Ear tag
A plastic or metal tag fixed in the ear and printed with a unique number to identify the animal.
Also: eartag, RFID tag, Pashu Aadhaar
An ear tag is clipped through the ear and carries a unique number, often with a barcode or an electronic chip that can be read at a distance. Most countries with national cattle tracing require them: in the European Union every bovine animal wears two tags with the same number from soon after birth, linked to a passport recording its movements, a system tightened after the BSE crisis. In India, cattle and buffalo are being tagged with a twelve-digit number, known as Pashu Aadhaar, under a national animal information network used for breeding records, vaccination and insurance. Tags make it possible to trace an animal through its life.