how (and why) to monitor cattle body fat

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Physique situation scoring is a straightforward approach used to estimate cattle physique fats. But regardless of its simplicity, it is without doubt one of the strongest instruments in your herd administration toolbox.

Whereas it’s not arduous to see whether or not cows are getting thinner or fatter, physique situation scores present a constant standardized measurement system. Measurement is step one in profitable administration. 

Cattle physique situation scores play a pivotal function in maximizing fertility in your breeding herd. They’re utilized in nearly all cattle diet and supplementation calculations. They’re invaluable to your cattle ending program if you wish to constantly produce tender flavorful beef. They’re the important thing to longer grazing seasons and one in every of your most necessary instruments to maintain cattle secure and wholesome whereas grazing through the winter / dry season. And if you wish to make use of compensatory acquire to extend acquire weights on pasture, it’s worthwhile to perceive physique situation scores.  

Earlier than you may start to make use of physique situation scores efficiently, it’s worthwhile to “calibrate your eye” to acknowledge how completely different physique fats ranges look whereas your cattle are out on pasture. So on this article I’ll show you the way use this easy however highly effective device and I’ll offer you a quick overview of find out how to use physique situation scores to information your cattle administration selections.

Physique Fats (%) by BCS rating

Physique situation scores (BCS) are merely a means of estimating completely different ranges of physique fats primarily based on a standardized set of visible standards. Most individuals use a 9-point scale (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9) to categorize cattle from skinny to overweight, however some individuals want to make use of a 5-point scale (1, 1.5, 2, 2.5, 3, 3.5, 4, 4.5, 5). Each scales use equivalent standards, however assign completely different numbers to the factors. I present the conversions between the dimensions later on this article. 

Earlier than I clarify the factors used to “learn” physique fats ranges on pasture, here’s a diagram that exhibits the distinction in physique fats ranges at every of the physique situation scores:

Cattle Physique Situation Scores vs Physique Fats (%)

The common weight distinction between every of the completely different physique situation scores is roughly 100 lbs (45 kg) for a medium-framed cow. 

So, the burden distinction between a cow with a BCS of 5 and a BCS of seven is roughly 200 lbs. And a really skinny cow with a BCS of three must acquire roughly 400 lbs to succeed in a BCS of seven – the extent at which her fertility and her milk manufacturing is perfect.

Cattle physique fats impacts efficiency and earnings

Cattle physique fats has a huge effect on the efficiency of your cows and calves, which instantly impacts your farm profitability. Listed below are a number of fast charts to indicate you simply how necessary it’s to watch and handle physique fats in your cow-calf herd:

Size of the infertile interval after calving (by BCS)

Physique situation at calving time impacts the size of the time earlier than cows attain their first estrus and will be re-bred:

Being pregnant price after a 60-day breeding season (by BCS)

Physique situation at calving time additionally has a dramatic impact on conception charges within the subsequent breeding season:

Variations in milk manufacturing (by BCS)

As a result of the dairy business is ready to measure and file how a lot milk each cow produces each single day, we additionally know that physique fats has a huge effect on milk manufacturing. Here’s a research that measured complete milk manufacturing over a 305-day interval: 

Calf weight at weaning on day 240 (by BCS of the mom):

Extra milk means quicker rising calves, which results in greater weaning weights amongst your calves. Here is a research highlighting the distinction in weaning weights (weaned at 240 days) primarily based on how fats the cows had been at calving time.

Utilizing physique fats for higher herd administration:

Earlier than we get to the factors used to measure physique situation scores, I need to go over the most important components of the 9-point BCS scale to elucidate how they have an effect on your herd administration selections. 

A BCS of 1 by way of 3 is used for cows which can be very skinny. Cattle that get this skinny are susceptible to severe well being points attributable to malnutrition and excessively low physique fats reserves. Getting this skinny additionally has severe long-term penalties to their fertility.

A BCS of 4 is borderline too skinny. Cattle that get this skinny are more and more weak to well being points. Their fertility within the subsequent breeding season might also be compromised, even when they’re able to regain a BCS of seven previous to the following calving season. If attainable, by no means let your cattle get this skinny.

A BCS of 5 by way of 7 is the wholesome vary. It’s completely okay to let cattle physique fats ranges fluctuate so long as they keep inside this secure vary between 5 and seven. They need to by no means drop beneath a BCS of 5 and they need to regain a BCS of seven earlier than they start calving. 

To maximise fertility, cattle ought to have a BCS of seven once they calve. The nearer cattle are to a BCS of seven once they calve, the shorter their infertile interval might be after calving and the earlier they are going to be receptive for re-breeding. That is why maximizing BCS at calving time is a key strategy for improving conception rates in your cattle herd.

