Reprinted from The Highland Cattle Society (Scotland) Newsletter.
The Use of Frame Scores
Breeding livestock cannot be selected on one factor alone but the use of height measurement and frame scores can be an aid to the selection and production of a growthier type of Highlander.
The frame score system (FSS) of measuring and assessing the growth potential of cattle was developed at the University of Missouri and has been adopted by the majority of cattle breeders throughout the world to the extent that it is now an international measurement of frame size.
A frame score is obtained for an animal by taking a height measurement at the rump which in conjunction with the animal’s age can be converted into a score. It is a proven fact, all things being environmentally equal, that a calf born with a larger frame size than its contemporaries will maintain that advantage throughout life and end up the taller more mature animal. It is upon this fact that the use of frame scores is based. The measurements within a frame score bracket are merely the growth pattern of an animal from month to month until maturity.
A bull at 7 months old measuring 38” will be classified as Frame Score 2 and will end up at a mature height of approximately 49” whereas a bull of Frame Score 4 would be 42” at 7 months old and should produce a mature height of 53”
It is one might think easy to visually compare cattle the same age and select the tallest and growthiest but the advantage of the frame score system is that you can measure bulls of different ages and convert these measurements into a frame score thereby assessing the growth potential and maturity size of cattle at different stages of life.
It is interesting to note the frame scores and relative prices of Highland bulls at the Oban, Scotland, February 1989 Sale :
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