What is livestock insurance?
Livestock insurance is the part of agricultural insurance that pays the agreed value of an animal that dies from disease, accident, fire, lightning, snakebite or flood, or is put down on a vet's advice. Theft, transit and calving complications can be added. Kenyan insurers cover cattle, goats, sheep, pigs, camels and horses, each animal valued by a registered vet and identified by an ear tag.
What livestock insurance covers
Death from disease
Terminal illness and epidemic disease in a healthy, vaccinated animal, subject to the policy's carve-outs.
Accidents and natural events
Lightning, fire, windstorm, flood, snakebite, and injury on the farm or on the road.
Emergency slaughter
When a vet advises putting an animal down to end its suffering, with any salvage value deducted.
Calving complications
Deaths of cows and heifers while giving birth, usually included for cattle.
Theft (optional)
From a secure boma, paddock or zero-grazing unit, with a police abstract and a higher excess.
Transit and milk income (optional)
Moving animals to market or a new farm, and a month's lost milk income after a cow dies.
Which animals can be insured?
| Animal | Typical entry age | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Dairy and beef cattle | 90 days to 8–10 years | Single animals or whole herds |
| Goats and sheep | 60 days to 5 years | Often insured as a flock |
| Pigs | By unit | Ask how African swine fever is treated |
| Camels | By herd | Mainly under pastoral index cover |
| Horses | By animal | Racing, polo and riding horses under bloodstock cover |
| Poultry | Day-old chicks upwards | A separate flock cover |
- Typical entry age
- 90 days to 8–10 years
- Notes
- Single animals or whole herds
- Typical entry age
- 60 days to 5 years
- Notes
- Often insured as a flock
- Typical entry age
- By unit
- Notes
- Ask how African swine fever is treated
- Typical entry age
- By herd
- Notes
- Mainly under pastoral index cover
- Typical entry age
- By animal
- Notes
- Racing, polo and riding horses under bloodstock cover
- Typical entry age
- Day-old chicks upwards
- Notes
- A separate flock cover
Conditions that decide livestock claims
- A health and valuation report from a registered vet before cover starts; it also sets each animal's sum insured.
- Every animal identified by an ear tag, tattoo or bolus, with a photo showing the tag.
- Up-to-date vaccination and treatment records, and good feeding, water and housing.
- Deaths reported within 24 hours, and the carcass kept for the vet's post-mortem.
- The insurer told before animals are moved; one insurer asks for three days' notice.
Mortality cover or pastoral index cover?
| Livestock mortality cover | Pastoral index cover (KLIP, DRIVE) | |
|---|---|---|
| Pays when | A specific insured animal dies or is stolen | Satellite pasture in your area falls below the trigger |
| Value | Set by a vet for each animal | A fixed amount per Tropical Livestock Unit |
| Claim | Vet post-mortem and tag photo | None: payouts are automatic |
| Cost | About 4% to 9% of the value a year | Mostly paid by government or the project |
| Suits | Dairy, zero-grazing and commercial herds | Pastoral herds in arid and semi-arid counties |
- Livestock mortality cover
- A specific insured animal dies or is stolen
- Pastoral index cover (KLIP, DRIVE)
- Satellite pasture in your area falls below the trigger
- Livestock mortality cover
- Set by a vet for each animal
- Pastoral index cover (KLIP, DRIVE)
- A fixed amount per Tropical Livestock Unit
- Livestock mortality cover
- Vet post-mortem and tag photo
- Pastoral index cover (KLIP, DRIVE)
- None: payouts are automatic
- Livestock mortality cover
- About 4% to 9% of the value a year
- Pastoral index cover (KLIP, DRIVE)
- Mostly paid by government or the project
- Livestock mortality cover
- Dairy, zero-grazing and commercial herds
- Pastoral index cover (KLIP, DRIVE)
- Pastoral herds in arid and semi-arid counties
More on Government farm schemes
Livestock cover: key facts
Kenya has about 18 million cattle, 18 million sheep, 28 million goats and 3 million camels.
Source: The Standard, October 2024, quoting the State Department for Livestock
The 2020–2023 drought killed more than 2.6 million livestock across 23 arid and semi-arid counties, and about 4.4 million people needed food aid.
Source: KIPPRA
Published entry ages for cattle run from 90 days (3 months at one insurer) up to 8 or 10 years; sheep and goats from 60 days to 5 years.
Source: Kenyan insurers' livestock pages, checked 18 October 2026
Insurers that publish a livestock excess take the first 10% of each loss, rising to 20% for theft; theft claims may also wait for a six-week recovery period.
