Body Condition Scorer
Now available on iTunes app store.
The Bovine Body Condition Scoring App was developed at the University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine. The app uses a graphical interface to body conditon score cattle. Data stored includes herd name, scorer name, score date, pen id, cow id, lactation, fresh date and bcs (body condition score).
To begin scoring, first enter the Herd Name, Scorer Name and Date by touching the appropriate fields. For the Herd Name and Scorer Name the key pad will appear. Touch Done after typing the name. By default, today’s date appears in the Date field. To change the date, touch the Date field and a datepicker will appear. Scroll the date fields until the desired date combination appears. Press Done to accept. Score cows by entering a cow id in the CowID field. If known, the cow’s lactation and fresh date should also be entered. To assign a body condition score, slide the score selector left or right to select a Body Condition Score between 1 and 5. Accept the BCS value by touching the “Set score = ” button. The cow id and score will be saved and the text fields emptied for the next cow.
To aid in body condition score assessment, line drawings have been included below the score selector. These drawings depict the different areas on the body the user should focus on and change as the score slider is moved. The drawings are included for each increment of .25 and are based on the system described by Edmondson et al. J. Dairy Sci. 72:68. 1989. Following is a more indepth explanation of the body locations and scoring descriptions.
| Spinous process | Spinous to Transverse process | Transverse process | Overhanging shelf | Hooks and pins | Between hooks and pins | Between hooks | Tailhead to pins |
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| BCS = 1.0 | Severe underconditioning (emaciated) | ||||||
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| BCS = 1.5 | |||||||
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| BCS = 1.75 | |||||||
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| BCS = 2.0 | Frame is obvious | ||||||
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| BCS = 2.25 | |||||||
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| BCS = 2.5 | |||||||
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| BCS = 2.75 | |||||||
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| BCS = 3.0 | Frame and covering well balanced | ||||||
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| BCS = 3.25 | |||||||
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| BCS = 3.5 | |||||||
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| BCS = 3.75 | |||||||
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| BCS = 4.0 | Frame not as visible as covering | ||||||
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| BCS = 4.25 | |||||||
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| BCS = 4.5 | |||||||
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| BCS = 4.75 | |||||||
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| BCS = 5.0 | Severe overconditioning | ||||||
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