Lost ear tags are a perennial source of frustration for cattle producers but the agency that approves and sells tags is now selling one it says is more durable.
“Yes, you’ve heard right. Metal. RFID. Approved,” Canadian Cattle Identification Agency tweeted last month when announcing it would be selling “the first of its kind” tag.
It is made by British company Shearwell Data Livestock Systems, which says it’s the first to sell a metal ear tag. The family-owned company introduced the product in the U.K. earlier this year but says on its website it “has been trialled on farms around the country, with huge success” and has “excellent retention capabilities.”
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In response to widespread complaints from cattle producers, the Canadian Cattle Identification Agency (CCIA) launched a study on ear tag retention a decade ago. It lasted four years and found that while retention was almost 100 per cent up to 18 months of age “the average tag retention rate for mature cows averaged 82 per cent.”
The study’s authors — who took great care to ensure tags were fastened exactly according to the specs of their manufacturer — suggested that tag loss was just a fact of life when it came to older animals.
“Tag losses increased year over year from third to fourth year and suggest lifetime tag retention may be unrealistic,” the study report states.
The study wasn’t set up to find out why tags were lost but the project manager said plastic breakdown was a factor (facilities, restraints, and weather can also be factors).
The U-shaped fastening part of the Shearwell tag is made up of stainless steel with the RFID chip “overmoulded in a plastic insert so readability and read range of the transponder are never compromised,” the CCIA says. Because of the U shape, tags need to be applied so there is room for growth (more for calves, less for older animals).
A Shearwell applicator must also be used with the tags. The applicator costs $44 and tags are $4.79 each, and come in packs of either 40 or 100.
The CCIA also said it is selling an “upgraded version” of the Destron eTag. It has “a fully moulded outer tag housing for better durability and water resistance and an enhanced locking mechanism for greater retention,” the CCIA says.
Producers have bought nearly 130 million tags from the CCIA, which also runs the national livestock traceability system. The not-for-profit is governed by a 15-member board, most representing cattle and other livestock groups.
