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Body Condition Scoring Grid for Zebu cattle (Sahel and Savannah areas)
No full textIn tropical countries, and especially in Sub-Saharan Africa (Sahel and Savannah areas), subject to significant quantitative and qualitative variations in the availability of fodder during the year, the dissatisfaction of feed needs is a frequent situation for animals reared in grazing systems without a sufficient supplementation with feed concentrates.
The Body Condition Scoring (BCS) is a useful way to assess the state of body reserves (subcutaneous fat, muscle mass) which reflects the animal's production (growth, milk, work) and reproduction capacities. The evaluation of the body reserves of an animal through the scoring of their body condition is important to adjust their diet and appreciate their general state of health, as well as their reproductive and production capacity (meat, milk, work, etc.). Managing body reserves is one way of responding to variability in quality and access to feed resources. In females, reserves play an important buffer role during lactation. They can make up for insufficient intakes from the ration. Indeed, the level of production depends on the nutrients provided by the feeds, but also on the animal's body reserves when the feed-based supplies do not fully cover their needs, especially during the dry season. The BCS impacts the interval between two calving. Overly lean females show a delay in the return of heat after calving, the direct consequence of which is the increase in the parturition interval and consequently a decrease in herd productivity.
The assessment of these reserves through Body Condition Scoring (BCS) represents a management tool for livestock farmers, agricultural advisors, and livestock development stakeholders. BCS is a simple, inexpensive and fast method. Several animals can be scored in one session. It allows to compare the BCS of individuals or herds: 1) raised in different production systems or environments, 2) or, during different seasons (dry season and rainy season). BCS can be used as a tool for monitoring and alerting the nutritional level of domestic animal populations. To do this, BCS alert thresholds and a BCS collection and monitoring system must be defined on reasoned samples of animal populations.
It is an easy-to-use field tool. However, a good mastery of the BCS grid as well as a regular practice of scoring are necessary to obtain precise and reproducible ratings. It can also be used as a tool for monitoring and alerting the nutritional level of animal populations. Thus, the farmer can be called at any time to intervene on the feed ration and / or the health of the animal.
In Sub-Saharan Africa, many studies have been carried out for developing a BCS grid for cattle and especially devoted to Zébu (Bos Indicus): Pullan (1978) for the White Fulani zebu of Nigeria; Nicholson & Butterworth (1989) for zebu (Bos indicus) in general; Cisse (1995) for the Gobra zebu; Vall et al. (2002) for White and Red Fulani draft zebus in Northern Cameroon; Vall & Bayala (2004) for Sudanese zebus). For the BCS grid presented into this document, we relied mainly on systems based on six level of BCS that is the most frequent (Pullan, 1978; Cisse, 1995; Vall & al., 2002; Vall & Bayala, 2004).
In 2020, Vall proposed a standardized BCS scoring system for tropical livestock animals for large animals (cattle, camels), small animals (sheep, and goats) and for donkeys, and horses. This document presents this BCS system applied to the Zebu cattle from Sahel and Savannah areas
Body Condition Scoring Grid for Sheep (Sahel and Savannah areas)
No full textIn tropical countries subject to significant quantitative and qualitative variations in the availability of fodder during the year, the dissatisfaction of feed needs is a frequent situation for animals reared in grazing systems without a sufficient supplementation with feed concentrates.
The Body Condition Scoring (BCS) is a useful way to assess the state of body reserves (subcutaneous fat, muscle mass) which reflects the animal's production (growth, milk, work) and reproduction capacities. The evaluation of the body reserves of an animal through the scoring of their body condition is important to adjust their diet and appreciate their general state of health, as well as their reproductive and production capacity (meat, milk, work, etc.). Managing body reserves is one way of responding to variability in quality and access to feed resources. In females, reserves play an important buffer role during lactation. They can make up for insufficient intakes from the ration. Indeed, the level of production depends on the nutrients provided by the feeds, but also on the animal's body reserves when the feed-based supplies do not fully cover their needs, especially during the dry season. The BCS impacts the interval between two lambing. Overly lean females show a delay in the return of heat after lambing, the direct consequence of which is the increase in the parturition interval and consequently a decrease in herd productivity.
The assessment of these reserves through Body Condition Scoring (BCS) represents a management tool for livestock farmers, agricultural advisors and livestock development stakeholders. BCS is a simple, inexpensive and fast method. Several animals can be scored in one session. It allows to compare the BCS of individuals or herds: 1) raised in different production systems or environments, 2) or, during different seasons (dry season and rainy season). BCS can be used as a tool for monitoring and alerting the nutritional level of domestic animal populations. To do this, BCS alert thresholds and a BCS collection and monitoring system must be defined on reasoned samples of animal populations.
