The animal will eventually reach a point where the cells of the body are unable to perform the functions necessary for life. Death results from lack of sufficient blood glucose to provide the energy needs of the brain and hypoglycemic shock occurs. At the microbial level, inadequate food intake, especially in a ruminant species, results in a rapid decrease in the number of bacteria and protozoa present and in the volatile fatty acid concentration in the stomach. The pH of the rumen becomes more alkaline because of the lack of these fatty acids. Wild ruminant physiology has developed to allow them to withstand dietary deficiencies and obtain energy from the consumption of poor quality forage.
Adult ruminants are able to store large amounts of nutrients and fat within their body tissues.
They are also able to store minerals and nitrogen in their tissues for secretion into the rumen during the winter months. These fatter, older animals are thereby able to utilize more fat than protein, especially in the early stages of malnutrition and starvation. Young animals, which have smaller fat reserves because of their higher nutritional demands for growth, smaller body size, and position in the social hierarchy, utilize more protein than fat under starvation conditions. Clinical Signs and Pathology Clinically, mammals suffering from malnutrition or starvation are lethargic, unsteady, listless, and unafraid of humans. The skin may appear loose, the hair coat erect, dull, and rough and the body more angular.