The Minister for Agriculture, Food and Marine, Charlie McConalogue TD, is urging anyone keeping horses or other equines to return their completed Equine Census forms ahead of this week’s deadline.

This year’s equine census took place on 30 November and the deadline for returning census forms is 20 December 2024. All registered keepers of equines, including horses, ponies, donkey, mules and zebras are required to complete the Equine Census.

Minister McConalogue stated: “My Department is introducing a new Equine Traceability System in 2025. The new system is based on the Equine Census 2024 returns so it is critically important that the census documents are completed and returned.”

“Accountability can only be delivered through robust traceability. This year’s equine census, which took place on November 30th, is the first step in the introduction of a new equine traceability system. Equine Census 2024 forms were delivered to all registered premises where equines are kept, and these must be returned. Returning your census is a legal requirement but it is also an important way to show you believe in accountability as a responsible horse keeper,” the Minister continued.

As well as being important for traceability, the Equine Census also provides the Department with valuable information in disease prevention and addressing public health concerns in dealing with lost, straying or stolen horses.

Completing the Equine Census is mandatory and failure to return a census may prevent equine owners from registering foals and exporting or selling their horses.

The submission of a 2024 equine census also forms part of the eligibility criteria for Targeted Agriculture Modernisation Schemes (TAMS3).

The registered keeper of every premises where equines are kept on census night must submit a completed census return. Where a premises is registered to keep equines but there are none present there on the night of the census, a census return must still be completed to indicate that.

Paper returns are accepted but keepers are encouraged to submit their 2024 census information online through the dedicated secure ‘Equine Census’ tile located on the ‘AIM services’ tab on the agfood.ie homepage.

Information required from those keeping horses or other equines include: the total number of equines present on their holding on November 30th, 2024; the total number of these animals that have passports; the total number that have yet to be issued a passport; the total number of equines present that do not typically live there including those temporarily present for breeding, competition etc; and, passport details and the dates on which they moved there for equines that are permanently on their holding.

Anyone seeking assistance with submitting census data, either on paper or online, should contact the department’s AIM (Animal Identification and Movement) Division by e-mail equinecensus2024@agriculture.gov.ie or by phone at 01 5058881.