For Veterinary Practitioners

Your signature.
Your authority. Protected.

Veterinarians are the gatekeepers of the livestock movement chain. Without a valid, signed VHC, nothing moves. Livestock OS gives you a digital workflow that matches your professional obligations — legally compliant under ECTA 2002, fully auditable, and designed to protect your authority at every step.

The VHC

What a Veterinary Health Certificate does in this system.

The VHC is not a formality. In Livestock OS, it is a hard gate. A batch cannot move from PENDING_VET to COMPLIANCE_CLEARED without a VHC that has been digitally signed by a registered veterinarian. The certificate must be active at the moment of gate arrival. The system checks it in real time — not on trust, not on a paper copy, but against the signed record in the chain.

What the VHC covers

Required content of every certificate

Physical inspection completed on the specific batch — not a general herd assessment
No clinical signs of notifiable disease observed at inspection
Animals in adequate body condition and fit for the intended journey
FMD zone clearance status confirmed (if applicable to origin location)
Species, count, and ear tag range covered by the certificate
Vet registration number, practice details, and digital signature
Exact date and time of signing (certificate validity begins here)

What your signature controls

Chain events that depend on your VHC

Batch status cannot advance to COMPLIANCE_CLEARED without VHC
Transport dispatch is blocked until VHC is on record
Gate operators verify VHC validity before any animal enters the facility
Feedlot pre-arrival notification includes your VHC reference and expiry time
Abattoir intake records your VHC alongside slaughter results
Disease tracing runs through your inspection record as the authoritative health confirmation

48h

The validity window — enforced, not suggested

Certificate validity rules are applied according to the relevant disease-control protocol, permit conditions, species, origin, destination and authorised veterinary requirements. If the certificate is no longer valid when transport is attempted, the batch reverts to PENDING_VET and a new inspection is required before movement is re-authorised. The system enforces this automatically. This protects you: your inspection applies to the animals at that point in time, and the chain record reflects that precisely. Current LIVESTOCK OS pilot workflow rule — subject to authorised regulatory confirmation.

Legal Foundation

Digital signing has full legal standing in South Africa.

Livestock OS records authenticated electronic approvals and timestamps for all VHC issuance. The legal status and required signature method for each certificate remain subject to the applicable legislation, permit conditions and acceptance by the relevant authority. Operators should confirm the accepted format for their specific permit and movement conditions with the relevant state veterinarian.

ECTA 2002 — Act 25 of 2002

Electronic Communications and Transactions Act

The Electronic Communications and Transactions Act 25 of 2002 (ECTA) provides a framework for electronic signatures in South Africa. Livestock OS records your authenticated electronic approval and timestamp as a compliance artefact. Whether the electronic record constitutes the legally required certificate for a specific movement is determined by the applicable regulations, permit conditions and the accepting authority. You should confirm the required format with the relevant state veterinarian for your specific movement and permit conditions.

How It Works

Your inspection workflow — step by step.

Livestock OS does not change what you do on farm. It digitises the record. You receive an inspection request, attend the farm, conduct your physical assessment, and sign the certificate in the system. The producer, transporter, gate, and abattoir all see the certified record immediately — without any follow-up calls, faxes, or paperwork.

Step 01

Receive request

Producer submits a batch inspection request. You receive it in your vet portal with batch details, farm location, and requested inspection window.

Step 02

Confirm appointment

Accept or propose an alternative time. The producer is notified. The batch remains in PENDING_VET until your inspection is confirmed.

Step 03

Conduct inspection

Attend the farm and carry out your physical assessment of the batch as registered — individual animals, breed, count, and clinical status.

Step 04

Sign the VHC

Open the batch on your vet portal (mobile-accessible), complete the certificate fields, and digitally sign. Certificate validity begins at this moment per the applicable disease-control protocol and permit conditions.

Step 05

Chain updates

The batch status advances to VET_APPROVED. The producer, transporter, and destination are notified. Your certificate is the authoritative record.

FMD Zone Protocols

Zone-specific requirements — enforced by location, not declaration.

South Africa's FMD control framework divides the country into disease-free, buffer, and protection zones — primarily around the Limpopo corridor. Livestock OS determines the zone status of a farm automatically from its registered GPS coordinates. When a batch originates from a farm in a controlled area, the system flags the additional clearance requirements before the batch can proceed. This affects your role and authority.

FMD Protection Zone

Movement of cloven-hoofed animals requires state veterinarian clearance — not private vet VHC alone. If you are a private vet in this zone, you may conduct the inspection, but a state vet must co-sign or issue the movement permit. Livestock OS flags this requirement automatically and prevents dispatch until state vet confirmation is recorded.

Buffer Zone

Your VHC is required, with explicit FMD zone clearance noted in the certificate. You must confirm the animals show no clinical signs consistent with FMD. Depending on the species and destination, additional declaration fields must be completed in your certificate. Livestock OS surfaces the required fields when you sign for a buffer zone batch.

Disease-Free Zone

Standard VHC requirements apply. Your inspection and digital signature are sufficient to advance the batch. The system still confirms that the destination is in an appropriate zone and that species-specific restrictions (tick control areas, etc.) are met — but no additional state vet involvement is required for standard movement.

Professional Protection

How Livestock OS protects your authority.

When you sign a VHC on paper, your signature is transferred to whoever holds the certificate. On Livestock OS, your signature is immutable and time-stamped in the chain record — no one can alter it, claim it was never issued, or present it for a different batch. The record is yours and it is permanent.

Immutable record. Once signed, your VHC cannot be edited. The batch, count, date, time, and your registration number are permanently fixed in the chain.

Certificate validity enforcement. Your inspection applies to the animals at that point in time. The system enforces the validity rules — you are not liable for what happens after the certificate is no longer valid.

No retroactive assignment. A VHC can only be signed for a batch that was created before the inspection. No one can retroactively attach your signature to a different batch.

Full audit trail. Every inspection request, confirmation, and signature is logged with timestamp. If a dispute arises, the record shows exactly what you were asked to inspect and when you signed.

What you can see in your vet portal

All inspection requests directed to your practice
Upcoming appointments with batch details and farm location
All VHCs you have signed, with current validity status
Which batches are currently in transit under your certificates
Gate clearance and abattoir intake results for your signed batches
Any disease event notifications affecting farms you have inspected
Your complete inspection history for audit and compliance purposes

Your practice. In the verified chain.