Body Condition Score (BCS)

Body Condition Score is an important way to assess whether your pet is overweight or in good condition. 

There are several factors that are assessed when determining Body Condition:

Ribs: Ribs should be palpable easily and not seen. There should be minimal fat covering over them. 

Waste line: From above you should be able to see if there is a slight indentation at the waste

Tuck: There should be a slight tuck when you look at your pet from the side. The abdominal line should not be parallel to the ground. 

A BCS of 5 is optimal. Please refer to the charts below to determine your pet’s BCS. Make sure you ask your veterinarian to let you know what your pet’s BCS is and track their weight as well.