Short communication: Design and validation of a hygiene score for calves

摘要

The objective of this study was the establishmentand validation of a scoring system for calf dirtiness.Defined areas of the belly, side, and rear of the calveswere scored according to the percentage of dirtiness:score 1 ranges from 0 to 10% of the area (no or littlesoiling), score 2 from over 10 to 30% (medium soiling),and score 3 applies to soiling of more than 30%of the area (heavy soiling). The scores of the individualregions were summed up to yield the calf hygiene score(CHS) ranging from 3 to 9. The validation of the CHSwas performed by 5 veterinarians on 42 calves. It wasvalidated for its inter- and intra-observer-reliability andagainst a standard method created by image processingof photographs of calves. The agreement betweenthe observers and the standard method was weak tomoderate with kappa values from 0.58 to 0.67. Interandintra-observer reliability resulted in a moderate tostrong agreement with 29 of 36 kappa values between0.60 and 0.89. The CHS was thus successfully validatedas reliable and could be a useful tool for herd healthmanagement.