As a breeder, dealer, or exhibitor licensed by the U.S. 

Department of Agriculture (USDA) under the Animal 

Welfare Act (AWA), you are required to identify and keep 

records of all dogs and cats in your possession. This 

Tech Note explains the requirements and your options for 

meeting them. 

Identification Requirements

Dogs and Cats: You must identify all dogs and cats 16 

weeks of age or older, including those held temporarily for 

breeding, personal pets used for breeding or housed with 

breeding animals, spayed/neutered dogs and cats housed 

in the kennel/cattery, and exhibited dogs and cats. You 

must use one of three acceptable forms of official ID: tag 

affixed to an appropriate collar, tattoo, or microchip. 

Exhibitors who do not want to use one of the three forms 

of official ID may instead identify dogs and cats by:

 Placing an official ID tag on the door of the animal’s 

cage or run; 

 Maintaining a record book that has each animal’s ID 

number, a written description of the animal, all required 

recordkeeping data, and a clear photo of each animal; 

and

 Keeping a duplicate tag that accompanies each dog or 

cat whenever it leaves the facility.

Puppies and Kittens: Identification requirements for 

puppies and kittens less than 16 weeks old include: 

 Unweaned puppies or kittens housed with their 

officially identified mother must be listed on the official 

birth record (APHIS Form 7005) or on the litter’s cage 

card. Unweaned puppies and kittens that are removed 

from their birth mother and placed with another litter 

may be listed on the foster litter’s cage card.

 Weaned puppies or kittens maintained as whole 

litters may be identified individually with a tag, tattoo, 

microchip, or plastic-type collar or listed on a cage 

card.

 Weaned puppies or kittens no longer maintained in a 

litter must be identified individually with a tag, tattoo, 

microchip, or plastic-type collar. 

Identification Standards

Whichever form of ID you use, it must meet the 

following standards:

Tags and Plastic Puppy Collars

 Must be legible and made of durable metal or plastic 

(see U.S. Code of Federal Regulations, Title 9, Section 

2.51 for acceptable dimensions and materials). 

 Must contain the letters “USDA,” your USDA license 

number (e.g., 48-A-0000), and the animal’s individual 

number (e.g., 1, 27, 32, etc.).

Tattoos

 Must be requested in writing from USDA’s Animal 

and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS). Send 

requests to animalcare@usda.gov. We will review 

your request and, if approved, assign the tattoo coding 

scheme (letters and numbers) you must use to identify 

your animals.

 Must be applied in a humane manner.

Microchips

 Must be placed below the back of the neck in 

subcutaneous tissue between the shoulder blades.

 You must have a working microchip scanner available 

for APHIS to use during inspections. 

Identification and Recordkeeping Requirements for Dogs and Cats

Animal Care Tech Note
USDA License number: 99-A-0000

DAM ID number: MICROCHIP 12345678DD Breed: Cocker Spaniel Date of Birth: 4/1/22

ID number Sex Description Date of removal Date of death/euthanasia Medical record

22-08 M Black with white toes 4/2/22 (died) 5/1/22: Pyrantel

5/13/22: Distemper/parvo 

6/1/22: Group fecal (negative)

22-09 M Black with white spot on nose 6/8/22

22-10 F Black merle 6/8/22

USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender. www.aphis.usda.gov/animal-welfare APHIS-22-032 | Issued August 2022

Cage Cards

 Must be legible and include the letters “USDA,” 

your USDA license number, and the animals’ 

individual numbers. 

You may purchase tags and microchips from any

company that can meet the requirements. Known 

manufacturers1 include: 

You must keep all records, regardless of form, for the 

duration of time you have the animal in your possession 

and a minimum of 1 year after its disposition (i.e., sale, 

rescue/adoption, transfer, death, or euthanasia). The 

APHIS Administrator may issue a written notice to extend 

the period you’re required to keep records.

Using Cage Cards for Recordkeeping

You may use cage cards as an additional option to meet 

AWA recordkeeping requirements for puppies and kittens 

born at your facility. When used for both identification and 

recordkeeping, the cage card must include:

 The letters “USDA”

 Your license number

 The dam or foster 

mother’s ID

 Identification numbers 

of puppies or kittens

 Dates of birth

 Sex

 Breed

 Description (i.e., color, 

markings, etc.)

 Date of disposition 

(i.e., died, euthanized, 

removed, sold) 

Using Cage Cards as a Medical Record 

for Puppies

You may also use cage cards as a group medical record 

to document all routine preventive treatments (e.g., 

vaccines and deworming medications) administered to a 

whole litter of puppies as required by Section 3.13 of the 

AWA regulations. A group medical record must contain 

the identification number, breed, sex, and age of each 

animal in the treatment group; the names and dates of 

all vaccines and preventive medications given; and any 

routine tests performed (such as fecal examination for 

intestinal parasites).

For More Information 

To learn more about AWA identification and recordkeeping 

requirements for dogs and cats, contact your local USDA 

Animal Care inspector, call us at (970) 494-7478, or send 

an email to animalcare@usda.gov.

1 Mention of companies or commercial products does not imply recommendation or endorsement 

by USDA over others not mentioned. USDA neither guarantees nor warrants the standard of any 

product mentioned. Product names are mentioned solely to report factually on available data and 

to provide specific information.

Licensees can use cage cards like the one shown above not only for identification (shaded areas) but also inventory and group medical records.

Ketchum Mfg. Co.

ketchummfg.com

(800) 222-0460

Keyes-Davis Company

keyesdavis.com

(269) 962-7505

National Band & 

Tag Company 

nationalband.com

(859) 261-2035

AVID Identification 

Systems, Inc.

avidid.com

(800) 371-7505

HomeAgain 

homeagain.com

(888) 466-3242

Revival Animal Health, Inc. 

revivalanimal.com

(800) 786-4751

Lost or Unreadable Identification

If a dog or cat loses its ID, you should make a diligent 

effort to find and reapply it to the animal. When an ID is 

lost or unreadable, apply a new ID and record both the 

old and new ID numbers in your inventory recordkeeping 

documents. You must not repeat or use an official ID 

number on more than one animal for at least 5 years. 

Recordkeeping Requirements

Breeders, dealers, and exhibitors must keep records of 

dogs and cats in their possession, including all offspring. 

To meet AWA recordkeeping requirements, you may:

 Use APHIS Forms 7005 (Record of Acquisition of Dogs 

and Cats on Hand) and 7006 (Record of Disposition 

of Dogs and Cats). Go to aphis.usda.gov and search 

“aph7005” or “aph7006” to download copies.

 Request permission from APHIS to create and 

maintain a computerized recordkeeping system that 

captures all information required in Section 2.75 of the 

AWA regulations.