Frequently Asked Questions

About EasyKeeper

What is EasyKeeper?

EasyKeeper is a web-based comprehensive herd management application designed by goat breeders for goat breeders.

Who should use EasyKeeper?

Anybody who raises goats should use EasyKeeper for their goat herd management needs. It supports both registered and unregistered goats, including dairy goats, meat goats, fiber goats, miniature and specialty breeds.

EasyKeeper's display formats support registration numbers from all goat breed registries, including, but not limited to, the American Dairy Goat Association (ADGA), American Goat Society (AGS), American Boer Goat Association (ABGA) and the Canadian Goat Society (CGS).

How much does it cost?

As the core functionality is still under development, there is currently no charge to use EasyKeeper. Once the basic feature set is complete there will be a small monthly subscription fee for the basic plan; premium features will be additional.

What are the minimum system requirements?

EasyKeeper does not install any software on your computer so it works with most operating systems including Microsoft Windows XP and higher, and Linux. Supported browsers include Internet Explorer 7+ and Firefox 2+.

Although EasyKeeper will run fine with a dial-up modem, we recommend a broadband internet connection, such as DSL or high-speed cable model, for the most optimal performance and best user experience.

Is my animal data private?

The management records you enter into your herd management interface will only be viewable to the users of your account. In the future you may choose to make some information you've entered available on your herd website and online sales list. This could include information such as show winnings, photos and meat production records, the display of which is solely at your discretion.

EasyKeeper subscribers will have access to publicly-available information for your animals. This includes name, registration number and milk records as provided by the Dairy Herd Improvement Registry (DHIR) via the Animal Improvement Programs Laboratory (AIPL) database.

Creating a Member Account

Why do you ask for member names?

We ask for you to add the names of the people who are breeding under your herd name to associate with their specific animals. Enter the names as the members are registered with your respective breed registry (for example, at Coastside Dairy Goats we had three members, Jean Harrison, Peggy Harrison and The Harrison Family). While it is not required, doing this now while you set up your animal profiles will help after we've released some future features.

What does my EasyKeeper license provide?

The EasyKeeper license associated with your Member Account allows you and/or your designated agents to create, access and edit the herd and animal data for one farming operation; You may hold multiple licenses for multiple farming operations, however each is required to have its own Member Account.

Adding Animal Profiles

How do I add animals to my herd management site?

You can add an animal, also known as creating a profile, several ways:

• If you have dairy goats, you can enter your DHIR herd id during the sign up process, or by going to My Herd > Add Animal and selecting the Import animals function. EasyKeeper will import animals associated with that id from the Animal Improvement Program's database. You can select which animals to add to your herd management site from the results, and add any that may not be included via the Search or Manually Add functions later.
• Go to My Herd > Add Animal and select Search for animals. Enter all or part of your animal's name, or registration number. Select your animal from the list of results. If your animal is not included in the results, enter it manually.
• Go to My Herd > Add Animal and select Manually add animals. Enter the animal's information. If the animal already exists in the system you will be directed to enter it via the Search function.

Do I have to create a profile for my animal?

Yes, the profile is the main record for your animal, to which you will add all their other data.

What does the term “Search” mean?

Searching is the first step most EasyKeeper users will take when adding animals to their herd management site. Because we use a global database, when you search on an animal you are checking to see if the animal you want to add is already in the system. That way you can link to the global record to create your animal's profile.

Because EasyKeeper is built on community-generated content, a record of your animal may already exist in the system even though you haven't added it because some else entered an animal that has yours in its pedigree or it is in the Animal Improvement Program's database.

How do I search for my animals in the system?

You can search on the animal's full name, part of the name, or the registration number. As we can't support search terms with special characters due to limitations with the Animal Improvement Program's database, using the searching on the registration number is often the best way to go.

Why should I import my animals from DHIR?

Herds with dairy goats will speed up the animal setup process by importing their animals' information directly from the the USDA's Animal Improvement Program database. Even though their animals may not be enrolled in DHIR testing, AIPL may have information on these animals. Animals added this way will enjoy extended pedigree displays and milk records import.

