Why score animals?
Scoring animals provides farm managers and consultants with an objective record of animal health and environmental conditions at a particular point in time. Depending on the score type, singular timepoints or scores may not be very useful, but as scores are monitored overtime, it can tell a much bigger story.
Scoring for animal management helps qualify the impact of management changes overtime. Determining the outcome of decisions is easier with objective measurements relying on standardized methods. BoviSync Pen Scoring includes many standard measurements. In addition, if measurements impact individual animal decisions, producers may elect to use an event entry.
Individual score (event entry) or pen score?
There are a handful of score types in BoviSync that are available in both event entry and pen scoring. This table lists the comparable title of the score type in event entry and pen scoring.
Event Entry | Pen Scoring |
BCS | Body Condition Score |
Locomotion | Locomotion Score |
Diagnostic Test - Feces | Manure |
Diagnostic Test - Urine pH | Urine pH
|
When would you enter a score as an event for an animal?
If you want to make a decision on an individual animal based on the score, then you would want to record the score as an event. A common example of this is BCS (body condition score). For example, you may decide to body condition score animals in the post-fresh pen. Depending on the score, you decide to move her into a specific pen. In doing so, these animals can be managed based on their BCS, often by different rations or dry matter intakes.
When would you pen score?
If you want to make a decision on or understand what is happening in a group of animals (a pen), you may want to consider pen scoring. This allows you to analyze or make management decisions per pen.
In this scenario, you are entering scores on individual animals, but the analysis and management decisions are done on a per-pen basis. On any given score date, you will see summary information by pen, such as score average, frequency, and percentage. Herd managers and consultants can then monitor these values overtime.
Using BCS as an example again, you may want to monitor specific pens over time and over different management changes (such as change in ration or stocking density).
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