Digestion in Ruminants & Rodents

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Digestion in Ruminants & Rodents

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Ruminants

Herbivore mammals

Eg. Cow, goat, giraffe, deer

Feed on plant - cellulose

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Rodents

Rabbits and rats family

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Digestive System of Ruminants

Feed on plant – cellulose

Need cellulase to digest it

But ruminants do not produce cellulase

However their digestive system are specially adapted to carry out cellulose digestion

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Ruminants

Has a stomach with 4 chambers:

1. rumen

2. reticulum

3. omasum

4. abomasum

Carry out rumination – process of regurgitating food and rechewing it

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Ruminants

the saliva of a cow contains no salivary amylase

To digest the plant material, herbivores need to depend on the cellulase-secreting microorganism in its digestive system

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Ruminants

Rumen

- first & largest compartment

- contain bacteria that produced cellulase for the cellulose digestion

- function as the fermentation chamber

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Organisms in rumen

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Ruminants

Reticulum

- also contains bacteria for digestion

- content of reticulum called cud

- regurgitation occurs

- has a ‘honeycomb’ wall

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Ruminants

Omasum

- reswallowed cud will be sent here

- large particle are broken down by peristalsis