St. Landry democrat. (Opelousas, La.) 1878-1894, 1884-08-09
Chewing the Cud.

Every child living in the country has
stood and watched this curious opera
ton, and wondered what the lump was
which he saw come up in the cows
throat, and then 90 down aga;n after
she had chewed it for a certain length
Of time. And perhaps he may have
seen the anxiety and turmoil produced
on farm by the report that some one
of the COWS had '1ost her cud," and as
the result of this excitement he may
have seen the absurd attempt to make
new cud, F" in the hope that the cow
would by such means be restored to
good condition.. There is in the minds
of large proportion OF the community
so little correct understanding of the
true nature of chewing the cud'' that
few words concerning it may not be
amiss. A very large tribe of animals.
of which sheep and COWS are only
familiar examples, are called in works
of natural history ruminantia because
they all ruminate they chew the cud.
They have, it is said in the books, four
stomachs, bnt the statement is not
strictly correct, Tor the entire digestion
is done in single one, that which IS
called the fourth, the other three being
only places for preparatory work
They do so because their peculiar
organs of digestion require it; they can
get their nolrishment in no other way
Their food is swallowed without being
cheWed; the chewing is to come later
When this unchewed TODD is swallowed
it passes directly into the first
stomach, to use the common term;
but the drink which the animal takes
goes straight past the entrance OF
the first into the second. These two
serve only to soak and soften the coarse
food. When the first has done what it
can the food passes out OF it into the
second and then the COW or sheep is
ready to .'chew the cud. -" The second
stomach, while busily at work in soaking
the food, keeps it in motion, and grad
ually rolls it up into masses, so that in
the small upper part there is formed an
oblonc solid lump Of the size that we
recognize as the "cud. y This the ami
NAL throws up into the mouth. and
chews with evidently as much satisfac-
ton as the same act of mastcation gives
us when we put the most delicate NOR
sells between our teeth. When it is SUI
ficiently cheWed the mass is swallowed
and its place taken by another which
had been rolled up in the meantime.
But the .cud'' thus masticated does
not return to the second stomach,
from which it had come, 1t passes
smoothly into the third, a place for ad-
ditonal fabrication, and then into the
fourth, where the true digestion begins
and ends. This is, in brief, the whole
story, and we SEE how naturally the
chewing comes in; it is the same as in
our own case, only that it is at differ
ent stage Of the foods progress. And
we see also what closing the cud''
really is. The COW orsheep is suffering
from indigestion; the second stom-
ach' has failed to roll up the little
masses suitable for chewing, and there
is nothing which the poor beast can
bring up. Of course, therefore, the
one thing required is torestore the tone
and power of the stomach; not to bur
then it with an ''artifcial cud," which
would only increase the difficulty, in4
stead Of relieving it. Scientific Anser4
tcan.