Track animals by count with count groups

Not every animal needs its own profile right away. A count group lets you track a flock, clutch, litter, batch, or pen by number today, then split it into individual profiles whenever you are ready. You still get records, cost tracking, and, if you want, a buyer-facing profile for the whole group.

When to use a count group

Reach for a count group when you manage animals as a batch and do not need to track them individually yet, like a clutch of chicks or a litter of pups. The trade-off is deliberate: you give up per-animal profiles for now in exchange for managing the whole batch as one number. Nothing is lost when you later give animals their own profiles: the shared details (species, breed, owner, birth or hatch date, location, parentage) carry over to each new profile.

Remember the tracking mode is permanent. If you might need individual profiles, records, and history from day one, create an Animal profiles group instead (see Create and manage animal groups). A count group is for tracking by number first.

Step 1: Create the count group

From your Dashboard, open Animals & Groups, then Groups, and choose Create group (or go to Create group). Set What are you tracking? to Count group, then enter your current count (a whole number, zero or more). That number is the live head count you are tracking right now.

Step 2: Track the count

Your count group appears alongside your other groups, showing the number you are tracking. As the litter or batch progresses, the group can reflect the full breakdown. Each of these is a separate count you maintain, and together they tell buyers and your team where things stand:

• Expected: how many you anticipate (for example a confirmed litter size before the animals arrive). This is your planning figure.
• Born (shown as Hatched for egg-laying species): how many have actually arrived. This is the real number the group is built around once they are here.
• Available: how many are still up for grabs. Creatures keeps this honest: available can never exceed what is left after the spoken-for counts below.
• Reserved: how many are spoken for by a buyer (a held reservation).
• Placed: how many have been handed off to their new owner.
• Holdback: how many you are keeping back (keepers, replacements, your own picks) and are not selling.

The implication of these counts: Creatures validates that reserved plus placed plus holdback plus unavailable never exceeds your born or expected total, so the breakdown always adds up and you cannot accidentally promise more animals than you have. You update the head count from the group's edit screen, and you can apply records and log costs for the whole group just like any other.

Step 3: Split into individual profiles

When you are ready to give animals their own profiles, open the group's Animals tab and choose Promote to individual profiles. This is how a counted batch becomes individually tracked animals, each with its own profile page and tabs.

Creatures pre-fills the details the group already knows (species, breed, owner, birth or hatch date, location, and parentage), and you add what is specific to each animal. For each one you fill:

• Name (required): the call name or barn name for that animal.
• Sex (required): female or male.
• Color or markings (required): how to tell the animal apart.
• Microchip number (optional): the chip ID if it has one.
• Personality or notes (optional): temperament and anything else worth recording.

All the profiles are created together, and the group's remaining count drops by however many you promote (you cannot promote more than are left). If the animal is tied to a buyer's reservation, promoting is also the moment it gets matched to that buyer (covered in the selling guide). After you promote, the group moves into its Matching stage so buyers know animals are being assigned.

Selling a count group

A count group can also be published so buyers can find it, apply, and reserve. See Offer a count group to buyers: applications and reservations.

Related information

• Create and manage animal groups
• Manual, smart, and hybrid groups
• Offer a count group to buyers: applications and reservations

Updated on: 23/06/2026