Ruminants are herbivorous grazing or browsing artiodactyls belonging to the suborder Ruminantia that are able to acquire nutrients from plant-based food by fermenting it in a specialized stomach prior to digestion, principally through microbial actions. The process, which takes place in the front part of the digestive system and therefore is called foregut fermentation, typically requires the fermented ingesta (known as cud) to be regurgitated and chewed again. The process of rechewing the cud to further break down plant matter and stimulate digestion is called rumination. The word "ruminant" comes from the Latin ruminare, which means "to chew over again". The roughly 200 species of ruminants include both domestic and wild species. Ruminating mammals include cattle, all domesticated and wild bovines, goats, sheep, giraffes, deer, gazelles, and antelopes.

2. Ruminant
Ruminant group:
 Cattle
 Deer
 Elk
 Bison
 Water
buffalo
 Camels
 Sheep
 Goats
 Giraffes
 Caribou
 These animals
spend their time
to chew the cud.
 Cud – small ball
of partially
digested grasses.
‘’Eat now, digest later’’

3. • Rumen – upper part of
the stomach expanded
to form a large pouch.
• Reticulum – small
honey comb like
structure.
• Lower portion divided
into antechamber,
omasum & abomasum
(true stomach)
Stomach of these herbivorous
animals are divided into 4
chambers.

4. • It’s a highly muscular, anaerobic fermentation chamber.
• Slightly warmer
• Contain diverse group microbes like bacteria, archae,
fungi & protists. Helps in the digestion of grass eaten by
the animal.

5. Animal eats
plant material
Mixed with
saliva
Swallowed
without chewing
Enter the rumen
Microbes attack
the grass
Reducing it to
pulpy, partially
digested mass
Moves into
reticulum
Regurgitated as
cud
Chewed & re-
swallowed by the
animal
Enter into
omasum
Then abomasum
(digestive
enzymes)
Nutrients are
absorbed into
bloodstream

6. • 1012 orgs /ml of digestive fluid.
• Resident microflora carry out anaerobic metabolism
Cellulose D-glucose
Acetate, butyrate, propionate
Fattyacids
In cow (produce 200-400 l of CH4/day)
Acetate, CO2, H2 CH4 (green house gas)
Methanogenic bacteria
Cellulase
Bacteria
Fermentation