WAC 16-86-015. Change of ownership requirements for cattle and bison in Washington

(1) Cattle. All female cattle must be official calfhood or official Washington mature vaccinates and bear legible vaccination tattoos before being sold or introduced into any breeding herd in the state of Washington. This rule does not apply to the following: (a) Cattle sold or consigned to a restricted feedlot; (b) Cattle sold or consigned to a federally inspected slaughter plant; (c) Cattle sold or consigned to a public livestock market for immediate slaughter within three days of sale; (d) Spayed heifers; (e) Cattle sold to buyers in states or countries without brucellosis vaccination import requirements; and (f) Calves under four months of age. (2) Bison. All bison, except calves under eight months of age at the side of their negative-tested mothers, are required to test negative for brucellosis upon change of ownership. (3)(a) Under RCW 20.01.380 , as cattle and bison move throughout the marketing system, livestock dealers are required to retain cattle and bison identification to the herd of origin. Official identification devices provide permanent identification of livestock and ensure the ability to find the source of animal disease outbreaks. (b) Removing an official animal health tag, or official animal identification tag, permanent mark, or other device is prohibited except at the time of slaughter. (c) If an official identification device is lost and it is necessary to retag an animal, the new official number shall correlate, whenever possible, with the previous official number of the animal and shall be reported to the office of the state veterinarian.