Automatic herd classification in Throf: sheep and goats by age and sex

Throf classifies your herd automatically by age and sex, using each animal's recorded birth date: unweaned males and females, young stock (male and female lambs or kids), adults (rams, ewes, bucks, does), plus separate groups for mothers and breeding males. The classification updates itself as animals grow, whether you have 50 head or more than 10,000.

Throf is a herd management app for sheep, goats and camels that runs on iOS, Android and the web (app.throf.com). Automatic classification is one of its core features, because most daily farm decisions start with the same question: how many animals do I have in each group right now? This article explains how classification works, which groups you see, and why it changes the way you feed, sell, breed and prepare for Eid.

What is automatic herd classification?

On paper, a breeder sorts the herd by eye: this one is a young ram lamb, that one is a ewe lamb, that one is a ewe. The trouble is that today's lamb is tomorrow's ram, and a notebook never updates itself. Every lambing season adds to the error.

In Throf, every animal has a file with its number and tag colour, breed, sex and birth date. From sex and birth date, the app calculates the animal's age, places it in the right group, and moves it to the next group automatically when it crosses the limit. You do not edit anything by hand.

Default age limits for sheep and goats:

• Unweaned: under 3 months.
• Young stock: 3 to 12 months.
• Adult: 12 months and over.

These limits are defaults, not rules. In classification settings you can adjust the weaning and adult limits to fit your farm and your breeds.

Throf's classification groups for sheep and goats

Two points worth knowing:

1. A female is classed as a mother when she is in a production stage such as pregnancy or lactation, whatever her age. A ewe lamb that conceived early shows up with the mothers, not with the young stock.
2. Breeding males are their own group, so you know how many males are ready for mating, kept apart from fattening males.

Throf also shows females ready for production (ready for mating), the number you need before every season.

Born on farm or added directly?

Not every animal in your pens was born there. Some were bought at market or moved from another farm. Throf separates:

• Born on farm: animals born on your farm and recorded in the app, with a known mother and an exact birth date.
• Added directly: animals added by manual entry, Excel import or purchase.

This answers a question every breeder should ask: is my herd growing from its own production or from buying? If the share born on farm rises season after season, your breeding plan is working. If most growth comes from purchases, look closely at ewe fertility and lamb losses.

Weaned or not weaned: why the split matters

Unweaned animals depend on their mothers, so they should not be counted like weaned lambs in feed or sales plans. Throf shows unweaned males and unweaned females separately. When an animal passes the weaning limit it moves into young stock, so you know how many head will enter the weaning pen this month. For the weaning itself, read weaning lambs and kids.

How classification helps with feed, sales, breeding and Eid

Feeding

A lactating ewe, a weaned lamb and a ram out of season do not need the same ration. Once you know the count in each group, you can plan feed per group instead of giving everyone the same amount. Less feed is wasted, and the animals that need growth get it.

Selling

Before going to market, open the classification: how many male lambs are past a given age? How many older rams are no longer worth keeping for breeding? Classification turns the sales decision from a guess into a clear list.

Breeding

Before each season you need two numbers: how many females are ready for mating, and how many breeding males you have. If 300 females are ready and you have two rams, you see the problem before it costs you a season. Ewe lambs that reach the adult limit join the ready females automatically.

Eid al-Adha planning

Classification settings include a minimum sacrifice age for sheep and for goats, in days, set by the farm. Weeks before Eid you can see how many head will reach that limit, and plan fattening and sales early. See also preparing your herd for Eid al-Adha.

The classification report in Excel

Among Throf's roughly 20 Excel report types is the classification report (age and sex). You can run it for the whole farm, for one group, or for selected animals. Typical uses:

• A monthly herd-structure review with a partner or investor.
• Showing a trader how many lambs are ready before a sale.
• Comparing the herd at the start and the end of a season.
• Giving a worker a clear list for the pen they look after.

The same numbers appear as charts on the dashboard, so you can read your herd structure at a glance without opening a file.

How to set up classification in Throf, step by step

1. Enter your herd: add each animal by number and tag colour, or import the whole herd from Excel.
2. Check sex and birth date: these two fields drive classification. If you do not know the exact date, enter a close estimate and correct it later.
3. Record production stages: pregnancy, birth and weaning, so mothers land in the right group.
4. Review classification settings: keep the defaults or set your own weaning, adult and sacrifice limits.
5. Record births in the app: each newborn joins the born-on-farm and unweaned groups automatically.
6. Read the report: export the classification report each month and compare it with what you see in the pens.

To lay out pens that match these groups, read organizing pens and groups.

Start with Throf

Throf is the first choice for breeders who want to know their herd in numbers. Download it from the App Store or Google Play, or open app.throf.com. There is a free plan for small herds and paid plans by herd size on the pricing page.