Previous Test Flashcards
List 3 things related to the nutrient intake of the “average person” in a country when its
socioeconomic status goes from being underdeveloped to being developed.
Total caloric intake increases; total protein intake increases; proportion of nutrients from animal
sources increases.
What is the biggest challenge in studying animal behavior?
Human bias or anthropomorphism
What is the main reason why chemical and mechanical digestion usually occur before enzymatic
digestion in the digestive tract of animals?
Increase surface area upon which enzymes work
What has happened to the WHO’s estimates of undernourished people from 2005 through this past
year, 2020 (be specific)?
Decreased from 2005 to 2010; remained fairly constant from 2010 to 2019; increased between 2019
and 2020 and returned to levels similar to those seen in 2005 due to pandemic, so technically there
has been no net change from 2005 through 2020.
In the U.S. does the livestock industry (animals used for food and fiber) or the companion animal
industry have the largest total economic impact and why?
Livestock industry since the gross income is so much higher than that associated with companion
animals (even though the economic impact factor is higher for companion animals). I think quite a
few people answered this one based on the economic impact factor which is higher for companion
animals but the question didn’t mention anything about the economic impact factor jus the total
economic impact.
- List one similarity and one difference between the omasum in cattle and the stomach in pigs.
Similarity: both involved with mechanical digestion
Differences: pig stomach also involved with chemical or enzymatic digestion; or pig stomach
connects to small intestines whereas omasum connect to abomasum.
- What is the main difference between retrospective and prospective studies?
With retrospective the variable (response) of interest occurs before the population is assigned to
groups or treatments. With prospective the population is assigned to groups or treatments first and
then the variable of interest (response) is measures.
- On a world-wide basis what do most people eat to meet their protein needs?
Cereals (only got half credit for plants since not all plants are cereals)
If a horse ate a mixture of alfalfa hay and oats, then list all the places where enzymatic digestion
would occur.
Stomach and intestines for oats and cecum for hay
- How do students in ANS 150 find out their scores on their mid-term examinations?
Pick them up in the hallway outside of Dr. Flowers office in Polk Hall (between 243/245)
- Classify completely all the behaviors that are exhibited by the pigs in the following example.
A swine producer purchased a new boar (adult male pig). On the first day the farmer opens the gate to
his pen and the boar retreats to the back of the pen. The farmer gently guides the boar out of the pen;
down an alley way; and into a breeding pen. In the breeding pen a sow (adult female pig) in estrus is
waiting. As soon as the sow sees the boar she initiates the standing reflex (breeding posture in pigs). The
boar breeds the sow. After the breeding is over, the farmer guides the boar back to his pen. On the
second day, the farmer enters the barn and finds the boar standing in front of the breeding pen even
though there is no sow in the breeding pen. The farmer puts the boar back in his own pen. On the third
day, the farmer enters the barn and finds the boar waiting at the front of his pen. When the farmer lets
the boar out, he (the boar) races down to the breeding pen. A new sow is in the pen that is not in estrus.
However, the boar chases her around the pen and tries to mount her anyway.
Behavior:
Boar retreats to back of pen = Instinct, social
Sow in estrus and assumes breeding posture= Instinct, sexual
Boar breeds sow = instinct, sexual
Boar in front of breeding pen on second day and
Boar waiting in front of pen and races to breeding pen
on third day = Conditioning, sexual
Boar tries to breed sow not in estrus = instinct, sexual
You get a call from a farmer. The farmer has two goats. The farmer was feeding the goats a mixture
of corn, oats and barley. Both goats were growing slowly on this mixture of feed. The farmer added
orchardgrass and timothy hay to the diet. The growth of one of the goats increased whereas the
growth of the other goat still remained low. The farmer wants to know how this could occur so you
have to provide the farmer with an explanation (hint: think about the digestive tract and where things
happen). Please defend your answer in order to receive full credit
Goats are ruminants. Corn, oats and barley are cereals so their fiber content (cellulose) is low.
Orchardgrass and timothy hays are roughages so their fiber content is high. In ruminants, both grains
and hays (roughages) are digested pretty much the same way. Mechanical digestion in the mouth;
enzymatic digestion in the rumen by microbes. The microbes have cellulase for the roughages and other
enzymes (microbial proteases; lipases; and sucrases) for proteins, fats and carbohydrates in the grain.
Mechanical in the omasum. Chemical, mechanical, and enzymatic in the abomasum. More enzymatic in
small intestines and this is where all the nutrients should be absorbed. The cecum also has microbes and
they mostly contain cellulase to digest forages/roughages. However, if everything is working properly,
then the cecum probably isn’t very active in ruminants.
In essence, there are two “chances” or “places” in the ruminant to digest both hays and grains. For the
hay it would be the rumen since it has the microbes with the cellulase and the cecum. For the grains, it
would be the rumen because the microbes also enzymes to digest proteins, carbohydrates, and fats that
aren’t in roughages and the abomasum.
Both goats growing slowly on mixture of grain indicates that something probably is wrong with the
rumen and abomasum. The gain should be digested in the rumen by the microbes. If it isn’t, then there is
actually a second chance for it to be digested in the abomasum since grain is low in fiber. The fact that
the growth in both goats in slow on grain indicates that there could be something wrong with both of
these. It also is possible that there are problems with absorption in the small intestine as well and this
could be a problem and cause slow growth even if the rumen and abomasum are working properly. If
this were the case, then the digested nutrients would go through the small intestine and enter the cecum
to be absorbed but this isn’t very efficient.
When the one goat’s growth increases with the addition of hay, this means that the cecum in this goat
probably is working normally whereas the cecum in the goat whose growth doesn’t increase also is
having problems. The cecum would be the “second chance” for the ruminant to digest and absorb
roughages.
