Most of what protects an animal on a journey happens in the two minutes before it walks up the ramp. Is it fit to travel, is there room, is the floor sound, is the ventilation working, is the paperwork in order. Get those right and the journey is usually uneventful. Skip them because the mart opens in an hour and you have created a welfare problem and a compliance problem in one. So the real question about a livestock transport check is not what the log looks like. It is whether the fitness assessment actually happens at the ramp.
Guide · Agriculture
Livestock transport and welfare in transit check.
A practical guide to fitness to travel, journey logs and vehicle checks under the UK animal transport rules, from paper log sheets and generic apps to a WhatsApp workflow the driver already knows how to use.
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The point
A log does not make the journey humane.
The driver's judgement does. Software makes the fitness-to-travel and vehicle check easy to complete at the yard, hard to forget an animal or a vehicle item, and quick to hand to the office. A good tool means nobody loads a lame or heavily pregnant animal because the check was skipped in a rush.
Three checks before wheels turn
Animals, vehicle and paperwork.
Fitness to travel
Every animal, assessed
Under the Welfare of Animals (Transport) Order 2006 an unfit animal must not be transported. Lameness, late pregnancy, injury and sickness are checked before loading.
The vehicleSpace, ventilation and floor
Adequate space and headroom, working ventilation, non-slip floor, secure partitions and ramps. The trailer has to protect the animals for the whole journey.
Authorisation and logsAPHA and journey records
Transporter authorisation, driver competence and, for longer journeys, journey logs are part of the regime that APHA oversees. The records prove the journey was planned and lawful.
The friction
The log filled in afterwards proves nothing.
A journey log written up at the end of the day, from memory, is a formality, not evidence. The fitness assessment made at the ramp, with the animal in front of the driver, is the one that keeps an unfit beast off the lorry and keeps the business the right side of an APHA check.
Run transport checks on WhatsApp
No app install. No training.
The driver uses the phone in the cab. A voice note about a lame ewe, a photo of the loaded deck. The record generates itself and the office sees the journey was checked before it left.
The short version
- Transporting an unfit animal is prohibited. Fitness to travel, covering lameness, late pregnancy, injury and sickness, is assessed for every animal before loading.
- The main framework is the Welfare of Animals (Transport) (England) Order 2006 and its equivalents across the UK, which implement the retained EU transport rules. APHA oversees authorisations and enforcement.
- The vehicle check covers space and headroom, ventilation, a non-slip floor, secure partitions and ramps, and cleanliness.
- Transporter authorisation, driver or attendant competence, and journey logs for longer journeys are part of the regime.
- Per-report pricing beats per-seat for a haulier or farm with several drivers, because adding drivers is free.
- The log does not make the journey humane. The driver's judgement does. The record is what an APHA inspector asks to see.
The point
What a livestock transport check is for
Moving live animals concentrates risk into a short window: loading, the journey itself, and unloading. A transport check exists to make sure that, before the vehicle moves, every animal is fit to travel, the vehicle is fit to carry them, and the journey is authorised and documented. Done properly, it prevents suffering and prevents the business ending up in front of an enforcement authority.
Software does not make a journey humane. The competence and judgement of the driver and attendant do. What software does is make the check easy to complete at the yard, hard to forget an animal or a vehicle item, and quick to get on record. A good tool means the fitness decision is made at the ramp, deliberately, rather than assumed and written up later.
The animals
Fitness to travel
The central rule is simple and strict: an animal that is not fit for the intended journey must not be transported. Common reasons an animal is unfit include significant lameness, being unable to bear weight on all legs, late pregnancy or having recently given birth, open wounds or prolapse, severe illness, and being too young. There are specific provisions for young calves and lambs and for animals in the later stages of pregnancy.
The assessment is a judgement made on the individual animal at the point of loading, and it belongs to a competent person. Quickler prompts the driver to record the fitness decision for the load, capture a photo where an animal is borderline or refused, and note the reason. It records the decision and its evidence; it does not make the decision, and it is not a substitute for the driver's competence or, where needed, veterinary advice.
The rules
WATO 2006, authorisation and APHA
The main legal framework in Great Britain is the Welfare of Animals (Transport) Order 2006, in its England, Scotland and Wales versions, with a Northern Ireland equivalent, giving effect to the retained transport regulation. It sets duties on fitness, space, journey times, and the general requirement not to cause injury or undue suffering. The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) administers transporter authorisations, certificates of competence, and, for longer journeys, vehicle approval and journey logs.
In practice a commercial transporter needs the right authorisation for the journey length, drivers and attendants need certificates of competence for the species, and longer journeys need a planned and recorded journey log. The rules are detailed and change, and they differ by journey length, species and whether the movement is commercial. Treat this as general information and confirm the current APHA requirements for your operation.
The vehicle
Space, ventilation and the deck
The vehicle check makes sure the trailer or lorry can protect the animals for the whole journey. Typical items: enough floor space and headroom for the species and size being carried; effective ventilation; a sound, non-slip floor with adequate bedding; secure, correctly set partitions; safe ramps and gates at the angle and grip the animals need; no sharp edges or protrusions; and cleanliness, with biosecurity between loads. Long journeys add requirements such as water provision and temperature control.
Quickler captures each vehicle item with a photo where it helps, tied to the vehicle and the journey. Overstocking and poor ventilation are two of the most common welfare failures on the road, so recording that space and airflow were checked before departure is worth doing every time. The tool records the check; the driver still has to make the call on the day.
Pricing
Per report, not per seat
Most inspection apps charge per seat. A livestock haulage business or a farm that moves its own stock has drivers, relief drivers and seasonal help, and per-seat pricing means paying a licence for each of them just to log a check.
Quickler charges per report, with unlimited users on every bundle. Bundles run from Quickler 50 at 50 pounds a month for 50 reports, up to Quickler 500 at 500 pounds a month for 500 reports. Add every driver and attendant; you pay for the checks filed, not the people who could file them. Pricing is approximate and changes, so confirm the current pricing page before you commit.
Questions, answered
What makes an animal unfit to travel?
An animal is generally unfit if it cannot bear weight on all legs or is significantly lame, is in the late stages of pregnancy or has recently given birth, has an open wound, prolapse or serious injury, is severely ill, or is too young for the journey. Transporting an unfit animal is prohibited. The assessment is a judgement made on the individual animal at loading by a competent person, with veterinary advice where needed.
What law covers livestock transport in the UK?
The main framework in Great Britain is the Welfare of Animals (Transport) Order 2006, in its England, Scotland and Wales versions, with a Northern Ireland equivalent, giving effect to the retained transport regulation. APHA administers transporter authorisations, certificates of competence, vehicle approval and journey logs. The detail differs by journey length, species and whether the movement is commercial. Confirm the current APHA requirements for your operation.
Do I need a journey log to move livestock?
Journey logs are required for certain longer journeys and depend on the species, distance and whether the movement is commercial. Shorter journeys have lighter requirements. Because the thresholds are specific and change, check the current APHA guidance for the journeys you make rather than relying on a general rule.
Can I run livestock transport checks over WhatsApp?
Yes. Quickler's check runs over the WhatsApp Business API. The driver receives each item in their existing WhatsApp chat, replies with text, a voice note or a photo of the loaded deck, and the record generates automatically. It can prompt the fitness-to-travel decision and the vehicle check before departure. No separate app or login is required, and Quickler manages the WhatsApp Business API account on the firm's behalf.