ABHA Rules & Regulations of Registration

SECTION 1: Official Breeding Record

RULE 1.1 Official Herdbook
RULE 1.2 Entries
RULE 1.3 Registry

SECTION 2: Registration

SECTION 3: Registration of Offspring Resulting from Embryo Transplant, Artificial Insemination, or Leasing Cattle by Non-Owner

RULE 3.1 Qualification
   Purchase of Non-Owner Breeding Certificate
RULE 3.2 Embryo Transplant
   Proof of Parentage
RULE 3.3 Artificial Insemination
   Labeling System
   Maintenance of Records

SECTION 4: Certificate of Registration

SECTION 5: Transfers of Ownership

SECTION 6: Herd Records

RULE 6.1 Requirements
   Bull Records
RULE 6.2 Herd Inventory
RULE 6.3 Lifetime Dam Production Summary
   Additional copies of Summary
RULE 6.4 Computing Unregistered Cattle
   Requirements for computing
   Changing computes to registered status
RULE 6.5 Examination of Records
   Herd Status Reports
   Expenses
   Violations

SECTION 7: Hardship

RULE 7.1 Waiving Rules and Regulations

SECTION 8: Miscellaneous

RULE 8.1 Use of Association Logo
RULE 8.2 Use of Membership Logo



ABHA Rules & Regulations of Registration

SECTION 1: Official Breeding Record

SECTION 2: Registration

RULE 2.1 Privilege of Registration
Only Life and Annual Members of the Association are eligible to register cattle in the American Black Hereford Registry, under the Rules and Regulations promulgated by the Association.

RULE 2.2 Eligibility for Registration
Black Hereford animals of any age for which application for registration is made may be registered with the Association upon proof of compliance with the following requirements:

RULE 2.3 Visual Inspection. The Board of Directors reserves the right to inspect any animal prior to acceptance for registration.

RULE 2.4 Application for Registration
To register an animal with the Association, the owner of the dam at the time of calving shall submit a complete, accurate, and properly signed registration application on the form provided by the Association with the correct registration fee.  (See transmittal form.)  Refer to Rule 3.1 for registering calves resulting from a non-owned sire or dam, Rule 3.2 for registering calves from embryo transplant and Rule 3.3 for registering calves from artificial insemination.  Refer to Rule 4.1 paragraph D for registering calves to multiple owners, Rule 5.2 paragraph B for registering and transferring calves from parent to child and Rule 6.4 for computing calves into the American Black Hereford Herdbook without registration.

A. Application Forms. Application forms may be obtained from the Association office.

B. Time Limit. Whenever an application for registration is incomplete and the applicant has failed to provide all the information or fees required within four months of the date the application was received by the Association, such application shall be considered null and void. Any fee received by the Association will not be refunded.

RULE 2.5 Animal Identification Number. Every registered animal must have an ear tattoo number for identification.

A. Before Registration. All animals for which application for registration is made must be ear tattooed before the application is submitted and the tattoo and its location shall be stated on the application.

B. Symbols Which May Be Used. Tattoos must be standard Arabic numbers and English letters.

C. Repetitive Use. No two animals of the same sex registered by the same breeder shall be given identical tattoos EXCEPT a breeder may use the same mark and location on the same sex animal after ten years.

D. Ear Tattoos.

1. Location. The tattoo can be located in one or both ears of the animal.

2. Corrections. If the tattoo of an animal becomes unreadable or is put on incorrectly, the tattoo shall be placed in a different lobe of the ear and no attempt shall be made to alter or over-imprint the old tattoo. If a Registration Certificate has been issued for the animal and the new tattoo has been placed in a different ear than is indicated on the Registration Certificate, the certificate must be sent to the Association for correction.

RULE 2.6 NAMES FOR CATTLE AND HERDS.


A. Cattle Names. An animal’s name cannot contain more than 28 characters and spaces. Only English letters and Arabic numbers shall be acceptable. Joined letters, brands, or other     unusual marks or symbols will not be accepted.

1. Repetitive Use. A breeder may use a name only once in 10 years.

2. Name Change by ABHA. The Association reserves the right to change the name of any animal on the application for registry.

3. Name Changes by Owner.  The registrant of an animal may apply to change the registered name of the animal if:  a) the animal has never been used for breeding purposes and b) the animal has no show record. 

