Animal Movement Licences
Animal Health & Welfare
We are responsible for enforcing legislation relating to the Health and Welfare of farm animals. We enforce Animal Health and Welfare controls to:
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prevent, eradicate and control animal diseases;
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protect the welfare of livestock and poultry;
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prepare and maintain emergency contingency arrangements, particularly in relation to outbreaks of avian flu, rabies, anthrax and foot and mouth;
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ensure that feeding stuffs meet statutory requirements.
Our work also includes the inspection of farms and abattoirs to ensure relevant animal movement records are being kept, movements include:
Moving sheep, goats and pigs
Movements of sheep, goats and pigs must be accompanied by a movement document. On completion of the journey, the white copy must be sent to the local authority of destination within 3 days. Specimen forms can be found on Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) website pages about Animal Movement Licensing.
Moving cattle
Cattle have individual passports, which must always-s accompany them when they move. Cattle passports are issued shortly after birth by the British Cattle Movement Service. You can find out more from their website Cattle Tracing System Online.
We also ensure that any animal carcasses are disposed of promptly and using approved methods.
Our animal health and welfare enforcement also includes working with with the State Veterinary Service, other agencies of the DEFRA, the Meat Hygiene Service, the British Cattle Movement Service, other local authorities and the police.