Ruminant GI Tract

Question 1

Monogastric GI tract
1. Kind of stomach
2. How many compartments?
3. Examples?
4. Diet consists of…

Answer 1

1. Simple stomach
2. One compartment
3. Humans, pigs, cats & dogs
4. Low fiber, high protein food

Question 2

Ruminants
1. Herbivore, carnivore, or omnivore?
2. How many compartments?
3. Fore-gut fermentation vat to digest ____.
4. Diet consists of…
5. Examples?

Answer 2

1. Herbivore
2. Four compartments
3. Digest plants
4. High fiber, low protein, & low fat diet
5. Cow, deer, Llama, goat, sheep

Question 3

Why do some species ferment?

Answer 3

So they can gather and store large amounts of food quickly for later chewing and fermentation in safe areas.
This allows for a more complete mechanical breakdown; although it is slower.

Question 4

Do ruminants have upper incisors?

Answer 4

NO, they have dental pad in place of the incisors

Question 5

Bovine ruminants chew ___ and have up to __,___-__,___ jaw movements/day

Answer 5

1. Chew CUD
2. 40,000-60,000 jaw movements/day

Question 6

T/F: Bovine bite grass when eating

Answer 6

False, they wrap their tongue around the grass to eat. No biting involved.

Question 7

Bovine use ___ to digest plants and have a ___ relationship with bacteria.

Answer 7

1. Fermentation
2. Symbiotic

Question 8

T/F: Bovine produce 13 gallons of gas/hour

Answer 8

True

Question 9

T/F: Bovine produce 40L of saliva/day

Answer 9

True!

Question 10

Bovine are…

Answer 10

An animal of the cattle group

Question 11

What are the four compartments of a ruminants stomach?

Answer 11

1. Rumen - fermentation vat
2. Reticulum - rumen’s “assistant”
3. Omasum - dehydrator
4. Abomasum - glandular “true” stomach

Question 12

Rumen contains ____ and ferments ____.

Answer 12

1. Micro-organisms
2. Cellulose

Question 13

Where are VFA’s absorbed? The flora of this region helps w/the absorption!

Answer 13

Rumen!

Question 14

The rumen is continually having coordinated contractions every ___ to ___ minutes.

Answer 14

1 to 2 minutes

Question 15

What is the pH of the rumen?

Answer 15

Neutral, so pH is 6-7

Question 16

1. Rumen papillae are…
2. They are about ___mm long and ___mm wide.
3. These increase the ____ ____ of the rumen to absorb the VFAs produced by the flora.

Answer 16

1. Small fingerlike projections
2. 5mm long and 3mm wide
3. Surface area

Question 17

Reticulum catches ___ & ___ feed for later rumination. It will also contract for ____.

Answer 17

1. Dense & heavy feed
2. Regurgitation

Question 18

Omasum absorbs ___ and dries out ____. This compartment ____ feed particle size.

Answer 18

1. Water and dries out Ingesta
2. Reduces feed particle size

Question 19

T/F: Omasum will absorb VFAs

Answer 19

True!

Question 20

Abomasum secretes ___ and enzymes for ___ digestion.

Answer 20

1. HCl
2. Chemical digestion

Question 21

T/F: Abomasum pH reduces down to 2.5

Answer 21

True!

Question 22

What are the four R’s in rumination?

Answer 22

Regurgitation
Re-mastication
Re-insalivation
Re-swallowing

Question 23

In regards to ruminant digestion, what is the role of regurgitation?

Answer 23

• Simple: It moves the ingesta from reticulum into the mouth.
• Detailed: It’s role is to create a controlled reverse movement of coarse feedstuffs from the reticulum/rumen via esophagus to mouth for re-chewing (this is cud)

Question 24

Rumination refers to the processing of…

Answer 24

Feedstuff in the reticulum/rumen, to include fermentation, regurgitation, eructation.

Question 25

Fermentation is when ___ bacteria breakdown cellulose. ___ are released by bacteria passed to bloodstream thru papillae.

Answer 25

1. Anaerobic bacteria 2. VFA's

Question 26

T/F: During fermentation, the bacteria that is controlled by protozoa produce CO2 & CH4 are produced by them.

Answer 26

True! Bacteria has a symbiotic relationship with this style of digestion!

Question 27

Constant rumen motility FINISH

Question 28

Rumen Fluid Eval: 1. Bacteria digest ___. 2. Protozoa control ____ population. 3. Fungi aid in ____ digestion.

Answer 28

1. Digest cellulose - Over 200 species of bacteria in rumen! 2. Control bacteria population - They prey on the bacteria 3. Aid in cellulose digestion - Very low numbers in the rumen

Question 29

Eructation: 1. Belching is... 2. Purpose of belching

Answer 29

1. Belching is expulsion of gas from the rumen 2. The rumen vat system produces about 600L of gas in an adult cow/day.

Question 30

Displaced abdomen (DA) What is it?

Answer 30

Abomasum normally lies on the floor of the abomasum. But this can become full of gas & rise to the top of the abdomen, causing "displacement." - More likely to occur on the left (LDA) than the right (RDA)

Question 31

Displaced abdomen (DA) causes 1. Calving: 2. Atony of abomasum:

Answer 31

1. Calving: - Likely occurs after as during pregnancy the uterus displaces the abomasum. After calving, abomasum must move back to its position which increases the risk of this. 2. Atony of the abomasum: - Abomasum stops contracting, accumulates gas and will "float" up the abdomen due to improper diet.

Question 32

Displaced abomasum (DA) 1. Symptoms 2. Tx

Answer 32

1. Symptoms: - Loss of appetite - Drop in milk yield - Reduced rumination - Mild diarrhea 2. Tx - Req replacing the abomasum in its normal position. Vet may tackle it to the body wall. - Sx, but not always necessary. Normally it can be fixed by casting & rolling onto Px back. Abomasum will "float" back into place.

Question 33

T/F: RDA is less serious than LDA (DA: displaced abomasum)

Answer 33

False! RDA is more serious than LDA. RDA tends to have more torsion and compromise of blood vessels.

Question 34

How can we prevent displaced abomasum from happening? (7)

Answer 34

Prevention should be aimed at ensuring dry matter is maintained in early lactation: 1. Ensure cattle are not too fat at calving (>3.5 BCS) 2. Feed high quality feeds & good forage 3. Feeding a total mix ration as opposed to concentrates 4. Give plenty of space at feeding sites 5. Minimize changes between late dry & early lactation ration 6. Prevent and promptly treat diseases like: - Milk fever, metritis, toxic metritis, & retained afterbirth. 7. Max cow comfort, min stress!

Question 35

Pigs and cows have a ___ shaped colon on the descending end. This allows them to gather & store ___ quantities of food quickly for later ___ and ____ in safe areas.

Answer 35

1. Spiral shaped descending colon 2. Large quantities of food 3. Fermenting and chewing in safe areas for later

Question 36

T/F: The spiral colon allows for a more complete mechanical breakdown. This means species with this can utilize less bioavailable foods as energy sources.

Answer 36

True! Slow process, but very thorough as they can consume cellulose and get something out of it!