The California (CA) BRD scoring system was developed by researchers at the University of California (UC) Davis’s School of Veterinary Medicine, Department of Animal Science and UC Agriculture and Natural Resources. This calf-side system relies on the binary classification of significant predictors of BRD in preweaned dairy calves based on a statistical model of over 2000 preweaned dairy calves. The system was also validated using data from over 500 preweaned dairy calves in California.

The app can be used as an aid to the herd veterinarian and producer in the prevention and control of pneumonia in pre-weaned dairy calves under the Veterinary Client Patient Relationship. Calves can be scored to determine their CA BRD score status and results stored in a searchable database on the user’s mobile device.
Users can also estimate the prevalence of BRD in a herd of calves by scoring a random sample of calves that the app identifies upon providing the herd size and the required inputs for a sample size formula or accepting the defaults for a best guess prevalence estimate (25%) and how tight of a 95% confidence interval is desired (10% bound).
Similarly, the Spanish version is accessible once the device language is switched.
Under settings, users can switch between Celsius and Fahrenheit temperature input and elect to email questions and results to the Veterinary Medicine Teaching and Research Center, UC Davis if that option is selected.


The CA BRD scoring system for preweaned dairy calves is based on the following research and referenced methods:


1 – Agreement between bovine respiratory disease scoring systems for pre-weaned dairy calves. Aly SS, Love WJ, Williams DR, Lehenbauer TW, Van Eenennaam A, Drake C, Kass PH, Farver TB. Anim Health Res Rev. 2014; 15:148-50.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25424381

2 – Development of a novel clinical scoring system for on-farm diagnosis of bovine respiratory disease in pre-weaned dairy calves. Love WJ, Lehenbauer TW, Kass PH, Van Eenennaam AL, Aly SS. PeerJ. 2014; 2;2:e238.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24482759

3– Sensitivity and specificity of on-farm scoring systems and nasal culture to detect bovine respiratory disease complex in preweaned dairy calves. Love WJ, Lehenbauer TW, Van Eenennaam AL, Drake CM, Kass PH, Farver TB, Aly SS. J Vet Diagn Invest. 2016; 28:119-28.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26796957

4 - Scheaffer, R. L., W. Mendenhall, and R. L. Ott. 1995. Elementary Survey Sampling. 5th ed. Duxbury Press, Belmont, MA.

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