River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1880-09-02
The Cows Cud.
Mobile Register.


eud is simply the food that the COW
swallowed III haste at the time of her
feeding, brought back to be re-chewed
and and Reconstructed at leisure"
II knew il, said he "and now I'll
tell you why asked the question. This
morning | saw three great strapping fell
lows holding down calf and forcing
something into its mouth which they
called a new cud. On asking eXplana-
ton they went on to state that the calf
was sick in consequence of having lost
its cud, which placed them under the
necessity of supplying it with a new
one. did not ask for information,
but merely that might hear what you
had to say about it"
Nothing could be more ridiculous
than this idea of COW having lost her
cud, and yet it prevails to an amazing
extent. Possibly tie fault does not lie
at the doors of the parties entertaining
the ridiculous notion, and stimulated by
such a thought we shall proceed to offer
paper on the subject of the digestive
apparatus of the ruminants; that is, all
animals that chew cud.
TO begin we may state that in the
cud chewers three cavities precede the
stomach, in which digestion is accom-
plished The first Of these is called the
paunch or rumen, which is of great
size, capable, in a large OK, of holding
several hundred pounds of food. 1t
possesses a coarse structure, and but lit
tie sensibility Between the point of
the hip and the last rib, when distended
it lies in contact with the soft structures
of the abdominal walls, and is covered
only by the shin and some thin mus
cular substance. Il also reaches as far
forward as the diaphragm, and greatly
impedes movements of that organ
when much distended. Across toe
somewhat large opening into the
paunch extends the msophagus or
swallowing tube, extending from the
mouth to near the opening into the
second and third cavities, but where it
crosses the opening into the paunch it
is not perfect tube, but resembles per
fectly tube the end of which has
been slit up for several inches, the free
edges of which may be either closed or
forced apart. Between the opening in
TO the paunch and the true or fourth
stomach, extends sort of cavity, on
the opposite sides of which, and open
ing into which are two open cavities
the second or honey comb stomach,
which is, in effect, a little paunch, and
the manifold or manyplies. Beyond
t is manyplies lies the fourth or true
stomach-a long, somewhat conical-
shaped bag with the larger end towards
the left side of the body. This
r. L, 4 -
called, IS the only stomach, and the
other clvaties may beregarded as dila-
tations of the 9sophagus. merely in
tended to receive the food. In fact, no
digestive fluid is furnished and no di-
gestion takes place until the food
reaches the true stomach. In the
stomach there is nothing peculiar or
distinctive about the process OF digest
ion. Keeping in mind this outline
sketch of the apparatus, we may pro-
ceed to study the peculiar and remark
able habit of Eliminating or chewing
the cud. The cud chewers have no
front teeth i'll the upper jaw, but IN
place of them Il hard insensible, grist-
ly pad against which the teeth of the
lower jaw fit closely. With the help Of
the tongue i'll gathering heritage, they
feed very rapidly, and the food is scarce
ly cnewed ut that time more than is
sufficient to gather it into a wad for
swallowing, when its Immediately re-
ceived into the paunch. afterwards to
be cast up by mouthfuls into the mouth
and re-chewed when it is for the sec
ond time swallowed, and passes at
once into the third stomach, or mani
fold, where it is thoroughly rubbed
down to fine pulp by the grinding ac-
ton of the leaves with their hard tuber
culous edges, which extend across the
cavity of that organ and etfectually
strain out all coarse, dry particles from
access to the stomach until they have
been thoroughly rubbed down and
macerated 1t must now be admitted
that the precise circumstances which
determine the direction which the par
ticular kinds of food shall take through
this remarkable apparatus, are not
clearly understood. The main facts
are, however, sufficiently well establish
ed We will describe as briefly and
simply as possible the manner IN
which the successive portions of the
food from the paunch are thrown
1t must be understood that chewing
the cud is, in large degree, a volun-
tarv process, and can be suspended
and resumed ut the pleasure of the
animal.
When the paunch is full, the animal
ceases to Craze, and seekinga comfort
able place and position, usually lying
down, it proceeds to chew lis cud-
that is, to belch up by mouthtuls the
food it swallowed hurriedly in grazing,
and re-chew it thoroughly, to be swal-
lowed a second time, when it flows over
the surface of the unchewed mass III
the paunch and honey comb cavity,
and goes the only place else it can go
that is to say, into the third stomach,
whence it cannot return, and must needs
pass on into the stomach or dam and
pack in between the leaves ofthe mani
fold, which is not infrequently does in
a strange and extraordinary manner.
1t used to be generally supposed, and
it is still thought by many physlolo-
gists, that the honey comb, which Is
smalIish, spherioidal cavity, and has its
opening opposite the fold of the aasOp
hagus, above described, was mainly in
strumental, and provided, indeed, for
the purpose of balling up the food as 1t
came out of the paunch into mouth
fuls, to be cast back into the wsop-
hagus through the opening between
eyerted edges of the split portion of the
tube; but this does not seem to be well
established; indeed, the process of
Illumination goes on, though these
edges be securely sewed up with silver
wire. If an animal be observed when
chewing the cud, it will be seen that by
the action Of the abdominal muscles
and the diaphragm, aided also by the
intercostal muscles, that portion Of the
food which lies next to the opening Of
the osophagus is thrust with no incon-
siderable force against the lower end of
that tube, when that portion of 1t
engaged IN the lower part OF it, by
this decided upward thrust, is quickly
carried up to the mouth by a reverse
action of the muscular walls of the
osophagus. Then the animal begins
chewing by single stroke Of the lower
jaw from left to right, and all those
which follow are made in the opposite
direction. or from right to left, and
when the re-chewing is complete the
food 10 Sua lloxyed again and i'm a few