Livestock papers by state

Who is responsible

The person moving the animal is responsible for having the papers with it. On Salthouse Hub that is usually the buyer, who collects at the seller’s pickup location and hauls home. Most papers, though, can only be issued on the seller’s side, before the animal leaves: a health certificate is written by a veterinarian who has examined the animal, and a brand inspection happens where the animal stands. So the two of you agree, before pickup day, who is arranging what. The listing’s messages are a good place to settle it in writing.

Within one state, a straight sale between private parties often needs less than a state-line move does. Crossing a state line almost always needs a health certificate and official ID, and in a brand state, a brand inspection on the way out.

The documents, in plain words

Bill of sale

A written record of who sold what to whom, for how much, on what date. Salthouse Hub’s reservation is a record of the deposit and the listing as it stood; the bill of sale is what you hand a brand inspector or a county office. Include both names and addresses, a description of the animal (species, sex, age, breed, tag or brand numbers), the price, and both signatures.

Certificate of veterinary inspection (CVI, “health certificate”, “health papers”)

A form completed by an accredited veterinarian who has examined the animals, listing each one by official ID, stating they show no sign of contagious disease, and recording any tests the destination state requires. Nearly every state requires a CVI for livestock entering from another state, usually issued within 30 days of the move. Many states also require a permit number from their own animal health office to be written on the certificate before the animals leave; the veterinarian obtains it. Ask the veterinarian for the CVI early: the examination has to happen before the haul, and a permit can take a day or two.

Official identification

A tag or mark the government recognises as identifying that particular animal, which the CVI refers to.

• Cattle and bison: an official ear tag, most often an “840” tag (a 15-digit number starting with 840, visual or electronic). Federal rules require official ID for most cattle moving interstate, and since 2024 the tags used for that purpose must be electronically readable. Breeding cattle and dairy cattle are covered in more cases than feeder calves; check the destination state.
• Goats and sheep: a scrapie tag, under the federal scrapie eradication program. Nearly every goat or sheep that changes ownership needs one, with a few exceptions for animals going straight to slaughter or for some wethers. A seller who breeds goats or sheep should already have a scrapie flock ID and a supply of tags; a first-time seller can get a flock ID and free tags from USDA.
• Pigs: an official ear tag or tattoo for breeding swine moving interstate; feeder pigs vary by state.
• Poultry: no individual ID for backyard flocks, but see the poultry testing note below.

Brand inspection

In the western brand states, a brand inspector checks cattle (and often horses, and in some states sheep) for brands and ownership when they are sold, and before they leave the county or the state, and issues a brand inspection certificate or transportation permit. The inspection is proof the seller had the right to sell, and an animal crossing a brand state’s line without one can be held. It applies whether or not the animal carries a brand. Colorado is a brand state: a change of ownership needs an inspection, and so does a move out of state or more than 75 miles within it. The buyer or seller calls the local brand inspector, who comes to the animals; there is a per-head fee.

Disease tests

What the destination state requires on the CVI, by species and by the animal’s sex and age. Commonly:

• Cattle: tuberculosis and brucellosis tests are required by some states for sexually intact breeding cattle over a certain age coming from other states, and not required by many others. Bulls that are not virgin bulls commonly need a trichomoniasis test to enter western states and, in some of them, to change ownership within the state.
• Goats and sheep: most states require only the scrapie tag and the CVI; some ask for brucellosis or tuberculosis testing on dairy goats.
• Pigs: brucellosis and pseudorabies tests are commonly required for breeding swine.
• Poultry: birds moving interstate, and birds going to a show or sale in many states, need to come from a flock in the National Poultry Improvement Plan (NPIP) certified pullorum-typhoid clean, or to have had a negative pullorum-typhoid test within the past 90 days. A seller of chicks or started birds should be able to show NPIP flock papers; hatchery-bought chicks come with the hatchery’s.

Colorado, where most of us start

Salthouse Hub is run from Greeley, and many listings are Colorado animals going to Colorado homes. For a sale within Colorado:

• Cattle need a brand inspection at change of ownership. Call the Colorado Department of Agriculture Brand Inspection Division for your area before pickup day.
• Goats and sheep need a scrapie tag on each animal; a CVI is not required for a private in-state sale but is good practice and is required to leave the state.
• Poultry sold in-state needs no state paperwork for a private sale; NPIP papers matter for shows, sales and any interstate move.
• A bill of sale is always worth writing.

For an animal leaving Colorado, add a CVI from an accredited veterinarian, an import permit if the destination state issues them, any tests the destination requires, and a brand inspection for cattle. For an animal coming into Colorado, the Colorado State Veterinarian’s import rules apply; the current requirements by species are on the Colorado Department of Agriculture site.

Where to confirm, state by state

Each state’s animal health authority publishes its import requirements by species; that page is the one that counts. The brand column says whether the state runs brand inspection on a change of ownership or a move out: yes means an inspector signs papers as a matter of course; registered brands means brands are registered with the state but inspection is limited to livestock markets or particular counties; no means a brand is a private mark and nobody inspects. Checked September 2026.

The federal rules behind official ID and interstate movement are USDA APHIS’s, at aphis.usda.gov, which also lists each state’s import requirements and state veterinarian.

On pickup day

• Bring the bill of sale, signed by both of you, and keep a copy each.
• Check every animal’s official ID against the CVI before it goes on the trailer.
• In a brand state, have the brand inspection done before loading, or have the inspector meet you at the pickup location.
• Keep the papers in the truck, not the trailer: they are asked for at the cab window.
• Then confirm the pickup on Salthouse Hub, from the reservation on the listing page, so the deposit is released to the seller. See the Terms of Service for how the deposit works.