Thank you so much for your advice.
Actually the need to keep the same data in multiple places is dictated by our needs in terms of analyzing and using the data as well as the different people looking at it. This is for a scientific study in which we are recording a number of different parameters.
We are breeding some animals so in database A we keep track of the who is in the cage, how many males, how many females their dates of birth, ID #s etc. We also record the birth of all new litters on this page and some details such as DOB etc. but the individual information on each animal in the litter has to be kept in database B where we will record the sex of each new animal born, their coat color etc. Since over the years there are so many new litters in one cage that keeping all that information in the cage database (A) gets to be too cumbersome.
But everytime we record a new litter in the litter database (A) we also want it to automatically create a record in B and put in the ID #s of the mom and dad and other static information like that so we do not have to re-enter it. When we evaluate our data we have to look at the number of litters that were produced in each cage as well the the number of newborns in each litter. For another project we need to keep track of the individual charecteristics of each new animal but we do need to have the parent's info there so we can sort or search by that data.
So having explained our reasons, I will try the portal idea (I don't think my boss will like it too much though) but if you have any further suggestions I will be very happy to test them out.
Thanks again for your help,
Nadia