What Is the Importance of Body Condition in Breeding Stock for Beef Production

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Body Condition Scoring of Beef and Dairy Animals

09 February 2007

Past Jack C. Whittier and Barry Steevens, Department of Animal Sciences, and David Weaver College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Missouri.

Body condition scoring (BCS) of cattle allows cattle producers to assess the level of fat reserves of cows during various production phases. When regularly used, this information can exist used to formulate management and feeding decisions.

The aim of BCS is to obtain a uncomplicated and reliable mensurate of the level of body reserves in live animals. Though live-weight gives an indication of body size, information technology can exist markedly affected by gut fill and stage of pregnancy. Conscientious training of scorers and periodic standardization have shown BCS to be authentic and useful on a within-herd basis.

Beefiness and dairy herds can employ BCS so feeding and management tin be regulated to ensure that breeding cattle achieve the appropriate BCS at different stages of their production bicycle. Activity tin so exist taken to alter the status of those cows not in the right condition at disquisitional stages of the cycle.

In both beef and dairy herds, BCS can be carried out regularly and easily in circumstances where weighing may be impossible or impractical. The technique is hands learned and is most useful when skillful regularly by the same person in the same herd over several years.

Practical importance

Variation in the BCS of beefiness cows has a number of practical implications. The condition of cows at calving is associated with length of mail-partum interval; subsequent lactation performance; health and vigor of the newborn calf; and the incidence of calving difficulties in extremely fat heifers.

Status is often overrated as a cause of dystocia in older cows. The condition of cows at breeding affects their reproductive performance in terms of services per conception, calving interval and the per centum of open up cows.

Body condition scoring system

Torso Condition Scores (BCS) are numbers on a scale used to describe the relative fatness or body composition of the cow. The scoring system in Missouri has a range of 1 to 9, with 1 representing very sparse cows and ix representing very fat cows. A cow with a BCS of 5 is said to be in average condition; notwithstanding, descriptions of an "average" conditioned cow vary. For BCS to exist most helpful, producers need to calibrate the i to ix system under their ain conditions. Run across Table ane.

Table i

Body composition and limerick changes bold a 1,100-pound cow at BCS of 5

^oneEmpty body weight is the live weight less the gut contents.

Tabular array ii
Description of body condition scores (adapted from Lowman, 1976)

Beef cows

In beef cows, body condition affects the amount and type of wintertime feed supplements that will be needed. Fat cows usually demand only medium-quality hay and small amounts of supplement plus mineral and vitamin supplementation. Thin cows usually need loftier-quality hay and may also demand supplements that are high in energy (+70 percentage TDN), medium in poly peptide (12 to 15 pct CP), plus mineral and vitamin supplementation.

Body condition or changes in body status rather than live-weight changes are a more reliable guide for evaluating the nutritional condition of a mature beef cow. Live weight is sometimes mistakenly used as an indication of body condition and fat reserves, only does non accurately reflect changes in nutritional status. Winter feeding studies have shown that body status commonly decreases proportionally more than live weight, implying a greater loss of energy relative to weight.

Two animals of similar live weight may differ considerably in BCS. As an example, an 1,100-pound moo-cow may be a 1,000-pound animate being carrying an extra 100 pounds of trunk reserves, or a ane,200-pound cow that has lost 100 pounds of torso reserves. These ii animals would differ markedly in both biological and economic response to the same feeding and management regimen with possible serious consequences.

A BCS can exist assigned to a cow either by visual appraisement, past palpation or by combining sight and touch. A recent written report in Texas indicated that cattle could exist scored equally well by palpation of fatty encompass or by visual appraisal. Accurate visual appraisement may exist hampered by hair glaze. For cattle with long hair, handling is of value, but when hair is short, treatment probably is non necessary. Call back that gut make full and animals in tardily pregnancy may make animals announced fatter than they actually are. Figure one gives guidelines for determining BCS by palpation of fat cover.

Figure 1
Anatomic areas used for BCS in beef cows. (From Status Scoring -- Suckler Cows. East of Scotland College of Agriculture Advisory Leaflet 98.)

