Body Measurements and Body Condition Scoring in Bactrian Camels

Body measurements were used regularly to describe phenotypes or the weight of the animal. However, few data described the age effect on the different measurements. In the present paper, 477 Bactrian camels (7-180 months old) were measured, and their growth was modelized by using Beta-Growth equation. The body condition scoring is widely used in farm animals as indicator of their feeding, health and welfare status. If the body condition score was available for dromedary, there was no specific grid for Bactrian camel. Starting from typical examples taken from photos in different condi-tions, including extreme ones, a representation of a scoring in 6 points from very ema-ciated (score 0) to overweighed Bactrian camel (score 5) was proposed in the form of drawings from right side, back and three-quarter rear. To complete the drawings a descriptive grid was built as a base for training stakeholders in relation to Bactrian camel farm management. However, the seasonal change in the fleece abundance, the variability of the humps’ shape, and the presence of crossbreed with dromedary camel require to adapt the scoring accordingly.