How many stomachs does a cow have: the structure of the digestive system and functions

Ruminants eat plant foods that take a long time to digest. Nature made sure that cattle get the maximum amount of nutrients from food, creating a special digestive system, which is distinguished by its peculiar structure. In order to understand its functioning, you need to know how many stomachs a cow has.

Features of cow digestion

The gastrointestinal tract of a cow can be compared to a food processing factory. It has a special structure that allows you to gradually turn coarse grass and hay into easily digestible nutrients that support the vital activity and functions of the body.All ruminants have a specific structure of the gastrointestinal tract that distinguishes them from other farm animals. This is due to the fact that they have to digest a significant amount of food. Therefore, before being processed into the cow's intestines, the eaten grass and other food moves through the oral cavity into the esophagus, and then into the stomach, which is located behind the diaphragm.

It is complex in a cow, consisting of four sections, and gastric juice is produced only in the abomasum, which is located at the farthest "end" of the multi-chamber system. Such a complex type of gastrointestinal tract provides complete digestion of dry and coarse plant foods.

How is the stomach of cattle and how many departments does it have

Cattle have one stomach, but it consists of four sections, each of which performs its own function.

Scar

The voluminous four-chamber stomach of a cow occupies most of the animal's abdominal cavity.The first and largest section of it is the scar. In an adult cattle, its capacity is 80% of the total size of the stomach, reaching 100-200 liters. Its walls consist of the following layers:

1. Outer serosa.
2. Muscular wall - middle layer.
3. The mucous membrane is the inner part of the organ.

The rumen walls of a cow are elastic and can stretch in all directions to accommodate a large amount of food. Its anterior section communicates with the esophagus and the mesh. In the scar, fermentation of the food eaten takes place, on which symbiotic protists - eukaryotes, which should not be confused with protozoa, "work". They ferment cellulose with the help of intracellular bacteria in symbiosis with them.

Fermentation produces a biological gas that will inflate the rumen if the cow does not burp it. This process takes place through the esophagus. Also, strong rumen muscles contribute to efficient feed processing by mixing them.

Grid

This part is the controlling element of the digestive system. The chewed food passes through it, and large parts are returned to the cow's rumen for subsequent grinding and fermentation.

The walls of the grid look like a pattern formed by 4-, 5- and 6-angle cells. They are created by folds of the mucous membrane, which do not straighten out and reach a height of 8-12 millimeters. The walls are covered with cells lining the intestines, as well as numerous horny tubercles. There are no glands in this part of the stomach.

Book

The book continues the sequence of cow stomach chambers and is the third part of it. Its mucous membrane consists of mobile folds arranged longitudinally. They are called leaflets of the book and divide it into a series of narrow sections or chambers. Leaves have different heights. They are located on the entire inner surface of the book, except for its bottom.

Serves as the third chamber for the absorption of water and light fatty acids, which are formed during fermentation processes in the rumen. Also at this stage, magnesium penetrates through the walls.

Abonet

This is the fourth and last part of the cow's four-chambered stomach. It is also called the glandular stomach because its insides are covered with numerous glands. They produce acidic stomach acid.

The abomasum is de facto analogous to the simple single-chamber stomach that most mammals have. Connects to book and duodenum.

Gastrointestinal diseases in cows

For a livestock breeder, any disease of his dairy, beef or replacement herd is a threat to business prosperity. Eating disorders are a problem that can be avoided by proper selection of feed, keeping animals in comfortable conditions and starting treatment at the first sign of the disease.

To do this, you need to be able to recognize diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, know how they differ from each other and what measures should be taken to prevent the problem from spreading to the entire herd.

Bloating

The stomach of a cow or a bull occupies a large volume in the abdominal cavity. When it overflows with gases, there is a threat of squeezing the lungs, which can cause suffocation.

Causes of tympania:

1. Eating wet food (after past rain or dew).
2. Drinking livestock immediately after feeding succulent fodder, fresh grass.
3. Plenty of wet bean food.
4. Feeding food with signs of mold, fermentation, and frozen food.
5. Calf overeating dairy products: whey, buttermilk or skim milk.

The following methods are used to get rid of bloating:

1. Massaging the hungry fossa on the stomach.
2. Pulling out the tongue in a given rhythm.
3. Use rope in tar or creolin to briddle.
4. Giving laxative s alts or specialized drugs (only when prescribed by a veterinarian).
5. Probing and gastric lavage.
6. In severe and emergency cases, to save the cow, the veterinarian can puncture the scar with a special tool - a trocar.

Preventive measures:

1. Grazing livestock on pastures only after the dew has disappeared or the grass has dried out after precipitation.
2. Don't graze very hungry cows.
3. Don't start grazing on leguminous plants - alfalfa or vetch.
4. Feed calves milk feed from a teat drinker.

Stop

This condition is also called atony of the proventriculus, and people often say that the cow has become a stomach. This indicates that the motility of the organ is impaired, the muscle walls do not contract, and the food does not move forward. Causes of disease:

1. Eating a lot of beets, stalks and straw from corn.
2. Hot or spoiled food.
3. Foreign object in food. If these are metal parts that damage the digestive system, the cow will go for meat.

Signs of illness:

1. Appetite disorders, refusal of food and water.
2. Violation of the chewing process.
3. Bloating.
4. Inactive animal.

Treat atony of the rumen in a cow by the following methods:

1. Hunger 24 hours.
2. Giving bran or hay at a minimum dose.
3. Laxatives.
4. Fermentation drugs.

Clog

In ruminants, the overflow of the rumen and less often - the rumen and the abomasum - is simultaneously characterized by the following features:

1. Stop chewing.
2. Deterioration of appetite.
3. Bloating, especially on the left.
4. Impaired excretory function.
5. Weakened peristalsis.
6. Easy breathing and heart rate.
7. Characteristic hunched posture.

Reason for blockage:

1. In calves under 60 days old, blockage is caused by overeating concentrates and succulent feeds with an early decrease in milk volumes.
2. Using bulky, low-nutrition foods. This leads to gastric overflow, decreased motor function, and sometimes paresis.

Get rid of blockage:

1. Fasting during the day. At the same time, the cow is provided with clean drinking water and s alt.
2. Massage the abdomen in the area of the scar for 20 minutes 3-4 times during the day.
3. Use of anti-fermentation drugs, laxatives and peristalsis enhancers.
4. Operation.
5. Culling a cow in a hopeless condition.

Injury

Ingress of a foreign body into the digestive system of a cow leads to the development of traumatic disorders. The severity of the condition depends on whether the object has perforated the walls of the stomach or just embedded in them.

Calves have the best developed abomasum, so roughage too early or overeating can lead to stomach injury with large rough pieces. But most often this condition occurs in pregnant cows and animals with high productivity.

Diagnosis is difficult due to similarities with other digestive problems in cattle. An acute condition usually occurs suddenly, a chronic one lasts for days or even weeks. Treat the condition depending on the problem.

If an animal has swallowed metal parts, they are removed with magnetic probes. In case of perforation, an operation is required, in case of injury to the walls of the stomach, the animal is placed in a stall with a raised front part of the body, food is limited, transferred to easily digestible feed, medicines are given: painkillers that prevent putrefactive processes, laxatives, antibiotics, and so on as prescribed by the veterinarian.Digestive problems are easier to prevent than to treat, so prevention should be given maximum attention.

Recommended