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Freeze Marking/Branding
Horses
The following is a guide to
the format of the freeze-mark by company in the United Kingdom & Ireland.
If we have
omitted a company please Contact Us and we will add
it as soon as possible.
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Freeze
Marking Company |
Format of the Brand
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Equestrian
Security Services
This company
may no longer exist. Farmkey
can register
horses with ESS marks on their database for £25, please call them so that
they can send out some forms to fill in.
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The
brand has up to 5 digits and has a diamond as a prefix or a suffix. No
annual fees.
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Farmkey
(you can check whether a horse is lost or stolen at Farmkey's web site -
just type in the freeze mark in the stolen horse search box)
Tel:
0870 870 7107
Email:
info@farmkey.co.uk
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Any
combination of 2 letters and 2 numbers. (Early
freeze marks have 3 numbers and 1 letter).
A
personal mark is available which is 3 letters and 1 number. On
a grey the 4 digits will be in a square.
Farmkey
will also do the "loss of use" mark which is an
"L" in a circle.
A MicroMark has been launched, in the
shape of an upside down Omega, shows that the horse has been
microchipped.
For
a small fee Farmkey will write to previous owners, or pass on your
correspondence, to find out the previous history of the horse being traced. Farmkeys freeze marking fees are listed on their web site.
Farmkey also sell the following warning
that horses are freeze marked: A gate sign - £4.95, a rug badge - £1.75
and a window sticker at £0.75.
Discounts are being offered to BHS Riding
Club members.
NB.
If you bought your horse and don't have the original papers and want
to re-register the freezemark, apply in your own name to Farmkey who will
send new papers to you. The process takes 2-3 weeks and in that time
they will also write to the person who was last registered as the owner to
check that the horse has been sold and not stolen. If there is no
response from the last person listed as the owner after 2 weeks Farmkey
will transfer the details anyway to the person who has applied to
re-register.
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Freezemark
Ltd
Tel:
01295 690090
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Freezemark Ltd is a national company and
uses a standard mark of one letter and two numbers. However,
owners can select their own marks using either 2 - 4 letters or 2- 4
numbers - e.g. MAX - STAR - GEM - 007.
The company has a 24 hour emergency support
service in respect of stolen, straying or injured freeze marked horses.
The first year registration is free and
freeze marking charges vary from as little as £32.95 per head for a
group to just £44.95 for marking a single horse. Ongoing
registration fees (after first year) average £10.00 per year.
Freezemark Ltd will also register other unregistered marked or branded
horses.
The company is run by Mary Awre and Claire
Howard. Mary has devoted most of her working life to freeze
marking having introduced it to the horse owner over 20 years ago.
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Northern Brand
Email:
info@northernbrand.co.uk
or Tel: 07725 043789 - 24hrs
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All horses freeze marked by NORTHERN BRAND will have a
unique code prefixed by the star.
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Padlock Ireland,
Ireland.
Email:
padlockireland1@hotmail.com
Tel: 0404 48904
or 0877626269 |
Format is 3 digits
as required with 2" in their
freezemarks. Often personalised ones that owners keep for all their
horses. One letter
will be introduced at a later date when all number sequences have been
used. Covers both north and southern Ireland,
freezemarking cost also
includes 1st years reg.
Padlock Ireland
will also do the "loss of use" mark which is an
"L" in a circle. and the
MicroMark in the
shape of an upside down Omega, shows that the horse has been microchipped.
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Microchipping
There are three companies in the UK that
register pet microchip numbers. These are: |
Petlog, 0870 6066751
Identichip, 01904 487600
Pet Track, 0800 652 9977 |
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Microchipping -
Ireland |
Fido
| Fido was
founded in 2004 to help reunite lost pets with their owners by
providing a 24-hour recovery service for pets identified with
a microchip. The stored information relating to each
registered microchip number is maintained on a database in the
greater Dublin area and this information, which will include
the address and contact phone numbers of the owner, will be
provided to pre-approved organisations engaged in efforts to
locate the owners of lost or injured animals. Examples of
approved organisations are Veterinary Surgeries, welfare
organisations and local authority pounds |
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**NB Any equine foal born after the 1st July 2009 will have to
be microchipped under new European wide regulations.
Instructions for Uploading Freezemark and Microchip Information for your own
Horses
Microchipping -
Manufacturer’s ISO Codes &
Country Codes
Warning -
If you get your horse or pony freeze marked in the spring/summer
look out for signs
of sunburn as the skin will burn easily.
N.B. Horse with a registered number starting BHD are
probably registered with the
British
Horse Database which ceased trading 10 Oct
2001.
A freeze mark
is unalterable identification applied with symbols on the neck that identifies a
horse as an
individual. While many people refer to freeze marks as freeze brands, they are
not brands by traditional
definition since they do not proclaim the ownership of the animal.
A freeze brand
is an ownership, ranch or vanity brand applied with a cold iron. The same brand
is usually
applied
to a number of animals. Individual identification is not accomplished and,
because ownership brands
are not
standardized, alteration without detection is possible.
Equine Registers:
NATIONAL EQUINE DATABASE (NED) Defra announced in June
that Momenta has been awarded the contract to set up the National Equine
Database (NED). It is proposed that NED will be run by joint industry/government
co-operative NED Society Ltd., and it is hoped that the NED will go live early
in 2005.
The Breed Societies have been approached to supply the details of the
horses/ponies on their register. The NED will hold the horse or ponies details,
as well as the name and address of the breeder and owner. This horse passport
based information about horse and owner is being collected by NED in order to
provide a source of data that supports veterinary disease control and
surveillance activities. The information will also enable Defra to carry out its
responsibilities regarding the implementation of the horse passport requirement.
