Rumen Physiology for the Rancher
نویسنده
چکیده
The ruminant animal has two unique features – it chews its cud and has four distinct compartments in the stomach. More importantly the ruminant can convert forages that are comprised by large quantities of cellulose, that is poorly digestible by non-ruminants, into high quality protein (muscle) that provides excellent eating experiences and nutrients for humans. Rumen Physiology is the study of the mechanical, physical and biochemical function of the rumen. When I first enrolled in an animal nutrition course I felt this area was unnecessary in order to feed cattle. All I wanted to learn was does the cow need 1 or 2 pounds of a supplement and didn‟t want to worry about the theory of the digestion in the rumen. Over the years it became obvious that the better we understand how the rumen functions in breaking down or digesting feeds the better nutrition decisions we can make in feeding cattle. Many reading this paper will already have the knowledge expressed in this paper because of college courses, attending many seminars or studying the basics. Hopefully to some it will improve their understanding how the rumen functions, how digestion takes place and what affects digestion. For others hopefully it will serve as a review. My objective in this paper will be twofold: 1) will be to discuss rumen anatomy and physiology and 2) will discuss factors that will enhance or decrease digestion and its effect on animal performance and ultimately how these factors will affect the economics of cattle production.
منابع مشابه
Peppermint and Pennyroyal Essential Oil Effect on Performance, Rumen Microbial Population and Some Blood Parameters of Sheep
BACKGROUND: The use of antibiotics as feed additive in animal feeds due to the appearance of residues in milk and meat and their effects on human health has restricted. Two of essential oils with high potential for use in ruminant diet are Mentha piperita (peppermint) and Mentha pulegium (pennyroyal) essential oil. OBJECTIVE: This study was conducted to investigate the effects of essential oils...
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In young ruminants, the reticular groove ensures that ingested milk is channelled past the forestomach to avoid malfermentation. It has been speculated that some adult wild ruminants, in particular browsing species, maintain a functional oesophageal (reticular) groove, that soluble nutrients can thus bypass the rumen, and that thus the energetic gain from the diet can be increased. We inserted ...
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The UT-A (SLC14a2) and UT-B (SLC14a1) genes encode a family of specialized urea transporter proteins that regulate urea movement across plasma membranes. In this report, we describe the structure of the bovine UT-B (bUT-B) gene and characterize UT-B expression in bovine rumen. Northern analysis using a full-length bUT-B probe detected a 3.7-kb UT-B signal in rumen. RT-PCR of bovine mRNA reveale...
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Rumen management during aphagia.
Ruminants that for any reason are unable to eat enough to survive can be supported via rumen fistulation. To successfully accomplish this task, an understanding of rumen physiology is necessary. Some adaptation and modification of the normal physiological processes will be necessary because the extended time normally required to ingest food will, for obvious practical reasons, be reduced to a f...
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