Digestion

Question 1

what are the 4 types of digestive systems?

Answer 1

avian, monogastrics, ruminants, hindgut fermenters

Question 2

which type of digestive system does a pig have?

Answer 2

monogastric

Question 3

which type of digestive system does cattle, goats, sheep, and deer have?

Answer 3

ruminant

Question 4

which type of digestive system does horses, rabbits, and ostrich have?

Answer 4

hindgut fermenters

Question 5

what role does saliva play in the digestive system?

Answer 5

buffers pH from the rumen and moistens the food

Question 6

what is the order of how the food bolus travels in a ruminant?

Answer 6

1. rumen
2. reticulum
3. omasum
4. abomasum
5. small and large intestines

Question 7

rumen

Answer 7

aka “paunch”
largest stomach compartment
microbes, protozoa, and fungi use fermentation to digest food
produces proteins, volatile fatty acids, hydrogen, and CO2
contracts to mix food

Question 8

what role do the volatile fatty acids produced during fermentation in the rumen play in nutrition for ruminants?

Answer 8

VFAs make carbohydrates

Question 9

what type of relationship do the microbes and the ruminant have?

Answer 9

symbiotic
microbe needs warm moist environment
ruminant needs VFAs

Question 10

what are the 4 layers that the rumen contains?

Answer 10

gas at the top, solid in the middle, slurry forms in the middle just below solid, and liquid at the bottom

Question 11

reticulum

Answer 11

looks like honeycomb
controls rumen contractions
honeycomb pattern allows for more surface area to be used for nutrient absorption

Question 12

omasum

Answer 12

aka butcher’s bible (folds look like a book)
has folds that increase surface area for water and nutrient retention
absorbs water and salts
food bolus is squeezed

Question 13

abomasum

Answer 13

aka true stomach
secretes acids and enzymes

Question 14

how do ruminants get rid of the hydrogen and CO2 gases created from fermentation?

Answer 14

by belching otherwise animal will bloat
this is how methane is released into the atmosphere because hydrogen and CO2 gases produce methane

Question 15

eructate

Answer 15

belch

Question 16

what happens in the rumination process?

Answer 16

aka chewing the cud
forage from the rumen is regurgitated for further chewing and mixing with saliva

Question 17

what is the order of the rumination process?

Answer 17

1. regurgitation
2. re-chewing into smaller pieces
3. re-salivation
4. re-swallowing to go to the reticulum

Question 18

what is the average pH of ruminant saliva and why is it so important?

Answer 18

pH ~8.2
keeps rumen at a stable pH level otherwise VFAs would lower pH and could kill bacteria involved in the fermenting process, most food eaten by ruminants is acidic too
saliva also has a foam suppressing effect in the rumen which helps reduce bloat risk

Question 19

rumen canula

Answer 19

a surgical fistula created that allows direct access into the rumen
used for education, health monitoring, and treatment

Question 20

transfaunation

Answer 20

transferring rumen contents through a rumen canula to feed to other cows, sheep, or goats with impaired rumen digestion

Question 21

esophageal groove

Answer 21

muscular folds from the reticuloreumen
suckling reflex triggers esophageal groove to close so milk bypasses rumen and flows directly into abromasum
prevents milk from fermenting in rumen

Question 22

how does the rumen develop in young ruminants?

Answer 22

once they start eating solid food some will stay in the rumen and lead to microbial population developing and then gradually the rumen walls develop

Question 23

grazers

Answer 23

eat grass, ground vegetation

Question 24

browser

Answer 24

eats leaves, shoots, twigs
more selective diet

Question 25

forage

Answer 25

high-quality pasture crops supply nutrients needed through grass, oats, rye, barley and legumes like red clover, alfalfa

Question 26

what can goats not digest?

Answer 26

plant cellulose
give them lush pasture and supplemental hay or grains in winter

Question 27

most common high energy feeds

Answer 27

high-starch grains like corn, sorghum, barley, wheat

Question 28

creep feeding

Answer 28

supplemental feeding to nursing calves

Question 29

goat flushing

Answer 29

supplemental feed prior to breeding to induce ovulation of multiple eggs

Question 30

what does grain overload cause?

Answer 30

production of lactic acid which leads to bacteria production causing acidosis and bloat