B. Reserved Herd Name. An ABHA member may register one name with the Association to be reserved exclusively for his/her use as the first name for cattle raised in his/her herd. This name cannot be used by anyone else as the first word of an animal's name.

SECTION 3: Registration of Offspring Resulting from Embryo Transplant, Artificial Insemination, or Leasing Cattle by Non-Owner

RULE 3.1 Qualification. Members may register calves produced from a sire or dam or both which is not owned by the member provided the registration application for that calf is accompanied by a Non-Owner Breeding Certificate signed by the registered owner of the sire or dam or both of the calf.

A. Purchase of Non-Owner Breeding Certificate. The Non-Owner Breeding Certificate must be purchased from the Association by the owner of the animal used by the non-owner breeder prior to registration of the calf resulting from said pairing.

RULE 3.2 Embryo Transplant. Calves produced by embryo transplant are eligible for registration, if other eligibility requirements are met, provided that the application for registration states that the calf is the product of embryo transplant.

A. Proof of Parentage. Parentage of the calf resulting from an embryo refers to the sire and dam used to create that embryo and is subject to the same registration requirements of owner and non-owner sires and dams. Namely, that non-owner parentage requires a non-owner certificate to accompany the registration application. Proof of parentage is the responsibility of the breeder.

RULE 3.3 Artificial Insemination. Non-owner parentage registration requires a Non-Owner Breeding Certificate to accompany the registration application. If the calf is the result of artificial insemination from a sire already owned by the breeder, no certificate is required. Proof of parentage is the responsibility of the breeder.

A. Labeling Semen. It shall be the responsibility of the owner(s) of record of a bull used artificially to require each person or organization collecting, processing and freezing semen to identify and permanently label each container with the full registered name and ABHA number of the bull and the date of collection. When the semen is not properly labeled it may not be used to produce calves for registration in the ABHA registry.

B. Maintenance of Records. It shall be the responsibility of the owner (s) on record of a bull to maintain an accurate record of each semen collection and a complete and accurate record of each semen sale or transfer to another person or firm. Such records shall be held for inspection by representatives of the Association upon request for a period of seven years.

SECTION 4: Certificate of Registration

RULE 4.1 Requirements. A registration number shall not be assigned to an animal nor a certificate issued until the requirements of the Rules and Regulations are met.

A. Duplicate Certificates. The existence of more than one registration certificate per animal shall not be permitted except in the case of multiple ownership. (See Rule 5.1, paragraph D, section 1a.) In the case of loss or destruction of an original certificate, a request for a duplicate certificate must be made in writing stating the reason for the request and it must be signed by the last owner shown in the certificate. This certificate will be labeled as a duplicate.

B. Transfers. Each time an animal is transferred the Association will generate a new certificate showing the breeder and current owner on the front.

C. Joint Membership. In the case of joint membership, Registration Certificates and other material from the Association will be mailed to the address shown on the membership application.

D. Multiple Ownership. An animal may belong to multiple owners who do not share a joint membership in the Association. If, upon application for registration or transfer, each owner's share of ownership is unspecified, and animal shall be considered as belonging to one owner. If the percentage of ownership is specified, an animal shall be considered to have multiple owners. Each multiple owner may not own less than one quarter interest in an animal.

1. The name of each multiple owner will appear on the front of each registration certificate. A record of each owner's percentage of ownership will be kept by the Association.

a. Each owner will receive an original registration certificate.

2. An application to register an animal to multiple owners must include the name of each owner and their percentage of ownership. All owners must sign the application. Regular fees will apply for each animal.

RULE 4.2 Changes, Errors, and Corrections. All information on registration applications must be accurate according to the requirements set forth in these rules. If it is determined to be inaccurate after the Registration certificate is issued, the certificate shall become null and void and shall be surrendered to the Association for correction and reissue (see transmittal form) or for cancellation.

A. Changes. Any changes, additions or deletions on a certificate must be made at the Association office. Any unauthorized entry shall render a certificate null and void and will only be replaced after payment of the usual fee.

1. A certificate for an animal first registered as a bull may be reissued to show that animal as a steer when the owner submits the Registration Certificate to the Association office and requests the change. No fee will be charged.

B. Errors by the Applicant. Errors committed by the applicant or registration applications or transfers shall be corrected after payment of the usual fees. (see transmittal form.)

