Problems related to ear-tagging goats

It is common practice, and in many countries mandatory, to ear-tag goats. This practice is often believed to be benign, but scientific evidence is scant. Hence the objectives of this study to determine the prevalence of ear-tag related problems among goats kept by hobbyist and farmers, and to survey their opinion on different identification methods. The online survey was disseminated by convenience sampling among keepers of hobby goats in Flanders and the Netherlands. This questioned ear-tag related problems, opinions on various aspects of ear-tagging and interest in alternative identification methods. In addition, ear-tag related problems were scored on 3 organic and 5 conventional goat farms. These farmers were surveyed too. The survey was filled out by 71 hobbyists, providing information on 380 goats ear-tagged for >3 months. Twenty-five (35.2%) respondents refuse to ear-tag certain goats, and 37 (52%) respondents noted clear behavioral changes after ear-tagging. The prevalence of ear inflammations depended on type of tag: 39% for buttons, 24% for plates, and 22% for stripes. The desired situation (intact and readable ear-tag not associated with visible ear lesions) was present for 77% of the strips, 58% of
the plates, and 53% of the buttons. Respectively 58.1% and 68.6% of the respondents gave the lowest satisfaction score (1/10) for the ear-tags in general and for animal welfare specifically. Most respondents (84.9%) stated to
be willing to pay a premium price for marking their goats with a microchip instead of an ear-tag. Respectively 601 and 3040 ears were assessed on organic and conventional farms. The desired situation was observed for 81% (organic) and 72% (conventional) of the ears. Chewed ear-tags were not seen in organic farms, but were common (11%) in conventional farms. Inflammations were more common on organic (8%) than conventional (5%) farms. Satisfaction scores were higher among farmers than hobbyist. Animal friendlier means of identification are needed, in particular for goats kept by non-professionals