Outcome on reproductive functioning

Calving interval and profitability

Calving interval is defined as the catamenia from the birth of ane calf to the next. To have a 12-month calving interval, a cow must conceive within 80 days of the birth of her calf. Such cows produce a pound of weaned calf cheaper than cows that take longer than 80 days, making them more than assisting.

Calving intervals in excess of 12 months are oft caused by nutritional stress at some point, either before the calving season or during the subsequent breeding season, which results in thin body condition and poor reproductive performance.

The human relationship of trunk condition to calving intervals is shown in Figure 2. The thinnest cows have the longest calving intervals, while fatter cows accept shorter calving intervals. Producers should evaluate their cows for status and give supplemental feed to correct nutritional deficiencies, which are indicated when cows become thin. If not given, reproductive efficiency volition remain low for cows in thin body condition.

Figure 2
Relationship between cow body condition score at mating and subsequent calving interval

Body status at calving

The influence of diet earlier calving is a major factor that controls the length of time betwixt calving and the render to oestrus. Cows with a BCS of 4 or less at calving, as a result of depression levels of precalving diet, will take longer intervals from calving to first estrus than cows in BCS of 5 or higher. Young cows require about one BCS higher to achieve the same reproductive performance as mature cows, since they have the added requirement of growth.

Information technology is much easier to increase status in cows before rather than after they calve. High nutrition afterward calving is directed outset toward milk product. Feeding cows to gain condition early on in lactation therefore leads to increased milk production but has little effect on trunk condition.

The acceptable BCS prior to calving is vi or college. These should be the target figures at calving for all cows in the herd. Anything higher than 7 may or may not exist helpful. Scores at calving of less than 5 will impede reproduction.

Torso condition at breeding

The influence of nutrition after calving is a major cistron that controls the fertility of a cow's estrus cycle during the breeding season. A lower conception rate has been shown in cows losing condition from calving through breeding than in cows that maintain or gain condition during this time.

Cows should be in a status score of 6 or ameliorate at calving and should maintain adept body condition during the convenance period. Tabular array three shows results of a trial involving more than than 1,000 cows where the effect of body condition during the convenance season on pregnancy rates was studied. That trial supports the statement that condition scores of less than five during breeding result in extremely low pregnancy rates. Proper nutrition during the convenance season is necessary for acceptable reproduction.

Table three

Effect of body status during convenance season on pregnancy (Sprott, 1985)

Length of breeding season

Many producers believe that long breeding seasons are necessary to achieve good reproductive performance. Bear witness in Figure 3 indicates that this is not truthful. The data represented in Figure iii were compiled from a 1980 survey of beef cow reproductive performance in 22,000 cows from 230 herds in Missouri. The average size of herds reporting was 97 cows and the boilerplate percent dogie ingather weaned was 80 per centum. Figure 3 shows that longer breeding seasons practice non necessarily increment the pregnancy rates in beef herds.

Figure 3 Relationship betwixt length of breeding season and pregnancy rate

Awarding in beef cattle

Scoring the body condition of cows 100 days before calving, then sorting them to various direction groups for feeding according to need will meliorate reproductive performance and allow more timely use of supplemental feeding. Table 4 describes the weight alter needed to achieve optimum condition from 100 days before calving until calving.

Table four

Weight modify needed to reach optimum condition

Target body condition scores

Fall-calving herds

In a fall calving herd, cows should exist in BCS of vi or higher at calving. In general, if pastures are acceptable during the summer, this is easy to achieve. Cows in BCS of 6 can beget to lose i BCS between calving and breeding without adversely affecting reproduction.

Because cows are lactating betwixt calving and breeding and pasture quality is failing, a loss of one BCS is typical. These cows may lose ane more than BCS after convenance and before pasture turnout in the jump. They will be lactating during this time and likely to exist eating harvested forages. Their BCS should increase when they go to grass, peculiarly afterwards the dogie is weaned, so that they reach BCS of 6 at calving to begin another yearly cycle. Figure iv illustrates changes in BCS in a fall calving herd.

