Digestive System of Goats 3 References
ALABAMA A&M AND AUBURN UNIVERSITIES Digestive System of UNP-0060 Goats Introduction Mature goats are herbivorous ruminant animals. Their digestive tracts, which are similar to those of cattle, Esophagus sheep, deer, elk, bison, Large Intestine Cecum and giraffes, consist of the mouth, esophagus, four Rumen stomach compartments, (paunch) small intestine, cecum, and large intestine. A brief Reticulum description of the anatomy (honeycomb) and physiology of the mouth and the stomach Omasum Small Intestine Abomasum (manyplies) compartments of goats (true stomach) follows. Mouth: Like other ruminant animals, goats have no upper incisor or canine teeth. They depend on the rigid dental pad in front of the Figure 1. The digestive tract of goats. hard palate, the lower incisor the type of feed. It is absorbed through the rumen teeth, the lips, and the lined with small fingerlike wall and provide as much as tongue to take food into their projections called papillae, 80 percent of the animal’s mouths. which increase the total energy requirements. Microbial digestion in the Esophagus: This is a absorptive surface of the rumen is the reason that tubelike passage from the rumen. This compartment, ruminant animals effectively mouth to the stomach. The also known as the use fibrous feeds and are esophagus, which opens into paunch, contains many maintained primarily on the stomach at the junction microorganisms, such as roughages. of the rumen and reticulum, bacteria and protozoa, helps transport bothARCHIVE gases that supply enzymes to Rumen microorganisms also and cud. break down fiber and other feed parts. Microbiological convert components of the feed to useful products such Rumen: This is the largest activities in the rumen result as essential amino acids, of the four stomach in the conversion of the B-complex vitamins, and compartments of ruminant starch and fiber of feeds to vitamin K.
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