ZIMS Body Condition Score

 

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The body condition score is visible as part of the basic animal information in the Husbandry module, and within the animal information in the Medical module.

 

Topics

Body Condition Scores

Definitions

 

Entering Single Body Condition Scores from an Animal Record

Permissions Needed

Viewing and Adding Body Condition Scores

 

Entering Single Body Condition Scores from a Medical Record

  Permissions Needed

  Viewing and Adding Body Condition Scores

 

Entering Batch Body Condition Scores from the Medical Dashboard

  Permissions Needed

  Viewing and Adding Body Condition Scores

 

Entering Batch Body Condition Scores from the Care and Welfare Module

  Permissions Needed

  Viewing and Adding Body Condition Scores

 

Body Condition Scores

For the body condition scoring component in ZIMS we use a 9-point scale, experts selected this option for standardization across the globe. A 5-point scale can still be used by converting the scores to a 9-point scale.

 

5-point scale	1	1.5	2	2.5	3	3.5	4	4.5	5
9-point scale	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9

 

 

Definitions

NOTE: These definitions are current as of Sept 2020. Updated definitions are always presented inside of ZIMS when hovering over the drop-down list of BCS values.

 

1. Emaciated - Animal extremely emaciated; spinous processes, ribs, tail head, hip joints and lower pelvic bones projecting prominently; bone structure of shoulders and back easily noticeable; no fatty tissue can be felt. In birds, keel sharp and pectoral muscle mass minimal, dry and brittle feathers.

2. Very Underconditioned - Animal emaciated; slight fat covering over base of spinous processes; transverse processes of lumbar vertebrae feel rounded; spinous processes, ribs, tail head, hip joints and lower pelvic bones prominent; shoulders and back structure faintly discernible. In birds, keel

prominent and pectoral muscle mass steep.

3. Moderately Underconditioned - Fat buildup about halfway on spinous processes; transverse processes cannot be felt; slight fat cover over ribs; spinous processes and ribs easily discernible; tailhead prominent, but individual vertebrae cannot be identified visually; hip joints appear rounded

but easily discernible; lower pelvic bones not distinguishable; shoulders and neck accentuated. In birds, keel discernable and pectoral muscle mass mildly rounded.

4. Slightly Underconditioned - Slight ridge along back; faint outline of ribs discernible; tailhead prominence depends on conformation, fat can be felt around it; hip joints not discernible; shoulders and neck not obviously thin. In birds, keel faintly discernible and pectoral muscle mass rounded.

5. Ideal condition - Back is flat (no crease or ridge); ribs not visually distinguishable but easily felt; fat around tailhead beginning to feel spongy; shoulders and neck blend smoothly into body. In birds, pectoral musculature well-formed and rounded with a slight dip on either side of the sternum.

6. Slightly overconditioned - Slight crease down back; fat over ribs spongy; fat around tailhead soft; fat beginning to be deposited behind shoulders and along sides of neck. In birds, pectoral muscles rounded and edge of sternum palpable.

7. Moderately overconditioned - Crease down back; individual ribs can be felt, but noticeable filling between ribs with fat; fat around tailhead soft; fat deposited along behind shoulders and along neck. In birds, pectoral muscles rounded flat to sternum; fat deposition visible in jugular furrow, abdomen,

and around tailhead.

8. Very overconditioned - In mammals, crease down back; difficult to feel ribs; fat around tailhead very soft; area behind shoulder filled with fat; noticeable thickening of neck; fat deposited along inner thighs. In birds, pectoral muscles bulging and exceeding edge of sternum; fat deposited in jugular furrow obscures visualization of blood vessels; fat deposited in flanks and abdomen, and around tailhead.
 

9. Obese - Obvious crease down back; patchy fat appearing over ribs; bulging fat around tailhead, behind shoulders and along neck.; fat along inner thighs may rub together; flank filled with fat. In birds, pectoral muscles bulging and exceeding edge of sternum; fat deposited heavily in jugular furrow obscuring visualization of blood vessels; fat deposited heavily in the flanks, abdomen,

and around tailhead.

 

Entering Single Body Condition Scores from an Animal Record

Body condition scores can be entered onto an animal record. You cannot perform batch Body Condition entries within the Animal Module, this will have to be done through the Medical module Batch Weight, BCS & Health Status app or through a Care and Welfare module template.

 

Permissions needed

For a user to be able to enter body condition scores, they will need at least the following permissions:

Husbandry permissions:

1. Search/View for ‘Animal Detail’ within the ‘Animal’ module.

 

Medical permissions:

1. Search/View, Add, (and Edit and Remove if required) for ‘Body Condition Score’ within the ‘Medical Records’ module.

 

Viewing and Adding Body Condition Scores

To add a body condition score, open up an animal record. Within the Basic Info box, you will see Body Condition Score (1). The most recent score will display, or ‘Undetermined’ if one has not been recorded. Click on the score (or undetermined if not set) to open the Body Condition Score History (2). Here you can view and edit previous entries or add a new score by clicking Add Body Condition Score (3). A pop-up will appear (4) to add the body condition score, along with the Date, Responsible Party, and any Details. 

