification and Movement) Order 2011

The Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has published this statement about how it will use any information you provide as part of the annual inventory of your holding.

1. How data you submit in your annual inventory will be used

   • 6 February 2011
   • Guidance

Document information

Published: 31 December 2014

From: Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs Animal and Plant Health Agency

Part of: Deer farming Pig identification, registration and movements Sheep and goats identification, registration and movements