C. Errors by the Association Office. Errors on Registration Certificates or transfers committed by the Association office shall be corrected free of charge if the office is notified within thirty (30) days of when the certificate si received by the applicant or new owner. After thirty days a fee is charged.

RULE 4.3 Surrender of Registration Certificate. When a registered animal is lost by death, destruction or other means, or is disposed of for slaughter or as a common grade animal, it shall be the responsibility of the holder of the Registration Certificate to return it to the Association for cancellation, with a statement to indicate the method or disposition. After the cancellation, the certificate will be returned to the holder, upon request.

RULE 4.4 Misrepresentation or Fraud

A. Declaring Certificate Null and Void. If an animal's registration has been obtained through willful misrepresentation or fraud, or if the date of birth, identification number, sire, dam, or service by natural or artificial insemination has been purposely misrepresented, the Board of Directors may declare the registration null and void, together with any registration which may have been made of descendants of an animal so registered.

B. Consequences. When a registration has been obtained by means of misrepresentation or fraud, the Board of Directors may instruct the Secretary to refuse to receive subsequent applications of any kind signed by a person or persons implicated in said misrepresentations or fraud and may take appropriate actions as provided by Article V of the Bylaws.

SECTION 5: Transfers of Ownership

RULE 5.1 Privilege of Transfer. Life and Annual Members of the Association are eligible to transfer cattle in the ABHA Registry under the Rules and Regulations promulgated by the Association.

RULE 5.2 Transfer Requirements. Every change of ownership of record of a registered animal must be recorded by official transfer on the records of the Association.

A. Person Responsible for Transfer. It shall be the duty of the transferor (seller) to apply for transfer and to pay the transfer fee. (see transmittal form.)

B. Parent-Child Transfers. A transfer fee is not required if an animal is transferred either from parent to child or child to parent at the time of application for registration of the animal. Both the parent and child must be Life or Annual members of the Association.

C. Multiple Owner Transfers.

1. A seller to multiple owners will complete an application for transfer to each new owner with an interest in the animal including him/herself should he/she maintain an interest. The new owner's percentage of interest must be stated on the transfer form. The regular fee must accompany each transfer application.

2. Each owner of interest may sell all or part of his/her interest in an animal as long as no fraction of ownership is less than one quarter.

D. Verifying Animal for Transfer. It shall be the duty of the transferor before offering a registered animal for sale or applying for transfer, to verify that the animal carries a legible, permanent identification number corresponding to the identification number entered on its Registration Certificate.

E. Transfer Only Registered Animals. A transfer application may not be sent to the Association before the application for registration for that animal is sent to the Association, but both applications may be sent at the same time accompanied by the correct fees for both applications. (see Rule 6.3.)

RULE 5.3 Application for Transfer. Application for transfer shall be made either: (1) on the form on the back of the Registration Certificate, or (2) on the application for registration at the time of registration, or (3) on a separate transfer form provided by the Association. It must be signed by the transferor or by his/her authorized agent. The transfer application must be sent to the Association accompanied by the animal's registration certificate, if applicable, and the correct fee(s).

A. Time Limits.

1. The transferor is required to submit an application for transfer within thirty (30) days of the actual change of ownership of the animal. After thirty (30) days the usual fee is doubled, after sixty (60) days the transferor is considered negligent and is subject to Rule 6.6.

2. Whenever an application for transfer is incomplete and the applicant has failed to provide all of the information required within four months of the date the application was received by the Association, such application shall be considered null and void. An application shall be considered incomplete is not signed by the transferor or if not accompanied by the correct fee. Any fee received by the Association will not be refunded.

RULE 5.4 Transfer by Affidavit. In cases of neglect or refusal of a member or nonmember of the Association to apply for transfer of registration, the transfer may be recorded if approved by a majority of the members of the Board of Directors, on the basis of the transferee's affidavit setting forth the fact and sworn to or affirmed before a Notary Public. Each such affidavit must be accompanied by proof of sale and proof of payment in full of the purchase price of the animal, or by the evidence of an agreement to sell, purchase or transfer, including the terms and conditions of service, if any, in the case of females.

RULE 5.5 Public Sales. Sale manager or their representatives may fill in buyer's names on transfer of animals consigned to public sales, and, if authorized by the consignor, can sign such applications in his stead. Written authorization signed by the consignor, and also be signed by him. Applications executed under this Rule are subject to Rule 6.6.

