A Body Condition Scoring System for Bali Cattle

Live weight, body length, hip and shoulder heights, heart girth, and metatarsal length were measured on 100 one to two years old Bali (Bos javanicus) bulls. Multiple regression of these measurements on live weight gave a prediction equation involving heart girth and body length (prediction R 2 = 0.845). These measurements were also used to derive several frame scores (FS). Live weight (Lwt) divided by FS was used as an index of body condition. Lwt/(length+hip height) was normally distributed and highly correlated with other normally-distributed condition indexes. This index was used to define five body condition scores. These were used to develop a five-point body condition scoring system in which the amount of fleshing over the vertebral processes, ribs, hindquarters, tail head, hooks, at the top of the neck, and the shoulders, the development of wrinkles in the skin above the hock and the neck, and the size of the dewlap, were used to describe the different body condition scores. Animals of score 1 had prominent hooks, shoulders, vertebrae and ribs, and hollow hindquarters and flat tailhead. Score 5 animals had rounded hindquarters, well-filled upper hind legs, small mounds of soft tissue were apparent on the tailhead, their hooks, necks, shoulders, vertebrae and ribs were well covered, and the dewlap was prominent.