Society AGM heads to Drimsynie

Drimsynie hosts AGM

The Society’s 2022 AGM and social weekend will take place at Drimsynie Estate, Lochgoilhead, Argyll, from Friday 11th November to Sunday 13th November.

Featuring a range of accommodation options, including the Drimsynie Estate Hotel, holiday lodges and more, the weekend will include a number of social events and fun activities for members and friends of all ages.

Further booking information will be available on the Society website and social media channels later in the summer.

Correct identification of pedigree Texels

Members are reminded of the Society’s rules on sheep identification which apply to all shows and sales organised and run under the Society auspices.

The Society requires that all pedigree Texel sheep carry two ear tags, in accordance with current government regulations, each clearly identifying the breeder’s unique UK flock number and 5-digit unique individual animal ID. The Society flock book number allocated to that animal in the registry will be the individual ID, prefixed with the year number and pedigree flock code i.e XXX2000001. One of the tags shall be an EID tag and the other a visual tag. Management information including the pedigree flock code and year of birth can be included on tags. Any animal with incorrect or indistinct identification or only carrying one tag will be rejected from the sale or show, unless the Society chief executive has been notified in advance of the inspection and a dispensation certificate accompanies the animal to the sale/show. The decision of the inspector shall be final and failure to accept the inspector’s decision will result in the entire consignment/show team being rejected.

aids sales cataloguing

Last year saw more than 11,000 sheep entered into 76 sales through the online cataloguing facility provided by iTexel.

More than 60% of the entries were completed by members online, a 20% increase compared to 2020, according to Society events and cataloguing manager Ailish Ross. “The uptake of online sales entry by members has been fantastic and clearly shows a demand for paperless entry systems and the convenience that iTexel provides.

“To further support members and regional clubs the Society introduced two new services last year to encourage and support club sales to move online. Online pre-entry forms were created and made available on texel.uk to reduce the reliance on paper entries for club sales.

“Many members had previously used online entries for the National Sales and NSA sales, therefore, this transition was well received by clubs and their vendors. A total of 12 clubs with 29 sales took advantage of the service, leaving five clubs operating paper entry systems via sale auctioneers,” said Miss Ross.

“Meanwhile, to assist Clubs and sales that operate under the Society’s auspices, an entry fee collection system was also introduced via the Society’s Direct Debit system.

“The Society reimbursed entry fees in one process to the sale organisers or agents, reducing sales administration by eliminating the clubs’ requirement to issue paper invoices and collect funds via cheque payments, as well as chasing late payments. In all 22 club sales used this service, with more than £43,500 collected and reimbursed to clubs,” she added.