How To
How To:
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Shareholders
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Passports
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Change Of Ownership
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Duplicate Passports
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Naming An Animal
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Endorsement Of Passports
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Donkey Passports
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Microchips
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Prefix Registration
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Office Hours
Shareholders
Benefits of becoming a shareholder in the Irish Horse Board:
- Reduction of €30 on registration fees
- Publications free to paid up shareholders
- Ability to vote in elections
The cost of becoming a shareholder is €10 for the first year. The annual renewal fee is €25. If you wish to becoming a shareholder, please downlaod the application form and return it to the Irish Horse Board with the appropriate fee.
Passports
Under EU Legislation, all Equidae (i.e. horses, ponies, donkeys, zebras, etc.) being moved out of a holding must be accompanied by an identification document. Such movements include movement between premises, entering competitions and movement for the purposes of breeding, export and sale for slaughter. The Irish Horse Register is approved by the Department of Agriculture and Food to issue passports to equidae entering the Irish Sport Horse and the Irish Draught Horse Studbooks and equidae not eligible for entry into an approved Studbook.
Please note that payment for all applications sent to our Maynooth address must be received in euro. If you wish to pay in sterling, please contact the Northern Ireland Horse Board www.nihorseboard.org
Regsitration of Adult Animals
1. To register a horse without pedigree:
- Veterinary surgeon to complete the Irish Horse Register marking chart
- Return the marking chart to the Irish Horse Board with the fee of €35
- These animals will receive a white passport
2. To register a horse with full or partial pedigree:
- Contact Weatherbys Ireland (+353 45 879979) to order a DNA/Bloodtyping kit for parentage testing
- Applicants must send the results of the parentage test from Weatherbys to the IHB, along with the appropriate fee, a set of the original markings and a covering certificate from the stallion owner
- Please note that animals aged 2001 and upwards with full parentage must be microchipped
3. Fees:
| AGE OF ANIMAL | SHAREHOLDERS | NON-SHAREHOLDERS |
| 1 Year Old | €75 | €105 |
| 2 Year Old | €90 | €120 |
| 3 Year Old | €100 | €130 |
| 4 Year Old | €115 | €145 |
Registration of Foals
1. To register a foal without pedigree:
- Veterinary surgeon to complete the Irish Horse Register marking chart and insert a microchip into the foal
- Return the marking chart to the IHB with the fee of €50
- These animals will receive a white passport
2. To register a foal with full/partial pedigree:
- There are a few simple rules to follow for correct registration of foals with the Irish Horse Register. The five points listed below enable correct foal registration:
- The sire of the foal to be registered must be classified with the Irish Horse Register (ie. as an Approved, S1, S2, Supp1 or Supp 2 stallion). The dam must also be registered with the IHR
- A completed covering cert must be returned to the IHB from each stallion owner cotaining the correct registration number of the dam and the correct name and address of the mare owner
- A foal marking chart will then be sent to the registered owner of the dam with the name of the sire and the dam printed on the marking chart. Included with the marking chart will be two hair sample bags, one for the foal and one for the dam, in order to DNA type each animal. If the dam has previously been DNA typed, only one hair sample bag will be sent for the foal
- Microchipping and DNA typing are now a compulsory part of registration of foals. The foal must be microchipped and have a DNA (hair sample) taken when it is being marked by the vet. The microchips will already have been sent to veterinary surgeons paticipating in the scheme
- The completed foal marking chart should be returned to the Irish Horse Board or the Northern Ireland Horse Board with the correct fee. The DNA (hair sample) must be sent to the Weatherbys Ireland Blood/DNA Typing Laboratory. Confirmation of the foal's parentage by DNA typing will be sent to the IHB by Weatherbys and will appear on the foal's passport.
- Fees for foal registration:
- €50 for shareholders in the IHB who have paid their €10 joining fee or their €25 annual renewal fee
- €80 for non-shareholders
- Please note: The final date for receipt of foal marking charts is 31st October. Any marking charts received after that date will incur an extra fee of €15 per foal for November and December. All marking charts received after 31st December will be subject to a higher registration charge (ie. registration of the animal as a yearling)
- Common reasons for mare owners not receiving foal kits:
- No covering certificate returned to the IHB by the stallion owner or the incorrect covering cert returned
- Incorrect mare registration number listed on the covering cert
- Mare not registered prior to covering or having a foal a passport only (ie. not registered as an adult/named)
- Incorrect mare owner recorded or the ownership not changed by the current owner. Please note that foal kits will be sent to the person recorded on the IHR as being the owner of the mare/dam
Change Of Ownership
To change the ownership of an animal:
- Complete the Change Of Ownership Form
- Return the form with the horses passport to the IHB
- This service is free of charge
Duplicate Passports
If your passport has been lost, stolen or detroyed you may apply for a duplicate passport.
1. Animals with microchip details on their passport:
- Complete the Duplicate Passport Application Form
- Have the form signed and stamped by your vet
- A new marking chart is not required
- Return the form to the IHB with the fee of €35 (shareholders) or €65 (non-shareholders)
2. Animals that have not been microchipped:
- Complete the Duplicate Passport Application Form
- Have the form signed and stamped by your vet and have the animal re-marked
- Return the form to the IHB with the fee of €35 (shareholders) or €65 (non-shareholders)
Naming An Animal
Unless an animal has been registered with a prefix as a foal, they are only eligible to be named once they reach two years of age.
- Forward the passport to the IHB with a choice of four names (click here for the naming form)
- Fee of €20 (shareholders) or €50 (non-shareholders) applies
- If the animals markings differ from the foal passport markings, your vet will need to re-mark the animal and the new markings returned with the above items
Endorsement Of Passports
If you have a horse registered with another recognised studbook and with an adult passport from that studbook and you wish to have that horse registered in the Irish Horse Register for breeding or competition purposes, please send the passport to the IHB for endorsement. The animal will still retain the original studbook's passport but the passport will be endorsed with an Irish Horse Register registration number, which will be recorded on the IHR. A fee of €35 (shareholders) or €65 (non-shareholders) will apply.
Donkey Passports
To apply for a donkey passport:
- Veterinary surgeon to complete a marking chart and insert a microchip into the donkey
- To receive a donkey microchip complete the Donkey Microchip Form
- Return the marking chart to the IHB with the fee of €35 (includes cost of microchip)
Microchips
Microchips are available for purchase from the IHB for insertion into adult horses or donkeys.
- €15 per microchip
- To receive a microchip complete either the Adult Microchip Form or Donkey Microchip Form
- Microchips are issued free of charge for foals to be registered in the Irish Horse Register
Prefix Registration
The Irish Horse Register offers the facility to register a prefix with the Central Prefix Register:
- Fee of €50 applies
- The prefix should be a geographical name or a distinctive word or name
- A prefix may have a maximum of 20 letters
- Two word prefixes are not accepted
- Initials with a minimum of three letters are acceptable
- Breed names are not allowed
- Prefix forms are available upon request from the IHB
Office Hours
Open to the public:
9am to 12.30pm & 2pm to 4pm (Monday to Friday)
Closed for lunch:
12.30pm to 2pm
Telephone calls:
9am to 1pm & 2pm to 5pm (Monday to Friday)