It will also facilitate strategic planning within the equine sector, assist in
tracing the owners of straying, lost or stolen horses and reduce malpractice in
the sale of horses and ponies. The data collected for this purpose will be
adequate, relevant and not excessive for the above purposes. For the equine
industry in general, the information passed to NED will provide a central
archived source of Breeding, Evaluation and Performance (BEP) data which will
enhance the quality of horses bred in Great Britain. BEP data will be accessible
by other interested parties (for a fee) via Internet website.
This National Equine Database (NED) should, in due course, be of great value and
benefit to the whole of the UK equine industry - from the hobby rider to the
professional, from the occasional breeder to the stud breeding for general or
specific equine sport.
Le
Haras Nationaux - The « Système d'Identification
Répertoriant les Équidés » SIRE, Equine Indentification and Registration System,
was created by the National Stud in 1976. It is the horses' , donkeys' and
ponies' registry. It delivers for each individual animal its identification
papers which include its pedigree and its physical description. This document is
the animal's vaccination book and passport as well.
http://haras-nationaux.jetonline.fr/sirenet_racine/frameset.html
Haras Nationaux
BP 6 - 19231 ARNAC-POMPADOUR
Tél. : 05 55 98 59 20
Fax. : 05 55 98 59 21
info@haras-nationaux.fr
http://www.cavadeos.com/templates/home_chap_hn.cfm?Chap=missions
Whereveris my old horse allows owners to search for history on their horse,
or trace horses that they no longer own.
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I believe that the HorseMates!
database is a really good way to help provide protection for horses and
ponies, and it's free! I would encourage all owners to enter the details
of their horses or ponies into the HorseMates! database.
 http://www.horsemates.com |
HorseMates! is a
database that has been developed in response to the need to provide some
protection for horses and ponies, and some help to horse and pony owners.
Horse and pony owners are
able to document descriptive information for identification purposes, but they
are also able to document behavioural information, healthcare information and
any other information that a new owner should know about. If you would like
your horse or pony in the main database they need to be either freeze marked
or micro-chipped. If they are not uniquely identified then
HorseMates!
may be able to offer you very competitive rates to have them identified.
The majority of people
intend to keep their horses and ponies for life. However, for some people, there
are a variety of reasons why
this is not always a possibility. When you sell an animal to a new owner, you
cannot guarantee that they will not sell the animal on again. However, you can
document the details on your horse and pony, so they are available to new
owners in the future. Your horse or pony can’t say why they are behaving the
way they are, but you can.
From a buyers perspective,
for a small fee of £7.50 (of which £1 goes to an equine charity) you can
purchase the history of a horse or pony so that you are fully aware of
everything about the animal, from its age to its farrier.
HorseMates! will
also allow people to track down old equine friends and to allow a contact
letter to be passed to the new owner. They can then choose to reply if they
wish.
As HorseMates!
grows, it should become more difficult to lie about an animals age or
condition. Dealers should consider adding the details of the animals they are
selling into HorseMates! to give them a little more credibility. All
new horses and ponies should be registered as soon as they are uniquely
identified, either through freeze marking or micro-chipping.
HorseMates! is free
to add your horse or pony into the database and you can add new records with
updated information, as often as you like.
It only takes a few
minutes, it costs nothing and it gives your horse a pony a little protection
for the future should they need it.
If you care for horse or pony then you need to
add them into HorseMates! now.
Registered Brands
Database, Livestock and Veterinary Operations Branch,
Regina, Canada
How to read freeze brand symbols in Australia and New Zealand
Australia:
Each
State (except Victoria) registers their own brands, either through the
Department of Agriculture, Department of Primary Industries or the
Rural Lands Protection Board.
The
Registrar of Racehorses is the organisation which registers all
racehorses, past and present, in Australia and records their brands. They charge a fee of
$AUD30 to trace a horse, if a full description of colour, sex, brands
and any white markings is provided. Their details are set out below:
The
Registrar of Racehorses
NSW
Thoroughbred Racing Board
P O
Box 832
KENSINGTON NSW 1465
New Zealand Thoroughbred Brand - identification
The Stud Book Department
New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing
Ph: (64 4) 385 3988
Fax: (64 4) 384 5867
Email: studbook@nzracing.co.nz
If your horse's shoulder brands are the only identification you have,
you need to contact the NZ Stud Book directly with a full description
of the brands. This will allow Stud Book staff to identify the sire,
dam and registered name of your thoroughbred horse.
The NZ Studbook website:
www.nzstudbook.com
Free access to the records of all thoroughbred broodmares
in New Zealand from 1991 onwards (includes sex, birthdate, sire
and breeder of each foal), also imported mares, stallions standing in New Zealand and their progeny listed by crop,
named & un-named horses sent overseas and industry statistics.
If you know the sire and/or dam of your horse, and they were included
in the 1991 NZ Stud Book, this is the place to go.
United States Horse Brand Laws
All animal brands in the USA are registered with the
Department of Agriculture within each state. Contact the Department of
Agriculture in the state you think your horse came from, you should then be able
to trace the owner of the brand. Alternatively contact your
state brand inspector. If you don't know how to find the inspector, contact your
vet, a sale barn, or land-grant university.
Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
California
Colorado
Florida
Georgia
Hawaii
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New
Mexico
New
York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
Wisconsin
Wyoming
Branded Horse Registry Offer registration
papers for branded horses. Email:
info@brandedhorseregistry.com.
USA - how to freeze brand horses including equipment required.
Operating Instruction for L&H Freeze Branders
Natural Horse Markings
Horse Origins
- database of European horses, especially show-jumping. You can find the
pedigree / origin of more than 80000 horses.
For other types of security products
and services, click here.
Breed
Codes Breed Societies
Horse Brands Societies
A Societies B
Societies C-E Societies
F-L Societies M-S
Societies T-Z
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