If you are nearing retirement, you can decide to spend your sendoff package in different ways. Livestock farming, for instance, is a popular choice for Australian retirees. Having said that, buying, selling, and transporting of farm animals is not a matter of simply packing them in your trailer and taking off. There are rules and regulations that farmers must abide by or risk being prosecuted. This article goes over some of the most important rules you cannot afford to ignore as a new farmer.

Property Registration — A property owner wishing to keep any kind of livestock or poultry numbering 100 and above must register their property. The state department of agriculture will issue you with a property number, which will enable you to keep and transfer livestock from one property to another. Additionally, if you want to sell your livestock, you are advised to inform the local agricultural department about the transfer through the property number.

Animal Identification — As indicated above, your livestock is identified through your property number. The only way to achieve this is by tagging your livestock electronically to make it easy to trace them. It is important to trace livestock through the property of origin, especially if you are doing beef farming. Tracing livestock from the source property to the slaughterhouse is a critical mandate of the departments of health and agriculture. Additionally, the ability to track livestock allows property owners to prevent their heard from grazing on someone else's property, which prevents unnecessary litigation procedures.

Stock Permits — If you decide to keep livestock, you will be forced to move from one location to another from time to time. For instance, if your property is located in an area that is infested with a certain livestock disease, then you will be forced to move them to a disease free region. Such movement requires a stock permit to prove that your livestock is disease free and that they will not infect other farmer's livestock. Further, a stock permit allows you to keep track of your livestock inventory.

Livestock Branding — When farm animals attain certain weights, you are required to brand them. Livestock that is legally branded with a registered brand is less likely to draw any ownership issues compared to livestock that is not legally branded. In addition, you want other people to identify your herd easily in the event that you lose some. Therefore, you should brand your livestock with a unique and clear symbol.    

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