ANATOMY, PHYSIOLOGY AND REPRODUCTION OF FARM ANIMALS

CONTENT

1. The Digestive System
2. Digestion in Ruminants
3. Digestion in Monogastrics
4. Digestion in Birds

The Digestive System

Digestion is the process by which insoluble food substances are broken down into simple soluble and absorbable compounds. It occurs in alimentary canal such as the mouth, oesophagus, stomach, small intestine, large intestine and accessory glands such as salivary gland, the liver and the pancreas. The functions of digestive system are ingestion, grinding, digestion, absorption of digested food and elimination of solid waste. Based on alimentary canal, farm animals can be grouped into monogastrics (non-ruminants) and polygastrics (ruminants).

Digestion in Ruminants

Ruminants are animals that have complex stomachs and equally chew the cud. The stomach are:

• Rumen
• Reticulum
• Omasum
• Abomasum

They feed on grasses and chew a little bit , thereafter the grasses pass to the rumen where micro organisms act on them and digest it to form amino acids. When rumen is filled, the animal at a quite time regurgitate the grasses through antiperistaltic movement for a proper chewing.