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Veterinary Medicine vocabulary · Nutrition, Husbandry and Welfare

Body condition score

Meaning in veterinary medicine, with examples

nounCore term

In veterinary medicine, body condition score means: A number on a fixed scale that describes how thin or fat an animal is, judged by looking at and feeling the ribs, spine, waist and hips.

In Turkish: vücut kondisyon skoru, VKS

How it is used

Shortened to BCS. Dogs and cats are scored on a 1–9 or 1–5 scale, cattle usually on a 1–5 scale with half points. Vets record it at each visit and use it in weight-loss plans and when checking dairy cows around calving.

Example sentences

  1. Her body condition score is 7 out of 9, so she's overweight.

  2. We body condition score the cows at drying off and again before calving.

Common collocations

  • assess body condition score
  • ideal body condition score
  • body condition score of 5/9
  • condition scoring
  • dietThe food and drink an animal regularly has, or a special feeding plan used to manage a health problem, such as a kidney diet or a weight-loss diet.
  • feedFood given to farm animals, such as hay, silage, grain or compound feed. As a verb, feed means to give food to an animal.
  • husbandryThe everyday care and management of farm animals, including housing, feeding, breeding, hygiene and handling.
  • calvingThe process of a cow giving birth to a calf. The verb is calve, and the time of year when the cows give birth is the calving season.

More terms: Nutrition, Husbandry and Welfare

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This page explains English vocabulary for learners. It is not medical advice.