Figure four

Target body condition scores for fall- and jump-calving beef cows through a yearling production cycle

Jump-calving herds

Spring-calving cows should exist in BCS of 6 or higher when they calve. Lactation and the fact that the cows are still consuming harvested forages volition more often than not issue in loss of one BCS following calving. This loss is non detrimental if cows are in moderate to fleshy status (BCS 6 or 7) at calving. But thin- to borderline-conditioned cows (BCS iii or 4) will show decreased reproduction if they lose further condition during this period. Cows in BCS of 5 at convenance should be able to maintain their status until weaning. They volition need to gain one BCS between weaning and calving so that they reach calving at a BCS of half dozen (Figure 4).

Immature cows

Immature cows continue growth until approximately four years of age. These young cows should be maintained through the yearly bicycle about ane BCS higher than mature cows to achieve the same reproductive performance.

Dairy cows

Dairy cows generally are in a negative energy remainder until 9 to 12 weeks of lactation. Managing body condition can assistance become them bred back. In dairy cows, the roughage and concentrate feeds are needed for a substantial production of milk, which typically peaks five to 8 weeks after calving.

In addition, as in beef cows, feedstuffs are used for maintenance, live weight gain and fetal growth in pregnancy. Ideally, body status scoring should be done on each cow v times a year:

• Body status scoring 60 to 100 days before drying off permits a controlled increase or decrease in their body condition, considering fat can most efficiently be deposited at this time.
  
• At drying off, the BCS should be the aforementioned as that predictable at calving (score 5 through 7).
  
• At calving, each pound of body fat provides enough free energy for seven pounds of milk. Most salubrious dairy cows are in a negative free energy residual for much of the first three months of a lactation. Animals with a low BCS will tend to get far too sparse in the kickoff weeks after calving. This will result in a low conception charge per unit and an uneconomically long calving to convenance interval. This is similar to beef cattle, where a filibuster to the onset of first estrus is seen in cows with a low BCS such as 4. Many dairy cows fail to exhibit "heat" unless they are in a positive energy balance.

More feed to the newly calved dairy animal tends to be converted primarily into milk. First-dogie dairy heifers should take a BCS of five or 6 at calving. Calving difficulties increase when heifers are fatter. Fetal death, bruising of the nascency passage and pinched nerves leading to lameness may effect. Also, overconditioned cows are decumbent to ketosis, a condition caused by an unusually high amount of ketone (acetone) substances in tissues and fluids.

• In the first three months of lactation the BCS in a dairy cow should not drib more than 3 points. In other words, information technology should non fall beneath five.
  
• At 120 days after calving, in the early stages of pregnancy, cows should exist reaching their optimal weight and BCS should again be 5 through 7.

Cows with a high BCS at calving (7 or in a higher place) have been found to accept a lower 305-day yield than dairy cows with a BCS of 5. Overconditioning of dairy cows at the end of lactation and in the dry period should therefore be avoided.

Table v shows the target body scores and timing of scoring in dairy cows.

Tabular array 5

References

• Dunn, R.T. Jr., 1000.F. Smith, T.J. Gall and J.W. Massey. 1982. "Survey of Reproductive Performance in Missouri Beef Herds." MO Beef Cattle Research Study 101:56.
  
• Herd, D.B. and Fifty.R. Sprott. "Torso Condition, Nutrition and Reproduction of Beef Cows." Texas Agricultural Extension Service Bulletin. B-1526.
  
• Animal Production Advisory Leaflet. 1976. Status Scoring-Suckler Cows. E of Scotland Higher of Agri. Advisory Leaflet 98.
  
• Kilkenny, J.B. 1978. "Reproductive Functioning of Beef Cows," World Review of Fauna Production. 14:iii.
  
• Lowman, B.G., N.A. Scott, and S.H. Somerville, 1976. "Condition Scoring of Cattle," Due east of Scotland Higher of Agriculture Bulletin half-dozen.
  
• Nelson, T.C., R.E. Short, Westward.50. Reynolds, and J.J. Urick, 1985. "Palpated and Visually Assigned Condition Scores Compared with Weight, Tiptop, and Heart Girth in Hereford and Crossbred Cows," J. Animal Sci. 60:ii.
  
• Sprott, Fifty.R. 1985. Unpublished data.

Portions of this guide were adopted from Texas Agronomical Extension Service Message B-1526, "Body Status, Diet and Reproduction of Beef Cows;" Dennis B. Herd and 50.R. Sprott.

Jan 2007

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