Will all of my animals be returned when I import using my DHIR herd id?

Animals that are associated with your DHIR herd id in the Animal Improvement Program's database will be returned when you import. Consequently, some animals may not be returned, such as kids and bucks without offspring. Additionally, you may see animals you have sold or are deceased on the search results. You can select animals from the results to add to your herd, and we recommend that you review your records and add any others that might have been missed once you've completed the import.

Can I import animals from multiple herds?

Each herd should have its own EasyKeeper account, however, if you have multiple herd ids within your herd you can import animals from all of your herd ids.

How do I avoid duplicate records for animals?

When you add an animal to your herd management site or to a pedigree, EasyKeeper will check to see if there is a already a record for that animal in the system. If there is, you will be directed to add your animal in such a way that it links to the global record for that animal. If it does not exist you can add the profile.

When importing, EasyKeeper will notify you in the search results if any animals in the list are already added to your herd.

I got a duplicate record, how'd that happen?

A known issue is there is no duplicate checking on animal names with special characters, thus allowing duplicates to be entered. We are currently working to resolve this issue, but in the meantime you can avoid this problem by adding your animals using their registration number as the search term.

Why does it sometimes take a while to run a search?

It sometimes takes a while to run a search due to traffic or other conditions effecting the Animal Improvement Program's database. While it may at times be an inconvenience, we feel the benefits of getting this data far outweigh the drawbacks. We are working to create the relationships that may help improve this area of the application.

Why do you ask for source?

The source allows us to set the animal's initial status.

What source should I use for kids born to animals I am boarding in my herd?

You should use the Boarded In source for kids born to animals you are boarding. Using the Born into my Herd source will erroneously include these animals in your herd's kid production reports.

What source should I use for kids born to my animals that are boarded out?

You should use the Born into my Herd source for kids born to all your animals, whether they are physically in your herd or not. This will ensure their inclusion in your herd's kid production reports.

Why do you ask for a Breed Registry when I add animals manually?

When you manually add an animal with a registration or identification number we ask for its breed registry to support a later feature of syncing EasyKeeper directly with the breed registry to pull down data such as championship indicators and production awards.

Why do you ask for owner names?

We ask for you to indicate the owner('s) names for each animal to support some features we are planning for in the future. Enter the names of the owners as they are registered with your respective breed registry (for example, at Coastside Dairy Goats we had three ADGA members breeding under that herd name, and any combination of those three may have owned a specific animal).

When adding animals you are leasing or boarding, we ask for the owner('s) names so you can track lease and board histories for specific individuals and herds.

While it is not required at this time, entering this information now will come in handy down the road.

Managing Animal Profiles

Can I delete profile?

You cannot delete an animal profile from your herd, however you can archive its profile by entering a status change when the animal is no longer in your herd.

What does archiving a profile do?

Archiving a profile by entering a status change adds a special designation to the profile that controls its display within the animal management interface. For example, animals that are leased or boarded out, have been sold, slaughtered, culled or are deceased do not display in the scrollable herd list at the left side of the management interface, planning guides and bulk data entry forms.

Can I access archived profiles?

Yes. All archived profiles are available via the Search animals function above the the scrollable herd list at the left side of the management interface. Start typing in the animal's registered or nick name and choose the one you're looking for from the search results.

Additionally, archived profiles can be accessed from the Herd Views correlating with the animal's past and present statuses.

Do I lose the records related to an animal that has been archived?

No, all the data you've entered into these profiles is maintained, and will be included in reports and other aggregated information as applicable.

Can I reactivate an archived profile?

A profile can be reactivated if it is in any inactive status other than Deceased, Slaughtered or Culled (Destroyed). Examples of when you would want to reactivate a profile are:

• You have purchased an animal you have previously sold.
• You have purchased an animal you are currently or previously leasing or boarding in.
• An animal you were leasing out has been returned to your herd.
• An animal you were boarding out has been returned to your herd.

