DIGESTION IN RUMINANT WHAT IS A RUMINANT ANIMAL

DIGESTION IN RUMINANT

WHAT IS A RUMINANT ANIMAL ? A grazing animal that has a digestive system with 1 stomach containing 4 parts OTHER CHARACTERISTICS: No upper incisors (teeth)called a dental pad. Chews cud (soft mass of already chewed food)that is brought back up through the esophagus. All ruminants are herbivores, meaning they only eat plant matter.

CAN YOU THINK OF ANY RUMINANT ANIMALS?

PATHWAY OF FOOD THROUGH DIGESTIVE SYSTEM: 1. Mouth 2. Esophagus 3. Rumen 4. Back to mouth for “chewing of cud” 5. Reticulum 6. Omasum 7. Abomasum 8. Small intestine 9. Large intestine

Functions of the digestive system of animals include: ingestion (eating) chewing (mastication) swallowing (deglutition) absorption of nutrients elimination of solid wastes (defecation) Compartment Capacity: Reticulum - 5% of capacity Rumen - 80% of capacity Omasum - 7% of capacity Abomasum - 8% of capacity

GETTING STARTED! q Using prehensile organs (lips & tongue) the animal take food into its mouth where it is then broken down using the teeth. v THE ESOPHAGUS: q After the food is broken down into smaller particles it is swallowed and passes through the esophagus using muscle contraction known as peristalsis. v THE RUMEN: q The largest compartment of the ruminant stomach is the rumen. This is where the food that the animal has been taken in is mostly fermented, it also houses the bacteria, protozoa, and fungi that aids in the breaking down of food. q Microbes in the rumen are what break up the plant matter and convert it to energy that the animal can use. q Fermentation also produces large amounts of gas.

v CHEWING CUD: Food that is stored in the rumen is regurgitated back up through esophagus to be re-chewed in the mouth. This is know as ”chewing cud”. Food can be re -chewed more than onetime. The food that is regurgitated back into the mouth is know as a bolus. Once the food has been broken down enough it will then move onto the next step in the digestion process of being swallowed, moved through the esophagus then back into the rumen.

v THE RETICULUM: Once food is broken down small enough it will travel from the rumen to the reticulum. The reticulum is the honeycomb shaped on the inside and is very tough. The reticulum can trap foreign objects that should not have been eaten in the first place, such as hardware.

v THE OMASUM: Food enters the omasum after leaving the reticulum. The omasum acts as a filter to absorb water and nutrients from what has not been digested yet. The omasum resembles an open book because of its “pages” texture. v ABOMASUM: Once leaving the omasum the rest of the plant matter will enter the abomasum. The abomasum is also known as the true stomach. In the abomasum gastric juices, hydrochloric acid, and digestive enzymes break plant matter down into its most basic molecular components so that the walls of the intestines can absorbs them.

v SMALL INTESTINE: From the abomasum the plant matter will then travel to the small intestine. Here it is exposed to enzymes from the pancreas and intestinal walls, and bile from the liver. Dietary protein, starch, sugars, and fats are all completely digested here to enter the bloodstream. v LARGE INTESTINE: Following the small intestine any remaining plant matter will pass into large intestine. This is the second site of fermentation (after the rumen) where excess water is reabsorbed. The large intestine is the final site of the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) and will hold feces until it is expelled through the anus.

SYMBIOTIC RELATIONSHIP: RUMINANTS MICRO ORGANISMS Ruminants supplies cellulose for micro organisms They can digest cellulose. Fats are not digested by the ruminants. Ruminants supply amino acids to microbes. Ruminants is benefitted by microbes. Fats are digested by the microbes to fatty acids which are used by the ruminants. Microbes use the amino acids to build proteins which are used by the ruminants. Microbes are benefitted by the ruminants.

Possible questions: 1. What is the process of digestion in ruminants? 2. What are the functions of the digestive system in animals? 3. Write an brief essay on digestion in ruminants? MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTION: 1) What stomach compartment has a honeycomb structure inside? 1. Rumen 2. Reticulum 3. Omasum 4. Abomasum 2) What stomach compartment is most like a human stomach? 1. Rumen 2. Reticulum 3. Omasum 4. Abomasum

3)What is the capacity of rumen? 1. 80% 2. 65% 3. 8% 4. 25% 4) An animal with a four-chambered stomach that consumes large quantities of plant material (cattle, sheep, goats) 1. Ruminant 2. Avian 3. Monogastric