It is an easy-to-use field tool. However, a good mastery of the BCS grid as well as a regular practice of scoring are necessary to obtain precise and reproducible ratings. It can also be used as a tool for monitoring and alerting the nutritional level of animal populations. Thus, the farmer can be called at any time to intervene on the feed ration and / or the health of the animal.
In African regions, most of the sheep breeds belongs to slender type, with elongated legs and poorly developed muscular masses. Fat is mainly deposited on internal organs (e.g. intermuscular). According to Richard (1997), it is possible to identify a scale of variation according to the general individual body condition following criteria similar to those used in Europe. Inspired in the body condition scoring grid (from 0 to 5) developed by Russel et al. (1969), Richard (1997) proposed a scoring system for Fulani sheep widely present in the Sahelian regions.
In 2020, Vall proposed a standardized BCS scoring system for tropical livestock animals for large animals (cattle, camels), small animals (sheep, and goats) and for donkeys, and horses. This document presents this BCS system applied to the Sahelian goat. For harmonizing the BCS method to be used in sheep with regard to that used for other species, we propose a 6-level system assuming that sheep flocks and populations may include extreme animals, going from very thin (i.e. due to extreme feeding and nutritional conditions or as a consequence of gastrointestinal parasitism), to very fatty or obese (resulting from intensive farming with generous fattening feeding systems)
Body Condition Scoring Grid for Goat (Sahel and Savannah areas)
No full textIn tropical countries subject to significant quantitative and qualitative variations in the availability of fodder during the year, the dissatisfaction of feed needs is a frequent situation for animals maintained on rangelands without a sufficient supplementation with feed concentrates.
The Body Condition Scoring (BCS) is a useful way to assess the state of body reserves (subcutaneous fat, muscle mass) which reflects the animal's production (growth, milk, work) and reproduction capacities. The evaluation of the body reserves of an animal through the scoring of their body condition is important to adjust their diet and appreciate their general state of health, as well as their reproductive and production capacity (meat, milk, work, etc.). Managing body reserves is one way of responding to variability in quality and access to feed resources. In females, reserves play an important buffer role during lactation. They can make up for insufficient intakes from the ration. Indeed, the level of production depends on the nutrients provided by the feeds, but also on the animal's body reserves when the feed-based supplies do not fully cover their needs, especially during the dry season. The BCS impacts the interval between births. Overly lean females show a delay in the return of heat after giving birth, the direct consequence of which is the increase in the parturition interval and consequently a decrease in herd productivity.
The assessment of these reserves through Body Condition Scoring (BCS) represents a management tool for livestock farmers, agricultural advisors and livestock development stakeholders. BCS is a simple, inexpensive and fast method. Several animals can be scored in one session. It allows to compare the BCS of individuals or herds: 1) raised in different production systems or environments, 2) or, during different seasons (dry season and rainy season). BCS can be used as a tool for monitoring and alerting the nutritional level of domestic animal populations. To do this, BCS alert thresholds and a BCS collection and monitoring system must be defined on reasoned samples of animal populations.
It is an easy-to-use field tool. However, a good mastery of the BCS grid as well as a regular practice of scoring are necessary to obtain precise and reproducible ratings. It can also be used as a tool for monitoring and alerting the nutritional level of animal populations. Thus, the farmer can be called at any time to intervene on the feed ration and / or the health of the animal.
Few studies have been carried out for developing a BCS grid, specially devoted and applicable to Sub-Saharan goats in Africa. Existing BCS systems for goats are based on a four-points BCS grid (Imadine, 1991), which has been adapted from systems previously developed for temperate goats (Morand-Fehr and Branca, 1987; Hervieu et al., 1991). Such a system includes examining the lumbar region (transverse and spinous apophyses, fat thickness, and skin appearance), the sternal region (fat thickness) and the general appearance of the animal (ribs, bones protrusions in the rump, transverse and spinous apophyses; Imadine, 1991; Cisse 1995; Cisse et al., 1992, 1994). The criteria retained by those authors includes observation from the rear and from the flank of the animal.
In 2020, Vall proposed a standardized BCS scoring system for tropical livestock animals for large animals (cattle, camels), small animals (sheep, and goats) and for donkeys, and horses. This document presents this BCS system applied to the Sahelian goat
Body Condition Scoring Grid for Buffaloes (Vietnam)
No full textIn tropical countries subject to significant quantitative and qualitative variations in the availability of fodder during the year, the dissatisfaction of feed needs is a frequent situation for animals raired in grazing systems without a sufficient supplementation with feed concentrates.
