Animal ID (aka. Animal Identification, Animal Validation) allows fairs to collect animal information regarding the animals that their exhibitors may bring to the fair far in advance of opening the program for entry registration. Exhibitors may add as many animals as they anticipate will be eligible to register for the fair.
For fairs that use 4-H Online for their Animal ID process for 4-H members, the Animal ID option in FairEntry can allow non 4-H members (FFA, for example) to identify their animals with the same sort of process that 4-H members use in 4-H Online.
If you have dual-enrolled members (4-H and FFA) and they may have 4-H animals identified in 4-H Online, but need to identify their FFA animals in FairEntry, import your 4-H Online members BEFORE opening Animal ID. Notify your members (and hope they read) that they should also login to FairEntry using their 4H Online login, BUT ONLY identify their FFA animals in FairEntry. This will allow them to use one exhibitor account for all entries.
IDEA: There is no opportunity to add on-screen instructions (Content Block) for Animal ID. You might wish to use the Welcome Message (Setup>>Fair Details) to give your exhibitors basic information, (example) if you only need FFA animals identified, not the ones that are already identified in 4-H Online. Mostly, people don't read, but you might help a few of them do the right thing! You can change the Welcome Message to something else when you being the Entry process.
- If you want to make sure that your 4-H members do not identify their animals in FairEntry (all animals must be entered in 4-H Online), you could choose to import your 4-H Online members after Animal ID is closed, before entry registration begins. HOWEVER, that will be problematic for dual-enrolled members--they will have 2 exhibitor records: one for their FFA animals and one for 4-H. They will have to log in with the two different exhibitor accounts when making entries--one account for 4-H animal entries, and another for FFA animal entries. That will likely result in confusion and phone calls.
- Note: If your 4-H members DO NOT identify their animals in 4-H Online, import the members before you open Animal ID.
As the entry registration process begins, Fair Managers can choose whether exhibitors can only select from previously identified animals, or can also add new animals at entry time. Additionally, Fair Managers can view/search the identified animals, as well as download an Excel file of the identified animals.
PLEASE NOTE:
- The Standard Animals report "Animals by Animal Type" will not download correctly for you unless your animal types are linked to their divisions.
- Only animals types that are linked to their divisions will be available for Animal ID.
- You cannot create a custom report of identified animals that have not been used on entries yet, because custom reports are linked to entries.
See the video and help sheets attached below for more details. Note: the help sheet for exhibitors can be edited to provide information specific to your fair, and provided to families for their use in the process.
IMPORTANT: The dates for Animal ID and Entry Registration cannot coincide or overlap. The Animal ID dates must end before the fair begins taking entries. During the entry process, exhibitors can still add additional animal information to their entries, using either the animals previously identified or new ones, depending on the entry settings selected by the Fair Manager.