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Documentation · Animal management · Register & edit animals

Register & edit animals

Step by step: add a new animal or update existing animal data.

Last updated · February 19, 2026· 1 min read

Register & edit animals

This section explains how to register a new animal in Herdy and how to edit existing entries. The form is divided into clear sections so you do not miss anything.

Form for registering a new animal

Register a new animal

  1. Open Animal management via the Animals tab.
  2. Tap the Register new animal button.
  3. Fill in the form step by step (see below).
  4. Tap Save animal at the end.

After saving you are taken directly to the animal profile, where you can add further details.

Section 1: Species

First select the species. Tap Sheep, Goat, or Cattle. Your selection determines which breeds, sex labels, and species-specific fields appear in the rest of the form.

Tip: Herdy remembers your last selection. If you registered a sheep last time, "Sheep" will already be pre-selected next time.

Section 2: Identification

Ear tag

Enter the ear tag in Swiss format: CH XXXX.XXXX.XXXX. This is the official identification number according to the TVD.

Name

The name is optional. Many farmers give their animals individual names, which makes day-to-day identification easier.

Section 3: Basic data

Breed

Select the breed from the drop-down list. Depending on the species, the following breeds are available:

Sheep breeds:

  • WAS - White Alpine Sheep
  • SBS - Black-Brown Mountain Sheep
  • BFS - Brown-Headed Meat Sheep
  • SN - Valais Blacknose Sheep
  • DO - Dorper
  • TS - Texel
  • SU - Suffolk
  • EN - Engadine Sheep
  • SP - Mirror Sheep (Spiegelschaf)
  • JU - Jura Sheep
  • CHA - Charollais Sheep
  • DOR - Dorset
  • NOE - Nolana Sheep
  • SKF - Skudde
  • LAC - Lacaune

Cattle breeds (selection):

  • HO - Holstein
  • RH - Red Holstein
  • BS - Brown Swiss
  • OB - Original Braunvieh
  • SI - Simmental
  • ER - Eringer
  • HF - Hereford
  • AN - Angus
  • LI - Limousin
  • CH - Charolais
  • MO - Montbéliarde
  • JE - Jersey
  • GR - Graubünden Grey Cattle

Additional cattle breeds are available in the selection list.

Goat breeds:

  • SAA - Saanen Goat
  • TOG - Toggenburg Goat
  • BOG - Graubünden Striped Goat
  • ABG - Appenzell Goat
  • CAG - Capra Grigia
  • PCN - Peacock Goat (Pfauenziege)
  • NGG - Nera Verzasca
  • GGG - Chamois-Coloured Mountain Goat
  • STG - Booted Goat (Stiefelgeiss)
  • WAG - Valais Blackneck Goat
  • BUG - Boer Goat
  • ZWZ - Pygmy Goat

Sex and castration status

Sex and castration status have been two separate fields since March 2026. Sex remains unchanged after castration -- only the castration status changes.

Sex -- select Female or Male. The label differs by species:

SpeciesFemaleMale
SheepEweRam
GoatDoeBuck
CattleCow / HeiferBull

Castration status -- check the castrated box if the animal has been castrated. Optionally enter the castration date -- known or estimated.

When importing from the TVD, wethers, monks, and castrated bucks are automatically recognised as "male + castrated".

Tip: If a castration is carried out, record it as an entry in the treatment journal (type "Castration") -- this documents both the fact and the date, including the vet.

Date of birth

Enter the date of birth. Herdy suggests today's date. For purchased animals, enter the actual date of birth if known.

Farm of birth

Optionally you can enter the TVD number of the farm of birth here. This is particularly useful for purchased animals.

Section 4: Location & pedigree

Location

Select the animal's current location from the list of your registered locations. If you have defined a home farm, it is pre-selected automatically.

Dam and sire

If the parent animals are registered in Herdy, you can link them here. The selection list only shows animals of the same species and matching sex. Select None if the parent animal is not known or not registered.

Tip: Pedigree data is particularly important for breeding documentation. It allows Herdy to create pedigrees and breeding overviews.

Section 5: Characteristics

Colour/markings

Describe the animal's colour and any markings in free text, e.g. "White, brown patches" or "Black with white chest patch".

Horn status

Select the horn status:

  • Horned - The animal has horns
  • Polled - The animal is genetically hornless
  • Scurs - The animal has loose or unstable horns
  • Dehorned - The horns have been removed

Tail length

Select the tail length:

  • Normal - Normal tail
  • Short - Naturally short tail
  • Docked - Tail has been docked

Section 6: Condition

BCS (Body Condition Score)

BCS documents the animal's body condition on a scale of 1.0 (emaciated) to 5.0 (obese) in 0.5 steps. The healthy range is typically between 2.5 and 4.0.

BCS is not entered in the registration form but is maintained as an ongoing record in the Care module. After saving, open the animal profile and switch to the BCS tab. More details in the section Care & welfare > BCS.

Photo

The photo function will be available in a future version.

Section 7: Notes

Here you can enter any notes about the animal, e.g. special characteristics, origin, or other remarks.

Status

Every animal has a status. When registering, the status is automatically Active. You can change the status later:

  • Active - The animal is on the farm
  • Sold - The animal has been sold
  • Deceased - The animal has died
  • Slaughtered - The animal has been slaughtered
  • Missing - The animal is missing

Edit an existing animal

  1. Open the animal in the animal list (by tapping it).
  2. Tap Edit (pencil icon) in the top right.
  3. Change the desired fields.
  4. Tap Save changes.

All fields can be edited afterwards, including species, ear tag, and status.

Tip: If you set an animal's status to "Sold" or "Slaughtered", the animal remains in Herdy and appears in your reports. However, it is no longer shown when the "Active" filter is active.