 

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Entering Single Body Condition Scores from a Medical Record

Body condition scores can be entered within the Medical module.

 

Permissions needed

For a user to be able to enter body condition scores, they will need at least the following permissions:

 

Husbandry permissions:

1. Search/View for ‘Animal Detail’ within the ‘Animal’ module.

 

 

 

 

2. Search/View for ‘Identifier’ within the ‘Animal’ module.

 

Medical permissions:

3. Search/View, Add, Edit (and Remove if required) for ‘Body Condition Score’ within the ‘Medical Records’ module.

 

4. Plus, one other medical permission which allows access to the Medical Dashboard, for example Search/View Physiological Measurements.

 

Viewing and Adding Body Condition Scores

Body Condition Scores appear in the panel on the right side (1). The most recent score will display, or ‘Undetermined’ if one has not been recorded. Click on the score (or undetermined if not set) to open the Body Condition Score History (2). Here you can view and edit previous entries or add a new score by clicking Add Body Condition Score (3). A pop-up will appear (4) to add the body condition score, along with the Date, Responsible Party, and any Details. 

 

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Entering Batch Body Condition Scores from the Medical Dashboard

Batch Body Condition Scores can be entered from the Medical module using the Batch Entry Weight, Health Status & BCS within the Medical Apps menu.

 

Permissions needed

For a user to be able to enter body condition scores, they will need at least the following permissions:

 

Husbandry permissions:

1. Search/View for ‘Animal Detail’ within the ‘Animal’ module.

 

2. Search/View for ‘Identifier’ within the ‘Animal’ module.

 

Note: to also add weights through the Batch App, you will need also need to give Search/View, Add, Edit and Remove access to Measurements within the ‘Animal’ module.

 

Medical permissions:

3. Search/View, Add, Edit (and Remove if required) for ‘Body Condition Score’ within the ‘Medical Records’ module.

 

4. Plus, one other medical permission which allows access to the Medical Dashboard, for example Search/View Physiological Measurements.

 

Note: to also add Health Status through the Batch App, you will need also need to give Search/View, Add, Edit and Remove access to ‘Health Status’ within the ‘Medical Records’ module.

 

Viewing and Adding Body Condition Scores

Within the Medical Apps menu, choose Batch Entry Weight, Health Status & BCS

 

First, choose the animals you want to add a score to (1) then click Next (2).

 

The pop-up will look different depending on whether you have also given Health Status and Weight permissions. Here we only have Body Condition Score permissions.

The batch box will take you through each animal one-by-one. The details of which animal you are entering on can be seen at the top of the box (1). Fill in the information for this animal (2), then click Save to move through your list. 

 

Entries added through the app will be stored in their usual place, and can be viewed in both the Husbandry and Medical modules.

 

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Entering Batch Body Condition Scores from the Care and Welfare Module

Batch Body Condition Scores can also be entered from the Care and Welfare module using the templates. The Care and Welfare module needs to be turned on for your institution, but can then be found in the Start Menu under Animals, Care and Welfare.

 

Permissions needed

For a user to be able to enter body condition scores, they will need at least the following permissions:

 

Husbandry permissions:

1. Search/View for ‘Animal Detail’ within the ‘Animal’ module.

 

2. Search/View for ‘Care and Welfare Indicator’ and ‘Care and Welfare Indicator Value’ within the ‘Care and Welfare’ module, as well as Search/View, Add, Edit and Remove for ‘Care and Welfare Measurements/Template’ within the ‘Care and Welfare’ module. 

 

 

Medical permissions:

3. Search/View, Add, Edit (and Remove if required) for ‘Body Condition Score’ within the ‘Medical Records’ module.

 

Viewing and Adding Body Condition Scores

Templates will need to be pre-made, find out how to set up templates here .

Note: make sure to set up the template with the Global Indicator ‘Body Condition Score’, and make sure you have shared the template to allow others to use it.

 

Open the Care and Welfare module and navigate to Templates (1). Open the required template by clicking on the blue name of the template (2).

The animals will list in the way you chose when setting up the template (1), whether you chose to list individual animals, animals within a specific taxonomy, or in a specific enclosure. Choose the score from the same pre-defined list (2). Use the ‘copy down’ button (3) to easily copy the same score to all animals below and add any details to the note field (4).

 

All entries added through the template will be stored in their usual place and can be viewed in both the Medical and Animal modules.

 

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Revised 5 March 2025