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Agistment provides a wide range of alternatives both for stock and
property owner's, however before entering into any arrangement its
important that all parties are understand their responsibilities and
rights. New South Wales and Victorian Governments provide a number
of interesting articles dealing with this subject.
Agistment is a feeding option available when feed is short on the
home property. It may be taken up when the economics of hand feeding
(with associated labour involvement) are judged more expensive.
Long-term returns, often overlooked in initial calculations, may
favour good agistment over the maintenance feeding of stock during
prolonged dry spells. New South Wales Department of Primary
Industries have published
Agistment Guidelines a variety of issues relating to agistment.
The Department of
Primary Industries Victoria provide advice on
Contracts for Agistment of Stock including aspects of
consideration from both parties.
We offer a range of
services tailored to meet the individuals requirements you can use
the links below to inquire.
Responsibilities
The agistment contract should describe the responsibilities of the
livestock owner and the agistor. It should also set out procedures
for dealing with problems which could arise.
Although an experienced legal adviser should prepare the agistment
contract, you need to provide this adviser with relevant information
about your requirements.
Livestock owners are normally responsible for:-
- paying all costs
for care of their stock;
- informing agistors
of diseases affecting their stock, and treatment required;
- insurance for
their stock, and against any damage they may cause;
- checking stock
routinely to ensure conditions of the agreement are being met;
and
- ensuring that the
agistor can contact the owner or owner's representative in an
emergency.
Agistors are usually
responsible for:-
- advising owners if
for any reason, the site becomes unsuitable for agistment eg if
dams are contaminated with blue-green algae, or diseased stock
are present;
- advising owners of
disease, accident or injury to stock (but would not be liable
unless this was due to negligence);
- sending invoices
and a final notice of the planned sale of their stock to recover
costs;
- allowing the owner
access to records of agistment costs and proceeds from the sale
of stock for a set period, and any money left over after
deducting agistment costs.
Agistors may require:-
- a lien over the
stock until the agistment debt is paid;
- power of attorney
concerning the stock and progeny so that the agistor has the
power to sell the stock after all reasonable efforts have been
made to obtain outstanding agistment payment from the owner;
- indemnity from the
owner signing the contract, for agreed costs eg veterinary
costs;
- the stock owner to
be liable for any residual debt not covered by the sale; and
- the right to
update stud books so that thoroughbreds can be sold at true
value.
- The following may
be set out in a contract to protect owners against wrongful sale
of the stock:-
- minimum period
that the debt may remain outstanding before the stock are sold;
- payment of a
specified proportion of debt to postpone the sale of stock for a
specified period;
- notice of public
auction of the stock to be advertised in a specified newspaper.
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