The Body Condition Scoring (BCS) is a useful way to assess the state of body reserves (subcutaneous fat, muscle mass) which reflects the animal's production (growth, milk, work) and reproduction capacities. The evaluation of the body reserves of an animal through the scoring of their body condition is important to adjust their diet and appreciate their general state of health, as well as their reproductive and production capacity (meat, milk, work, etc.). Managing body reserves is one way of responding to variability in quality and access to feed resources. In females, reserves play an important buffer role during lactation. They can make up for insufficient intakes from the ration. Indeed, the level of production depends on the nutrients provided by the feeds, but also on the animal's body reserves when the feed-based supplies do not fully cover their needs, especially during the dry season. The BCS impacts the interval between two calving. Overly lean cows show a delay in the return of heat after calving, the direct consequence of which is the increase in the parturition interval and consequently a decrease in herd productivity.
The assessment of these reserves through Body Condition Scoring (BCS) represents a management tool for livestock farmers, agricultural advisors and livestock development stakeholders. BCS is a simple, inexpensive and fast method. Several animals can be scored in one session. It allows to compare the BCS of individuals or herds: 1) raised in different production systems or environments, 2) or, during different seasons (dry season and rainy season). BCS can be used as a tool for monitoring and alerting the nutritional level of domestic animal populations. To do this, BCS alert thresholds and a BCS collection and monitoring system must be defined on reasoned samples of animal populations.
It is an easy-to-use field tool. However, a good mastery of the BCS grid as well as a regular practice of scoring are necessary to obtain precise and reproducible ratings. It can also be used as a tool for monitoring and alerting the nutritional level of animal populations. Thus, the farmer can be called at any time to intervene on the feed ration and / or the health of the animal.
The BCS grid currently used in the intervention area of the Beef Cattle 2 project, does not seem to have been developed with reference to the breeds of buffaloes present in Northern Vietnam. This is the reason why we propose this BCS grid adapted to Buffaloes (Bubalus bubalis).
In 2020, Vall proposed a standardized BCS scoring system for tropical livestock animals for large animals (cattle, camels), small animals (sheep, and goats) and for donkeys, and horses. This document presents this BCS system applied to the Buffalo
Body Condition Scoring Grid for Yellow Cattle (Vietnam)
No full textIn tropical countries subject to significant quantitative and qualitative variations in the availability of fodder during the year, the dissatisfaction of feed needs is a frequent situation for animals reared in grazing systems without a sufficient supplementation with feed concentrates.
The Body Condition Scoring (BCS) is a useful way to assess the state of body reserves (subcutaneous fat, muscle mass) which reflects the animal's production (growth, milk, work) and reproduction capacities. The evaluation of the body reserves of an animal through the scoring of their body condition is important to adjust their diet and appreciate their general state of health, as well as their reproductive and production capacity (meat, milk, work, etc.). Managing body reserves is one way of responding to variability in quality and access to feed resources. In females, reserves play an important buffer role during lactation. They can make up for insufficient intakes from the ration. Indeed, the level of production depends on the nutrients provided by the feeds, but also on the animal's body reserves when the feed-based supplies do not fully cover their needs, especially during the dry season. The BCS impacts the interval between two calving. Overly lean cows show a delay in the return of heat after calving, the direct consequence of which is the increase in the parturition interval and consequently a decrease in herd productivity.
The assessment of these reserves through Body Condition Scoring (BCS) represents a management tool for livestock farmers, agricultural advisors, and livestock development stakeholders. BCS is a simple, inexpensive and fast method. Several animals can be scored in one session. It allows to compare the BCS of individuals or herds: 1) raised in different production systems or environments, 2) or, during different seasons (dry season and rainy season). BCS can be used as a tool for monitoring and alerting the nutritional level of domestic animal populations. To do this, BCS alert thresholds and a BCS collection and monitoring system must be defined on reasoned samples of animal populations.
It is an easy-to-use field tool. However, a good mastery of the BCS grid as well as a regular practice of scoring are necessary to obtain precise and reproducible ratings. It can also be used as a tool for monitoring and alerting the nutritional level of animal populations. Thus, the farmer can be called at any time to intervene on the feed ration and / or the health of the animal.
The BCS grid currently used in the intervention area of the Beef Cattle 2 project, does not seem to have been developed with reference to the breeds of cattle present in Northern Vietnam. This is the reason why we propose this BCS grid adapted to Yellow Cattle (crossbred Bos indicus x Bos taurus).
In 2020, Vall proposed a standardized BCS scoring system for tropical livestock animals for large animals (cattle, camels), small animals (sheep, and goats) and for donkeys, and horses. This document presents this BCS system applied to the Yellow cattle
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Full text linkWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
Full text linkWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
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