[waterboy]

Hi guys here again picking yours brains...
I thought you could only travel 50km's with pigs if you don't have a transportation license but have just been told that as long as its a hobby and not commercial then there is no limit to how far you can collect your pigs from is this true?
Cheers

[Samantha]

I don't know any particular regulations regarding how far you can take them for non commercial uses but obviously the closer the better and if it is a long journey making sure they are comfortable 

Sam

[JulieS]

It is best to check with your local Animal Health/Trading Standards to ensure you follow their interpretation of the rules.

If it is for non commercial purposes then you may not have the limit of miles you can travel.  But I think you will find that they will class it as commercial even if you give away or sell even one sausage.

Do check though.

The transportation license isn't difficult to get.  It's worthwhile doing just so that you have all the information possible to ensure you are transporting your pigs in the best way possible.

Good luck.   

[oaklandspigs]

If you have trouble sleeping, the attach guidance from defra will quickly solve the problem.
http://www.defra.gov.uk/foodfarm/farmanimal/welfare/transport/documents/watoguidance180208.pdf
This will give you endless hours of amusement as you watch what was clearly the work of several mandarins creating tortuous sentences that make a complete nonsense of any original intention, and into the farce that is Defra EU implementation.
The regulations allow transport that is not in connection with an economic activity, and give some exemptions where it is an economic activity.
Once such exemption is :
“when the animal is an individual animal, is accompanied by its owner or other responsible person and is fit for the intended journey “

Defra then expand this and state:

“Individual animal” should not be taken to mean that a single animal in a vehicle is all that would qualify for the individual animal exclusion. Our interpretation permits more than one “individual” animal to be transported in the same vehicle provided that each is accompanied by a single person who has responsibility for it during transport."

 
So if you hire a coach and put 42 adults in it, it can tow a trailer with 42 sheep in it !!

[waterboy]

    
Oaklands i'm so glad you cleared all that up for me lol so as long as my individual pig and his 24 individual piggy friends only bring 1 individual piggy friend each we should be ok...bugger i'm gonna need a bigger trailer for my individual pig 

thx for that when i looked into a license i thought it looked like loads of messin about but if its not too bad then its definately gonna be worthwhile i'm thinkin.

[Fowgill Farm]

There is lots of confusion as to what is and what is not allowed.
I applied for a Type 1 licence which does not involve taking any tests but thought i better have something as we go showing. When it arrived all it states is your name and address and the species you are transporting but most importantly all it says is:
" Valid for journeys upto 8 hours"
There is no mileage declared, when I queried this with WIT they said this was correct. I think the GOVT has made a nice little earner out of people taking the Type 2 test believing they need it when they don't, the type two I believe was really introduced for hauliers who deal in animals commercially and trek them long distances up and down the UK. The lady at WIT told me that as regarded showing if i was transporting two pigs and there were two of us travelling with the animals then that was ok too.
Although i take a copy with me whenever we show or go delivering/collecting weaners I have never yet been asked to produce it.
HTH
Mandy

[waterboy]

Mandy
thats great thanks soooo much i'll get onto it straight away makes things so much easier and puts my mind at rest.
cheers

[Helencus]

Sounds very worthwhile getting this. Can you advise how do you apply for type 1 licence please?

[Fowgill Farm]

You can apply for a Type 1 certificate as follows:

http://www.defra.gov.uk/corporate/docs/forms/awelf/wit1.htm

CLick on the WIT 1 highlighted at bottom of page and this will bring up form for you to print off and fill in
The address to send it to is on the form.
This will make you legal for journeys over 65km but under 8hrs travelling time.
The people at WIT are very helpful and their number is also on the form if you get stuck however its very straightfoward
HTH

Mandy

[waterboy]

mandy thats great thx for that will send it off this weekend. 

[Hilarysmum]

Sorry off topic but Mandy what does HTH stand for?   

[piggy]

HM glad it wasnt just me thinking that,sat there picking my brain for ages and all i could come up with was,   'hope this helps'  would i be right?

[Hilarysmum]

Brilliant piggy, thanks......

[Fowgill Farm]

Spot on piggy 'hope this helps' is HTH.
And i hope it does as everyone seems to have got mightily confused by these transport regs, the trouble is most of the time people see a headline and then don't read any further. You only need the Type 1 cert which will cover you for most eventualities, there not many of us trek our pigs on journies longer than 8hrs and as i say i've never yet had to produce it to anyone but as they say there's always a first time so best to be safe. We've already done two shows this month and we have two more next week, Thornton-le-Dale & Tockwith so on the road again

[waterboy]

better late than never but yeah HTH "hope that helps".
Definately think its worth getting sending for ours asap