Body Condition Score
February 13, 2009
Over the last couple of weeks I have received a number of calls related to cow condition as we move into the last trimester of pregnancy. Given the cold weather that we experienced, it was difficult to maintain body condition on a straight forage diet.
Body condition is a tool that cattlemen and Veterinarians use to describe the degree of fat cover on a cow. The Canadian system uses a scale of 1 to 5 with the ideal condition being a 3 at the time of calving. A condition score of 3 would indicate that all of the bones are covered and there is some fat on the back and tail. The 12th and 13th ribs are not visible as well.
The critical period on the reproductive calendar for body condition is at the time of calving. There are a number of problems that may occur with cows that are not a condition score of 3 at calving. A producer may experience problems with cows cleaning, increased number of services per conception, an increased calving interval, and an increase in the number of cows open at preg checking.
Most of the producers moving into the trimester have adequate time to build body condition on the cow herd if required. It may be advantageous to sort your bred heifers and 2nd calvers out and feed them as a group. They are often the group within the herd that will show body condition stress. Be sure to evaluate your feeding program and include a mineral in that program. As cow requirements increase in the last trimester, feed utilization and building the immune status in the cow are extremely important. It is a good practice to eliminate the feeding of salt and concentrate on feeding a sound mineral at this stage.
If you have any questions, please use the Leave a Comment section below, and I would be happy to discuss those with you.
Remember to stop by your UFA Farm and Ranch store to take advantage of the savings on the Calving Checklist List
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