This document serves as a beginner's guide to body condition scoring (BCS) for dairy herd management, outlining its importance in evaluating cows' nutritional health. It describes a scale from 1 to 5 to categorize body condition, emphasizing the visual and tactile assessment of fat reserves and overall health. The guide aims to improve herd management by identifying potential health issues and optimizing feeding strategies.

1. Beginner’s Guide
to Body Condition
Scoring
A Tool for Dairy Herd
Management
Web Presentation
Updated July, 2004

2.  Using body condition scoring to fine tune
herd nutrition and health management
has become a widely accepted practice.
 This presentation is designed to
 Introduce you to body condition scoring
 Provide examples of cows scored 1 to 5

3. Evaluating Body Condition vs. Type
 Type evaluation
(classification, judging)
compares animals to the
“ideal” conformation
 Body condition scoring
considers the relative
fatness or thinness of
animals

4. Goals of Body Condition
Scoring
 Early detection of potential health
problems
 Identify areas for improved feeding
management
 Improve herd health, production,
reproduction, profitability

5. Body Condition Scoring
 Visual and tactile evaluation of body fat
reserves
 Indication of energy balance
 Scale of 1 to 5, increments of 0.25
 Body Condition Score = BCS
 BCS 1 = emaciated cow (too thin)
 BCS 3 = average body condition
 BCS 5 = excessively fat cow

6. Areas to Evaluate
 Rump / Pelvic Area
 Tailhead
 Hooks
 Pins
 Thurl
 Loin
 Short ribs
 Spine

7. Side View Rear View
Short Ribs
Hooks
Pins
Sacral Ligament
Thurl Hooks
Tailhead Ligament
Thurl
Pins

8. (Spinous Process)
If an animal is grossly fat, the bone
structure cannot be seen or felt
through the fat. In thin animals, the
(Short Ribs)
bone structures are very prominent.

9. Step-by-Step Process
 See “Learn to Score Body Condition”
presentation from Penn State
 Not a perfect science
 Scores should be similar (± 0.25)
 When measured on one animal or
 When measured by different people
 Separates average condition from extremes

10. Extremely Fat Extremely Thin

11. Examples of Scores
Presented to help you see the major differences –
for a more detailed system of scoring, see
“Learn to Score Body Condition”

12. BCS 1: Severely Under-conditioned
 Side view
 Bones of tailhead easy to see
 Prominent backbone
 Tips of short ribs are clearly visible
 Hooks, thurl, and pins very prominent
Photo Not Available

13. BCS 1
Rear view  All boney
prominences easily
visible
 Hooks, pins, spine, &
ribs very sharp
Photo Not Available
 Deep cavities around
tailhead
 Thin legs, poor
muscle condition

14. BCS 2: Severe Negative Energy Balance
 Tailhead prominent, limited skin cover
 Prominent backbone
 Limited skin cover on short ribs. From tip
to spine, short ribs are visible ¾ of the
distance
 Angular hooks and pins with prominent
thurl

15. BCS 2
 Hooks, pins, &
thurl prominent
 Tailhead area
somewhat hollow,
but has modest
covering of flesh

16. BCS 2.75: Slightly Thin
 Visible backbone
 Tip of short ribs smooth, but visible
 Hooks angular, but pins padded by fat
 V-angle formed between hooks, thurl, and
pins

17. BCS 2.75
 Hooks angular, but
pins more rounded or
padded with fat
 Hollow below tailhead
compared to a BCS 3

18. BCS 3: Good Condition
 More flesh covering backbone
 Tip of short ribs smooth
 Hooks and pins rounded and smooth
 V-angle formed between hooks, thurl, and
pins

19. BCS 3
 Hooks and pins
rounded
 No deep
depressions or fat
deposits around
tailhead

20. BCS 3.25: Slightly Fleshy
 More flesh covering backbone
 Tip of short ribs very smooth
 Hooks and pins more rounded and
smooth
 U-angle formed between hooks, thurl, and
pins

21. BCS 3.25
 Rounded hooks &
pins
 Sacral and tailhead
ligaments visible

22. BCS 4: Over-conditioned
 Backbone barely visible
 Short ribs very smooth, tips barely visible
 Hooks and pins very smooth, but visible
 Flat between hooks and pins

23. BCS 4
 Hooks & pins rounded,
but visible
 Rump and thurl flat
 Sacral and tailhead
ligaments not visible

24. BCS 5: Severely Over-conditioned
 Backbone not visible
 Short ribs flat, bones not visible
 Hooks and pins not visible
 Flat over rump and tailhead

25. BCS 5
 All boney
prominences rounded
and covered in fat
 Tailhead buried in fat
 Fat deposits readily
seen on rump and
legs

26. Summary
 The body condition scoring scale
 Under-conditioned cows = BCS 1
 Over-conditioned cows = BCS 5
 Determining a cow's BCS
 Look at pelvic area and loin
 Fat deposits become evident  cow is over
conditioned
 Bone structures become prominent  cow is thin