Permitting cattle to lose slightly physique fats through the winter grazing season (or dry season) to match seasonal modifications in grass high quality permits you to considerably cut back your winter feed prices as a result of it takes far much less dietary supplements (or costly hay and silage) than for those who attempt to preserve cattle in optimum situation (BCS of seven) all yr spherical. You must also calve during the growing season to provide your cows time to fatten up on low-cost pasture earlier than calving begins. The dietary supplements you utilize to help your pasture rotation ought to handle weight reduction in your cow-calf herd in order that physique situation scores by no means drop beneath a BCS of 5.

A BCS of 5 to 7 can also be the goal physique fats vary when slaughtering beef cattle for market. Cattle are likely to grade greater the nearer they’re to a BCS of seven as a result of there might be extra fats within the meat. Extra fats = extra tenderness. However above a BCS of seven, cattle will grade decrease as a result of there’s a penalty for being too fats since extra fats will simply find yourself within the waste bin.

A BCS of 8 and 9 are for cattle which can be overweight. Cattle that get this fats might be much less fertile – many hormonal capabilities cease working accurately when cattle are too fats as a result of fats absorbs hormones. This a lot fats additionally negatively impacts meat high quality and carcass grades (an excessive amount of fats needs to be trimmed off the carcass and discarded and an excessive amount of fats within the meat negatively impacts beef texture and the consuming expertise). Getting this fats additionally begins negatively affecting cattle well being.

How one can establish physique situation scores on pasture:

This desk outlines the factors used to assign physique situation scores to your cattle. Print a duplicate of the desk and preserve it with you on pasture so you may apply till you may acknowledge physique situation scores with out it. You can too see the conversions between a 9-point and a 5-point scale.

Modified from: Pruitt and Momont, Cattle 87-9, “Results of Physique Situation On Reproductive Efficiency of Vary Beef Cows” and from Virginia Cooperative Extension, 400-795, Body Condition Scoring Beef Cows.

Cattle Physique Situation Rating Pictures:

And now let’s take a look at a collection of photographs of the 9 physique situation scores that will help you begin coaching your eye.

These photographs are courtesy of the Virginia Cooperative Extension supplies, taken from their Body Condition Scoring Beef Cows (400-795) article.

BCS 1. Emaciated with muscle atrophy and no detectable fats. Tail head and ribs venture predominantly. Animal is bodily weak.

BCS 2. Poor situation with muscle atrophy and no detectable fats. Tail head and ribs outstanding.

BCS 3. Skinny situation. Slight muscle atrophy. All ribs seen. Little or no detectable fats.

BCS 4. Borderline situation. Define of backbone barely seen. Define of three to five ribs seen. Some fats over ribs and hips.

BCS 5. Reasonable, good total look. Define of backbone now not seen. Define of 1-2 ribs seen. Fats over hips however nonetheless seen.

BCS 6. Excessive average situation. Ribs and backbone now not seen. Strain utilized to really feel bone construction. Some fats in brisket and flanks.

BCS 7. Good, fleshy look. Hips barely seen however ribs and backbone not seen. Fats in brisket and flanks, with slight udder and tail head fats.

BCS 8. Fats, fleshy and over-conditioned. Bone construction not seen. Massive patchy fats deposits over ribs, round tail head and brisket.

BCS 9. Extraordinarily fats, wasty and patchy. Mobility presumably impaired. Bone construction not seen. Excessive fats deposits over ribs, round tail head and brisket.

I encourage you to learn the whole article about Body Condition Scoring Beef Cows (400-795) from Virginia Cooperative Extension. It covers some wonderful further factors about find out how to acknowledge and use physique situation scoring in your herd administration selections.

I additionally suggest studying the College of Georgia Extension article about Body Condition Scoring Beef Cows (B 1308), which incorporates one other utterly completely different set of photographs and a complete bunch extra recommendations on find out how to use physique situation scoring to enhance your herd administration.

How usually ought to I file physique situation scores?

Although you see your cattle each single day, you need to file their physique situation scores in a spreadsheet at common intervals (i.e. as soon as per 30 days), so you may observe delicate modifications in physique situation. This lets you intervene if the herd is reducing weight quicker than anticipated or is susceptible to getting too skinny. It additionally helps you to rapidly see establish the impact of small modifications in your diet program (new dietary supplements, completely different grazing space, small modifications in your grazing administration, and so on.)

Often recording BCS additionally permits you to examine physique fats ranges from yr to yr, which provides you suggestions about how modifications in your diet and herd administration are impacting your herd’s efficiency.