Managing Profile Data

Why isn't the owner information showing in my animal's profile page?

The owner information on the profile is pulled from the information you entered as part of the animal's status. If there is no information displaying on the profile page that means you did not enter it when creating the profile or making the last status change.

To add this information, go to the animal's Status page and click the edit icon next to the appropriate status entry and add the owner information into the form.

How do I indicate an animal is a wether?

When adding a Profile for a wethered animal, select Male from the gender drop down and check the Castrate check box. You can do this for animals added manually and from the add by search/lookup functions.

If the animal has a Profile, edit the Profile page and check the Castrated check box.

The animal's gender will display as Wether on its Profile and in Herd Views.

Herd Management

What is the Herd Management Dashboard?

The Herd Management Dashboard is the herd's information center. It is divided into two parts:

• Reminders section, including reminders for health and maintenance tasks such as vaccinations and hoof trimming, and events and appointments such as animals due to be returned from lease and boarding. Because this is dynamic data, Reminders update continually.
• EasyKeeper Updates section, displays information about new features that have been released, site maintenance windows and other useful notices.

How do I go to my animals' profiles?

There are several ways to access your animal profiles in the My Herd section:

• Scrollable herd list. To find an animal that is physically in your herd, click on the animal's name in the scrollable herd list at the left side of the management interface. This list is alphabetical by nickname and displays all animals with an active profile status, including animals currently leased and boarded into your herd.
  Because they are not physically present in your herd, animals in Leased Out and Boarded Out statuses do not display in the scrollable herd list.
• Search animals. Start typing the animal's name in the search animals field above the scrollable herd list on the left hand navigation. This will start returning animal names as you type and narrow down the results as you go. The search results display all profiles regardless of status.
• Herd Views. Click on the animal's name in the Herd Views.
• Reminders on Dashboard. Click on the animal's name from a reminder in the Dashboard.

Do I have to enter data for every animal, every time?

No, EasyKeeper was designed with the goal that a user would only ever have to enter a piece of information once. This not only helps make your herd record keeping quick and easy, but it allows for data consistency. EasyKeeper does this several ways including making the information you've entered available via an auto-suggestion the next time you need it, and by applying data you've entered in one profile to all animals in your herd as appropriate.

What information is available in the global database?

Non-sensitive data entered by users, such as medication names, health maintenance activities, and judge's names is made available for the benefit of the entire EasyKeeper community. Once someone enters this information, it is included in the auto-suggestion for all EasyKeeper users.

Global data includes the public information on animals that have been entered with a registration number. Public information includes name, registration number, sex, date of birth, show award and production designators. Users of the Easykeeper application link to these records when they are adding animals to their herd management site and entering pedigrees. In addition to making it faster to set up profiles, the benefits of having global records will include progeny lists and access to DHIR milk records for animals in your goats' family trees.

What if my animals don't have registration numbers?

Animals that are entered without a registration number are not accessible for others to link to via the global database. However, they are stored at the herd level, and linkable to by animals within the user's herd.

What if I add a registration number later?

Once you add a registration number to your animal, is becomes visible in the global database for all users to link to. This is especially important for animals that will be registered in the future, or are pending assignment of a registration number.

Health Events

What are health events?

Heath events are anything that occurs around the health management of your animal. This includes vaccinations, administration of medication and supplements, parasite control, records of illness or injury, records of health tests and routine maintenance such as hoof trimming. You can consider a health event to be an action you have taken, or a task that has been completed.

How do I add a record of a completed health event?

The method of adding a record of a completed health event depends on whether it was an action that was not scheduled in EasyKeeper, or as a result of a scheduled task:

• If the health event you would like to record is the result of an unscheduled action, go to the animal's Health tab and select the appropriate section. Click on the Record New Event button and complete the information. The record will be stored in the animal's Health History.
• If it the health event is the completion of a task in a reminder, go to the animal's Health tab and select the appropriate section. Click the green check mark next to the appropriate reminder and complete the information. The record will be stored in the animal's Health History and a new reminder will be set based on the recurrence you entered when you set up the series.

