BCS is based on a scale of 1 to 9, with 1 being the thinnest and 9 being the fattest. The score is determined by visually assessing the animal's body, and by feeling the amount of fat covering the bones.
BCS is important for a number of reasons. It can help to:
* Identify animals that are underweight or overweight
* Monitor the health and nutritional status of animals over time
* Make decisions about feeding and management
* Prevent health problems that can be caused by obesity or underweight
BCS is a simple and inexpensive way to assess the health of your animals. It is a valuable tool that can help you to keep your animals healthy and productive.
Here are the BCS categories:
* BCS 1: Extremely thin. The animal's ribs, spine, and hip bones are easily visible. There is no palpable fat covering the bones.
* BCS 2: Very thin. The animal's ribs and spine are visible, but the hip bones are not. There is some palpable fat covering the bones.
* BCS 3: Thin. The animal's ribs are easily felt, but not visible. The spine and hip bones are not visible. There is a moderate amount of palpable fat covering the bones.
* BCS 4: Moderately thin. The animal's ribs are felt with difficulty. The spine and hip bones are not visible. There is a significant amount of palpable fat covering the bones.
* BCS 5: Ideal weight. The animal's ribs are barely felt. The spine and hip bones are not visible. There is a moderate amount of palpable fat covering the bones.
* BCS 6: Overweight. The animal's ribs are difficult to feel. The spine and hip bones are not visible. There is a significant amount of palpable fat covering the bones.
* BCS 7: Obese. The animal's ribs are not felt. The spine and hip bones are not visible. There is a large amount of palpable fat covering the bones.
* BCS 8: Extremely obese. The animal's ribs are not felt. The spine and hip bones are not visible. There is a very large amount of palpable fat covering the bones.
* BCS 9: Morbidly obese. The animal's ribs are not felt. The spine and hip bones are not visible. There is a massive amount of palpable fat covering the bones.