State Brand Inspection Helps Prevent Cattle and Horse Theft

News Date February 28, 2006

        There are ear tags. There are tattoos. In the brave new world of electronics, there are even microchips embedded under the hide. But to help stolen or lost livestock get back to their rightful owners, there's nothing quite as effective as the old fashioned cattle brand and the work of the Oregon Department of Agriculture's (ODA) livestock brand inspectors.
        Statistics compiled for 2005 by ODA's Animal Health and Identification Division show a busy livestock industry that depends on brand inspection.
        The problem is, too many owners of cattle and horses don't know the value of the brand and don't even know that they are required to have their animals inspected at certain times to ensure ownership.
        "Brand inspection, as we say, is a cow or horse's only return address," says Rodger Huffman, ODA's Brand Inspection Program Manager. "In a court of law, the brand is used as proof of ownership."
        With so many animals bought, sold, and transported across state lines, it is just as important today to be able to track livestock that may be missing or stolen as it was a hundred years ago when cattle rustling was a part of the old west.
        "Ear tags can be switched, tattoos can be blotted out, and microchips can't always be read by our electronic readers," says Huffman. "The old fashioned way of brands is the only legally recognized way for a person to prove that animal belongs to them."
        Whether it includes a running W, a lazy A, a bar, a slash, the brand is unique to the owner and is recorded by the Oregon Department of Agriculture in a massive, electronic database. ODA registers brands on cattle, horses, and some sheep. Currently, there are a total of 11,568 active brands recorded--most involve cattle.
        The application of animal brands is more prevalent east of the Cascades.
        "Animals or more likely to be out on the range on the east side and commingling with another rancher's cattle or may be out of sight from the owner's view," says Huffman. "They are more likely to be branded. Most Eastern Oregon producers do have a brand."
        Brands are not mandatory in Oregon, but state law does require that all cattle and horses, both branded and unbranded, be inspected before leaving the state, before being sold at an auction, before being taken to a slaughterhouse, and when change of ownership occurs (cattle only).
        ODA's brand inspection program is 100% fee supported and includes 69 inspectors statewide, five supervisors, and two livestock theft investigators. Last year, the team inspected 1,070,943 cattle and 13,388 horses.
        Brand inspection statistics for 2005 show that ODA received 75 reports of missing livestock involving 557 animals. What the figures don t show is the potentially huge number of animals that have not been lost or stolen because of brands and brand inspection.
        "The numbers of missing livestock have stayed fairly stable the past few years, but if we did away with our brand inspection program, I would bet that those numbers would increase dramatically," says Huffman. "Any loss of livestock leaves a major financial impact on the producer. That's why brand inspection is important." For more information or to schedule a brand inspection, contact the State Brand Inspection Program at 503/986-4681.