Will entering a Castration event update the Profile gender to Wether?

At this time, entering a castration event in the maintenance section of the Health module will not update the animal's gender in the Profile to wether status. However, updates to the Health module planned for the near future will enable this function. Any animals that have previous castration events entered will automatically be updated.

Health Reminders

How do I set up a reminder, or series of reminders?

There are two ways to set up a reminder or reminder series from the animal's Health tab: Adding a reminder while recording an unscheduled health event, and creating a new reminder for the future.

• To create a reminder while recording an unscheduled health event, check Add a reminder for future occurrences of this event when entering the completed action, and complete the recurrence information. This will set up a reminder series.
• To create a reminder unassociated with a completed health event, click the New Reminder button in the appropriate section and complete the information. If you do not enter any recurrence information, it will create a one-time reminder; completing the recurrence information will set up a reminder series.

How do the recurring reminders work?

Once you have set up a recurring reminder, you will be notified when the next installment is due. When you complete the task, click on the green check mark next to the reminder and complete the information. This action records the completion of the task, and automatically schedules the next reminder in the series.

What happens if I complete a task earlier or later than scheduled?

If you have a reminder series set up and complete the task ahead of, or later than, the scheduled due date, the next reminder will be calculated from the day you completed the task, not the original reminder date.

Can I change a reminder?

You can change all information on a reminder except the drug Brand/Type, Activity and Health Test type. To change a reminder, go to the Health tab and click the pencil icon associated with the reminder. Helpful Hint: If you change the recurrence, change the next due on date if you want the change to take effect for the next scheduled event, otherwise the change will take effect when scheduling the following reminder.

I switched medications. Can I change the existing reminder for the same treatment?

No, you will need to end the old series and create a new series using the new drug Brand/Type.

Helpful Hint: If the new drug has the same recurrence as the old one, note the next due date on the old reminder before deleting it and use it as the next due date for the new reminder.

Can I accidentally create duplicate reminders?

We have put safeguards in place to help identify situations where you may be entering a duplicate reminder. This is only an aid and should not be relied upon as your only means of verifying medical treatments; you should review your animal's health history before administering health treatments or creating reminders to ensure the you are properly structuring its medical treatments.

Can I cancel a reminder or reminder series?

Yes, to cancel a reminder go to the Health tab, click on the red X associated with the reminder. Cancelling the reminder deletes any future occurrences of that reminder event.

Why in my time zone important to reminders?

The “past due”, “due today” and “due tomorrow” displays for reminders are triggered from your time zone setting, so you'll want to have your time zone set for wherever your herd is physically located.

Notes

How do I add a note for an animal?

You can enter a note from the Add Note button on any of the pages within the animal's profile, or go to the NoteBook tab.

Where can I view my Notes?

All of the Notes you've entered in an animal's profile are compiled and displayed in the NoteBook.

Photos

How do I add a photo?

To upload a photo, go to the Photos tab, click the Add Photo button and browse to the photo you want to upload. Be sure to add descriptive content to help you find it later!

How many photos can I add?

Right now we allow an unlimited number of photos. In the future, depending our our data storage capabilities, we may limit the number of photos users can upload.

What are the file limitations for uploading photos?

You can upload a PNG, GIF, or JPG/JPEG file. File size limit is 2 MB.

Animal Status

What is a status?

The status is your animal's past and present relationship with your herd, and a cornerstone of many of EasyKeeper's functions. Status settings allow you to track:

• Ownership information such as purchases and sales.
• Income and expenses related to purchase and sales.
• Herd absences including leasing and boarding out periods.
• Culling means, methods and reasons.
• Meat production statistics.
• Animals currently and previously in your herd for lease or boarding.
• Dates and causes of death.
• Contacts related to your purchase, sales, lease and boarding activities.
• Reminders for important events such as lease and boarding ending dates.
• Herd List View(s) based on combinations of status and source.

