The Livestock Information Service (LIS) was established to provide a digital platform for recording movement data for sheep, goats and deer. Whilst the primary function of the service is to facilitate the accurate and timely reporting of livestock movements, there are other features which can be useful in helping you manage your holding records online. Read on to learn more about these functionalities and to find out how sheep farmers are using LIS to improve their record keeping.
Holding summary
The Holding Summary feature means it is quick and easy to manage outstanding actions and recent activity on your holding. The page displays movement notifications that need your attention, for example, after a visit to a market to purchase sheep, goats or deer for your holding. The market will report the movement on LIS via their market software and the move will then be sent to LIS. A notification of the movement will be made available on your LIS account to view, amend, accept or reject. Choosing to accept a notification of a market move onto your holding will complete the movement online and avoid the need for you to post the paperwork, saving you time and the cost of postage. The same applies if you confirm a movement onto your holding from another holding. Nottingham farmer Richard Baugh has 700 breeding ewes and is regularly moving sheep, so uses LIS to make the process more efficient. He said that by using LIS “I haven’t posted paper movement forms in years” and that “using LIS to record sheep movements is so easy”.
Animals on holding
Most keepers like to keep their records up to date, and once you have input the animal’s details, the Animals on Holding tab can show a list of all the tagged sheep and goats currently on your holding. Here you can click into each animal listed to view their individual details, as well as any movement and tagging history.
LIS user and Herdwick sheep keeper, Helena Parker-Wright, explains why this is a particularly useful feature on the service. “I can just log in and I can see a quick headcount of total stock that I’ve got, rather than looking at lengthy books or spreadsheets”. She went on to explain that allowing her to look at the animals’ ages is helpful, particularly when selecting stock for the abattoir. “I know I haven’t got big numbers, but from my point of view, when I am dealing with hogget and mutton, and you have an animal on the 1–2-year cusp, LIS can show me the ages. So, I do use that functionality on the system because is quite handy”.
Farmer Magnus Hird from Lancashire has sheep and goats and also uses the Animals on Holding feature, explaining that “being able to upload a file of all animals on your farm so that LIS holds a full list, visible together, is a huge advantage.”
Holding register
LIS users also have access to an online holding register. This electronic record houses all reported activity on LIS, helping to reduce paperwork whilst safely and securely storing movement and livestock information.
“You go online, record the movement, and it’s done. There’s no risk of losing records or forgetting about paperwork!” Helena Parker-Wright added.
In this section, you can view the following records, with date filters available to make it easy to find the records you are looking for:
- Holding details
- Replacement tags
- Tagging
- Movements off
- Movements on
- Adjacent moves
- Deaths
- Annual inventory
Once you have found the record or report of interest, you can select the relevant row on LIS to see more details, as well as being able to print or download the report. It is important to note that the annual inventory section enables you to record your annual count of animals but does not replace the requirement to submit your annual sheep and goat inventory to Defra.
Sign up to LIS today
LIS provides a free, easy to use service, enabling you to digitally report sheep, goat and deer movements whilst providing additional features which can help you to manage your holding records. Over 10,000 keepers across England have signed up to LIS and benefit from secure, easily accessible records, an online holding register, and movement records that are readily available to view and download when needed. Sign up to LIS for free today and help to build a safer and more resilient future for UK farming.