Source: Kenyan insurers' livestock pages, checked 18 October 2026
What livestock insurance costs
The one insurer that publishes rates charges 4% to 9% of the insured value a year, depending on the animal, herd size and your experience, with minimum premiums of about KES 3,000 to 5,000. Larger herds earn better rates. Expect an excess of 10% of each loss and 20% for theft.
See farm insurance costs and worked examples
How to insure your animals
- Tell us about the herd Animals, numbers, breed, age, value and how they are kept.
- Vet valuation A registered vet examines each animal and writes the health and valuation report.
- Tag and photograph Each animal is tagged or bolused and photographed with its tag visible.
- Compare and pay We compare insurers that take your herd size; you pay by M-Pesa or bank.
- Claims support If an animal dies, call us within 24 hours and keep the carcass for the vet.
Frequently asked questions
What does livestock insurance cover?
Death of an insured animal from disease, accident, fire, lightning, windstorm, flood or snakebite, and emergency slaughter on a vet's advice. Calving complications are usually included for cattle. Theft, transit and loss of milk income can be added. The insurer pays the value agreed from the vet's report, less the excess.
What does livestock insurance not cover?
Common exclusions in Kenyan livestock policies are:
- Death from starvation, malnutrition, lack of water or feed poisoning
- Disease or defects present before cover started, and hereditary defects
- Neglect, poor husbandry, cruelty or deliberate killing
- Impotence, infertility or an animal no longer able to work or breed
- Escape, straying or unexplained disappearance
- Losses after a government quarantine, confiscation or culling order
- Vet treatment and vaccination costs
- War, riot and terrorism
Mastitis and theft in rustling-prone areas are also excluded by some insurers.
How much is livestock insurance in Kenya?
The one insurer that publishes rates charges 4% to 9% of the animal's insured value a year, depending on the type of animal, herd size and your experience. Published minimum premiums are about KES 3,000 to 5,000, per farmer or per animal. A cow valued at KES 150,000 typically costs around KES 6,000 a year.
Is livestock theft covered?
Usually as an option. Theft from a secure boma, paddock or zero-grazing unit is covered; animals that simply stray or disappear are not, and theft in areas prone to cattle rustling may be excluded. Expect a higher excess (often 20%), a police abstract, and a wait of about six weeks in case the animals are recovered.
Are East Coast fever, foot and mouth or lumpy skin covered?
Policies cover death from disease and epidemics rather than listing diseases by name, so ECF and lumpy skin deaths are generally covered if the animal was healthy and vaccinated when cover began. Some insurers exclude Rift Valley fever, and foot and mouth once an outbreak is officially notified, and losses after a government quarantine or culling order are excluded. Check the wording for your area.
Is there a waiting period before disease is covered?
No Kenyan insurer we checked publishes a disease waiting period on its website; terms are set in the policy wording. Ask before you pay, because a death from a disease that was already present when cover started is excluded anyway.
Can I insure just one or two animals?
Yes, with insurers that offer single-animal cover for valuable dairy or beef cattle. Some microinsurance products need a minimum herd, such as 20 cattle or 50 goats, so they suit cooperatives and larger units. We match you to an insurer that takes your herd size.
Who values the animals, and why does it have to be a vet?
A registered veterinary surgeon examines each animal, confirms its health and gives it a value, which becomes the sum insured. The law makes any vet certificate invalid unless a registered vet signs it, so insurers will not accept a valuation or post-mortem from anyone else.
Is Sharia-compliant (takaful) livestock insurance available?
Yes. Kenya has a licensed takaful insurer that has written index-based livestock takaful for pastoralists, with any surplus shared with members. Ask us if you want takaful cover and we will check what it offers for your herd.
Want your animals covered?
Tell us which animals, how many and what they are worth. We compare the insurers that take your herd size and arrange the vet valuation.
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Sources (7)
- Kenyan insurers' livestock pages, checked 18 October 2026
- Veterinary Surgeons and Veterinary Para-Professionals Act 2011, s.28
- Kenyan insurers' livestock pages and brochures, checked 18 October 2026
- ILRI, with the State Department for Livestock
- The Standard, October 2024, quoting the State Department for Livestock
- KIPPRA
- Kenyan insurers' agriculture pages, checked 18 October 2026
Facts and published prices checked 18 Oct 2026; last reviewed October 2026 by Naveah Capital. Rates shown are published bands, scheme figures and market estimates before levies, not a quote or a promise. Naveah Capital Insurance Agency is an IRA-licensed insurance agency in Nairobi; this page is general information, and your policy wording decides your cover.
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