Additionally, the status serves as an archive function for animals that are no longer in your herd by removing them from the scrollable herd list in the animal management interface.

What is the source?

The source answers the question, “How do this animal come to be in my herd?”. When initially adding your animal's profile, you will be asked to select its source; Born into your herd, Purchased, Leased In, and Boarded In. From this input, the animal's initial status will be set.

Do my animals have to have a status?

Entry of the source is required to create an animal profile but there is no requirement to record status change events afterward. However, the status data you enter drives a lot of the other EasyKeeper functionalities. In addition to more complete record keeping, you'll want to enter your animal's status updates to:

• Have your animals properly categorized in reports.
• Remove inactive animals from the scrollable herd list at the left side of your management interface.
• Receive reminders when lease and boarding periods near expiration.
• Track important income and expense data.
• Chronicle patterns of desirable and undesirable traits for breeding plan decisions.
• Build your Contact List for sales and marketing efforts.

Can an animal be in multiple statuses at the same time?

Yes, when an animal is in a lease status it can also have a boarding status if the leaser is the originator of the boarding event. These circumstances include:

• You are leasing an animal from someone and board it out for a period of time (including with the person you are leasing it from).
• You are leasing an animal to someone else and they return it to you for boarding for a period of time.
  In either of these cases, when you enter a End Lease status change it automatically ends the boarding period and updates the animal's status accordingly.

How do I update the status on an animal?

You can enter a status update from the Update Status button on any of the pages within the animal's profile, or go to the Status page.

Animals in Unknown status can also be updated directly from the Unknown Status Herd View.

Where do I view an animal's status and status history?

All of the status entries you've entered in an animal's profile are compiled and displayed on the Status page.

The animal's current status is also displayed on the Profile page.

What is an Unknown status and what should I do about it?

An Unknown status is assigned to an animal when there is no current status assigned. This primarily occurs when a user has deleted all of the animal's status entries.

From the animal's profile, click on the Update Status button or go to the Status page to update the animal to a valid status.

My animal's status changed, can I just edit the existing status entry to the new status

No. You should always enter a new status when an animal's status changes. This allows for the previous status to be closed and properly reflected in reports and other functions.

How do I record back-to-back “away from my herd” statuses?

There are times when an animal will be in a status that has it away from your herd and it will change to another status away from your herd even though the animal never returning physically to your herd. In these cases, from a system perspective you'll need to return the animal to your herd and then add the new status for the same date. You may want to record in the notes that the animal was not physically returned. These cases include:

• Leased Out to Leased Out. To start a new lease with a new leaser, add an End Lease status change then a Leased Out status change.
• Leased Out to Boarded Out. To start a boarding period directly following a leasing out period, add an End Lease status change then a Boarded Out status change.
• Boarded Out to Leased Out. To start a lease period directly following a boarding out period, add an End Boarding status change then a Leased Out status change.
• Boarded Out to Boarded Out. To start a new boarding period with a new facility, add an End Board status change then a Boarded Out status change.

What status do I use for animals that I have given away or received for free?

Both of these cases should be handled as a sales transaction with a zero purchase price:

• When adding an animal you have been given to your herd, select the Purchased option, and record $0.00 as the purchase price.
• When changing the status on an animal you have given away, select the Sold option, and record $0.00 as the sale price.

How do I create “Lease ends” and “Boarding ends” reminders?

When adding the status update, complete the Date to be Returned field. This will prompt a reminder to start displaying on the Dashboard two weeks before the scheduled return date.

What's the difference between the Sold and Sold (Culled) statuses?

This distinction is really up to the individual herd to determine what works for them, and for reporting purposes that will work as long as the herd is consistent in how it makes its entries.

One defining line could be that animals that are culled by selling are those that are substandard, and are being sold without papers as family milkers, as pet wethers, or butcher animals, etc.

I made a mistake and put an animal in the wrong status. How do I correct that error?

The status type on an existing entry cannot be edited. To correct an error in the status type, find the status entry on the Status page and click the delete icon. Then enter the proper status update.

