Brand Registration Information


Article Body

There are over 28,000 brands currently registered in South Dakota. Brands for cattle, horses, mules, buffalo (American Bison) and sheep are registered separately and a separate fee is required for each location on which a brand is registered.

 

Brand Locations

CattleLeft Shoulder (lshc),  Left Rib (lrc),  or Left Hip (lhc)   Right Shoulder (rshc), Right Rib (rrc) or Right Hip (rhc)
Horses/Mules  Left or Right Jaw, Shoulder or Hip    (ljh) (rjh) (lshh) (rshh) (lhh) (rhh)
BuffaloLeft or Right Hip
Sheep
Paint brands - Left or Right side or hip
Hot iron brands - nose or Left or Right Jaw 

 

Characters

  • Registered livestock brands in South Dakota must consist of two but not more than three letters, numbers or symbols.
  • Each Letter, Number or Symbol should be proportionate in size.
  • Only the vertical or horizontal positions of the following are acceptable for registration.
  • Tumbling characters are not allowed.

 

Brand Examples

Note: Symbols within a symbol cannot be registered as a livestock brand .   Example  ®   $

Capital print block letters of the alphabet, excluding the letter "Q". Letters may be lazy, reversed, or inverted. (See sample brands below)

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P R S T U V W X Y Z

Numbers two (2) through nine (9).


The following symbols:


Some Examples of various designs using the letters R and S are:

 

Fees

Brand Application$40.00Applications for livestock brands are researched and compared with other registered brands to avoid issuing a brand which is a duplicate of, or similar to, a previously registered brand. Applicants are notified of the results of the conflict check.
Brand Registration$50.00PLUS $18.00 for each year remaining in current brand renew period.
Brand Transfer$50.00This applies to any modification of the brand ownership as currently recorded. A transfer form is generated by the brand office. Please call the office when in need of a transfer.
Brand Renewal$90.00Occurs every five years. Which are years ending in a 0 or 5 such as 2025, 2030, 2035. All brands are subject to renewal between January 2 through May 1of the renewal year. To avoid cancellation, fees must be paid before May 1.

Brand
History

$20.00 per brandStarting March 1, 2009, the brand office will be charging $20 per brand for running a brand history and $1 per page for copies. If the history is extensive and takes over an hour to perform, $10 per hour will be charged for additional time over the first hour. Payment is required before history is delivered.