This database can also be invaluable at breeding and weaning time as a result of you may lookup every cows’ BCS historical past to see whether or not physique fats or another issue are affecting weaning weights, conception charges, and so on. Not solely does this provide you with an additional device to troubleshoot issues, however this database additionally helps you resolve which cattle to cull and which to re-breed.

Physique situation scoring is not only about monitoring the entire herd. Additionally it is a really great tool for figuring out high-risk animals that want particular administration (too skinny, reducing weight quicker than the remainder of the herd). These high-maintenance animals can get additional supplementation, they are often weaned sooner than the remainder of the herd, or they are often faraway from the principle herd to provide them higher diet with out having to spend extra cash on the entire herd. Plus, this lets you flag them as high-maintenance animals, which places them on the prime of the cull record later within the yr when they’re fats sufficient to provide you a great worth on the markets.

You may even use your physique situation scores to fine-tune the date of your calving season. In case your cows have a mean BCS of 5 on the finish of the winter or dry season and also you need them to succeed in a BCS of 6.5 by calving time, then they should acquire roughly 150 lbs of physique fats (plus any additional weight associated to being pregnant) earlier than they calve. For those who schedule your calving season to start 40 days after the beginning of the rising season, your cattle might want to acquire 3.75 lbs/day throughout these 40 days to succeed in their goal physique situation rating by the point calving season begins. Is your pasture high quality and your grazing administration able to producing that a lot acquire per day? Your livestock nutritionist can inform you primarily based on a easy forage evaluation of your pasture grass.

Ideas for Physique Situation Scoring

One of many issues that makes physique situation scoring so helpful is that it’s so simple to make use of on pasture. You need not convey the herd into the corral to file physique situation scores. You may merely sit within the pasture with a listing of ear-tag numbers and work your means down the record till you’ve got seen all of the cattle within the herd. And it will not intervene with their grazing and weight good points. 

After you have all of your particular person BCS scores, be sure you additionally calculate a month-to-month common for the entire herd so you may observe delicate modifications in physique situation rating because the seasons progress. You must also file the share of animals at every BCS rating (i.e BCS 4 = 12%, BCS 5 = 73%, BCS 6 = 15%). 

Particular person BCS scores assist you to handle the person animals in your herd, however the month-to-month averages and breakdown by BCS present very important suggestions about your farm’s diet and herd administration technique. Each are equally necessary.

“An oz. of prevention is value a pound of remedy.” Physique situation scoring is the predictive device that enables you forestall many issues lengthy earlier than they get costly and troublesome to repair.

Utilizing BCS to enhance your herd administration:

Now that you know the way to acknowledge physique situation scores in your cattle herd, listed below are some areas of herd administration that might be tremendously improved by your understanding of cattle physique situation scores:

I hope this text has given you a great introduction to cattle physique situation scoring. It’s a quite simple, non-invasive, and remarkably easy-to-use device. But it is usually one of the vital highly effective instruments which you can add to your herd administration toolbox.

Do you utilize physique situation scoring in your farm? Share your ideas and experiences with physique situation scoring within the feedback beneath so others farmers can be taught from them too!

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References:

• Berry, D.P., F. Buckley, Dillon P. 2007. Physique situation rating and live-weight results on milk manufacturing in Irish Holstein-Friesian dairy cows. Irish Journal of Agricultural and Meals Analysis 50: 141-147, 2011
• Bridges, A. Lemenager, R. Affect of Physique Situation at Calving on Reproductive Productiveness in Beef Cattle. Division of Animal Sciences, Purdue College, Web notes.
• Houghton, PL, RP Lemenager, LA Horstman, KS Hendrix, and GE Moss. 1990. Results of physique composition, pre- and postpartum power stage and early weaning on reproductive efficiency of beef cows and preweaning calf acquire. J. Anim. Sci. 68:1438.
• Gergovska, Z. Y. Mitev, T. Angelova, D. Yordanova, and T. Miteva. 2011. Impact of Modifications in Physique Situation Rating on the Milk Yield of Holstein-Friesian and Brown Swiss Cows. Bulg. J. Agric. Sci., 17: 837-845.
• Kunkle, WE, RS Sands, and DO Rae. 1998. Results of physique situation on productiveness in beef cattle. Division of Animal Sciences, Florida Cooperative Extension Service, UF/IFAS. SP-144. 
• Selk, G.E., R.P. Wettemann, Ok.S. Lusby, J.W. Oltjen, S.L. Mobley, R.J. Rasby and J.C. Garmendia. 1988. Relationships amongst weight change, physique situation and reproductive efficiency of vary beef cows. J. Anim. Sci. 66: 3153.