Ear Tags

Overview

Every livestock animal in Switzerland — sheep, goat, or cattle — must be identified with an official ear tag. In Herdy you manage your ear tag stock centrally: you can see which tags are available, which have already been assigned to animals, and where they came from (TVD synchronisation or manual entry).

You can access ear tag management via Master Data > Ear Tags.

Viewing your ear tag stock

The overview page shows you three key figures:

• Available — ear tags assigned to your farm but not yet allocated to an animal. These can be used for newborns or new animals.
• Assigned — ear tags already linked to an animal in your herd.
• Total — the total number of all ear tags in your stock.

The list is split into two tabs: Available and Assigned. This makes it quick to find the ear tag you are looking for.

Adding ear tags manually

In addition to TVD synchronisation, you can also enter ear tags by hand. This is useful if you have received ear tags that do not yet appear in the TVD, or if you want to supplement your stock manually.

Add individually

1. Tap Add ear tags.
2. Select the Individual tab.
3. Enter the ear tag number.
4. Select the species (sheep, goat, or cattle).
5. Optionally enter an order date.
6. Tap Add.

Add in bulk

If you want to enter several ear tags at once:

1. Tap Add ear tags.
2. Select the Bulk tab.
3. Enter the ear tag numbers — one per line.
4. Select the species.
5. Tap Add all.

Herdy recognises various formats automatically: CH 1234.5678, 12345678, CH 7561.2345.6789, or any other number format.

Tip: Bulk entry is particularly practical when you want to copy a list of ear tags from a letter or email. Simply paste the numbers into the text field.

Assigning an ear tag to an animal

Available ear tags can be assigned directly to an animal from the list:

1. Switch to the Available tab.
2. Tap Assign next to the desired ear tag.
3. Search for the animal by name or ear tag number.
4. Tap the desired animal.

The ear tag moves from the "Available" tab to "Assigned" and is now linked to the animal.

Releasing an ear tag

If an ear tag was incorrectly assigned, you can undo the assignment:

1. Switch to the Assigned tab.
2. Tap Release next to the relevant ear tag.

The ear tag moves back to the "Available" status.

Origin of ear tags

Every ear tag shows its origin:

• TVD — the ear tag was imported automatically during a TVD synchronisation.
• Manual — the ear tag was entered by hand.

TVD synchronisation

You can also synchronise your ear tag stock via the TVD integration. Navigate to TVD > Ear Tags and tap Update ear tags. New tags are added automatically and existing ones are reconciled.

Tip: Check your ear tag stock before the lambing season. This ensures there are enough available tags for the expected newborns. You can order new ear tags directly via agate.ch.