RULE 5.6 Misrepresentation or Fraud.

A. Declaring Transfer Null and Void. If an animal's registration has been transferred through misrepresentation or fraud, the Board of Directors may declare the transfer null together with any registrations of purported descendants of the animal which may have been recorded during the period of such misrepresented or fraudulent transfer.

B. Consequences. When a transfer has been obtained by means of misrepresentation or fraud, the Board of Directors may take appropriate action as provided by Article V or the Bylaws, and instruct the Secretary to refuse to receive subsequent applications of any kind signed by any person or persons implicated in said misrepresentation or fraud.

SECTION 6: Herd Records

RULE 6.1 Requirements. Owners of registered cattle shall maintain accurate breeding records, in which shall be noted the animal identification number and such other information concerning their breeding, ancestry, and date of birth as will make clear and positive for all time the parentage of an animal offered for registration in the American Black Hereford Registry.

A. Bull Records. The owner of a registered bull used for either natural service or artificial insemination shall maintain annual breeding records for each bull during each year. This record shall be segregated as follows:

1. Natural Service - Identification by ABHA registration certificate number of ABHA registered cows exposed, date (s) of exposure and location of service.

2. Artificial Insemination:

Units used by the owner of the bull.

Number of units sold.

This record shall not be filed with the Association but must be retained by the owner of the bull for at least four years and shall be available for examination by the Association upon request.

RULE 6.2 Herd Inventory. An inventory of all cattle registered to one owner may be obtained by that owner from the Association office for a fee. This inventory may be updated and returned to the office in order to keep an accurate, up-to-date inventory on record.

Inventories on producing age females may also be kept up-to-date by filling in the appropriate disposal code for the dam on registration application forms.

RULE 6.3 Lifetime Dam Production Summary. Each time the progeny of an ABHA cow is registered or computed the Association office will send a complete summary of all the cow's calves which have been registered or computed to the registered owner of the dam. This summary will not be entirely accurate if some calves have not been registered or computed. Additional copies of a Lifetime Dam Production Summary are available from the Association office for a fee.

RULE 6.4 Computing Unregistered Cattle. In order to make a Lifetime Dam Production Summary more complete, any progeny of an ABHA registered cow may be computed into the ABHA Registry at any age, instead of being registered.

A. Requirement for Computing. To compute an animal, an application for registration must be submitted to the Association office with the correct fee for computing. The application must include at least the correct information on the animal's dam, sire, sex and ate of birth. The box for Registration Code (REG) must be marked 'C' for 'compute only'.

B. Changing computes to registered status. Cattle which have been computed may later be registered by updating the registration report received when an animal is computed and submitting it to the Association office with the appropriate registration fee based on the animal's current age.

RULE 6.5 Examination of Records The Board of Directors may investigate or cause to be investigated, examined, identified, or blood typed any registered animal or her progeny and may examine the breeding records maintained by a member or non-member of the Association for the purpose of verifying applications for registry or records on file in the Association office, or for the purpose of investigating other matters in which the Association may be interested.

A. Herd Status Reports. If, upon investigation by the Board of Directors, it is determined that breeding or herd records, or herd management practices are inadequate to assure the accurate identification of animals in a herd, then the Board may require periodic reports of the current herd status until such time as the Board is satisfied that compliance with the rules of the Association is assured.

B. Expenses. Any expense incurred by the Association in the process of examination and verification may be charged to the owner of the herd.

C. Violations. If, upon investigation, the Board of Directors shall determine that the herd records or management practices relating to such records of either a member or nonmember of the Association are such that the purity of the Black Hereford breed may be impaired, or has been impaired, then the Board may, in their discretion, take action under the provisions of Article V or the Bylaws.

SECTION 7: Hardship

RULE 7.1 Waiving Rules and Regulations. The Board of Directors reserves the right to waive compliance with any rule or regulation in cases of hardship where compliance is not reasonably possible.

SECTION 8: Miscellaneous

RULE 8.1 Use of Association Logo. The logos of the Association are copyrighted and may not be used for any purpose by any ABHA member or nonmember without permission from the Association office.

RULE 8.2 Use of Membership Logo. ABHA members may use the membership logo, a copy of which is available from the Association office.