Why am I getting a message that my says the new status must be on or after the previous status change?

This message is advising that the status update you are trying to make pre-dates the current status entry. To ensure proper tracking of status flows, we've added some checks to be sure a user cannot accidentally enter an out-of-order status.

If you get this message, verify that you are entering the correct status event date. If it is correct, review the current status entry and correct any discrepancies in the dates before adding the new status update.

How do I update Contacts and other information associated with a status?

To update information on a status, including changing the status details and editing Contact information associated with entry, find the status entry on the Status page and click the edit icon.

Other than the status type, all information related to a status update is editable.

How do I remove a Contact from a status entry?

To remove a Contact from a change status event while adding the status update, click on the remove this contact link.

To remove a Contact for an existing event entry, go to the entry on the Status page and click the edit icon. Click on the remove this contact to remove the Contact from the transaction.

Removing a Contact from a animal's status transaction does not delete it from the Contact List or any other transactions it is associated with.

Contacts

What is a Contact?

A Contact is any person, herd or business you do business with or want to keep contact information on.

What is the Contact List?

The Contact List is the full list of all Contacts you have entered into EasyKeeper. Currently, the Contact List displays in the selection drop-down when adding an existing Contact to a status change event.

Is it important that I add the Contact(s) related to a status change?

Yes. Adding the Contact associated with a status change will allow you to track who you've sold and leased animals to, boarded with and for, and purchased and leased animals from, and prepare aggregated activity reports by Contact and for your herd.

How do I add a Contact to my Contact List?

Currently, Contacts can be added when entering or editing a status change event.

How do I edit a Contact's information?

You can edit an existing Contact's information while entering or editing a status change event by clicking on the edit this contact link. The changes you make will effect all references to this Contact throughout your herd.

Can I just change the name on an existing Contact to create a new Contact?

Editing an existing Contact will change the Contact's information but not its association with any existing status transactions. You should avoid doing this as it would then cause the transactions to be associated with an incorrect Contact.

Can I delete a Contact?

You cannot delete a Contact but you can remove its association with a status event.

To remove a Contact from a status event, go to the Status page and click the entry's edit icon. Click the remove this contact link to disassociate the Contact from the status entry.

What are EasyKeeper's plans for the Herd Contacts module?

We'll release a full Herd Contacts module shortly, including:

• Add, edit and delete actions.
• Associating several contact names with a single herd or business.
• Duplicate checking during Add Contact actions.
• Income and expense transaction reports by contact name, herd or business.

Herd Views

What are the Herd Views?

The Herd Views are reports based on your animal's source, past and present statuses. They provide a sortable look at a subset of your animals and include vital statistics related to the status entry.

Why I am getting different Herd Views than my friend?

Herd Views are directly related to the record keeping modules available in each EasyKeeper subscription plan. If you are viewing a different set of Herd View reports than your friend it is because you are subscribed to a different plan.

Account Management

How do I add or remove members from my herd?

To add members to your herd, go to My Account > Edit Account and click the Add another herd owner link.

Currently, you cannot remove a member from the member list.

How can I cancel my account?

Should you desire to cancel your account, go to My Account, then click the Cancel My Account link.

How do I log in?

To log in, click on the Log In link at the top right of the EasyKeeper website and it will open a Log In page. We recommend you bookmark this page for easy access.

How do I log out?

To log out, click on the Log Out link at the top right navigation of your herd management site. We recommend you log out once you are done using the application, especially if you are on a public computer. Additionally, you will automatically be logged out when you close your browser.

What do I do if I forgot my password?

If you have forgotten your password, click the Forgot Password link on the Log In page and complete the form. Since your password is encrypted, not even we can see it to send it to you, so you will be sent an email to the email address in your account with instructions on resetting your password.

What do I do if I forgot my user name?

If you have forgotten your user name, click the Forgot Password link on the Log In page and complete the form. The email you receive will have your user name included. You do not have to reset your password in this case.