Digestion in Simple Stomach animals

Digestion in Simple Stomach animals

            Simple stomach animals or monogastric animals from the word “mono” means they have single compartment. Unlike ruminants, monogastric animals have less bacterial activity in their stomach; there is no transformation of low quality proteins to high quality proteins, they have less ability to manufacture vitamins and unable to digest large volume of fiber. Proteins, vitamins and minerals content in daily ration of these animals should give much more consideration. Deficiency of this will cause stunted growth and very easy to catch any infectious diseases and eventually death. Giving ration with high fiber is futile because it has a little value for them, much better if this animal will consume high concentrated feeds stuff.

Digestion in Poultry

            Poultry animals cannot be considered as simple stomach though they have similar digestive system. This animals eats minimal amount of fiber, in their digestive tract have less digestion and microbial activity.

The Digestive Organs

            The poultry has a typical avian digestive system. In chickens, the digestive tract also referred to as the gastrointestinal tract or GI tract.  The parts of the digestive system are Crop, Proventriculus and Gizzard.

            Crop. The crop is a pouch like in the esophagus and is located just outside the body cavity in the neck region. The food taken from the mouth will move down to the esophagus into crop. Swallowed feed and water is stored in the crop, it serves as a reserve to hold and moisten feed until they are passed to the rest of the digestive tract Although the digestive enzymes secreted, very little digestion takes place in the crop—it is simply a temporary storage pouch

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            Proventriculus. The proventriculus is a small organ and also known as the true stomach which receives food from the crop. In this site digestion primarily begins and digestive juices are secreted and mixed. Hydrochloric acid and digestive enzymes, such as pepsin, are added to the feed here and begin to break it down more significantly than the enzymes secreted by the salivary glands.

            Gizzard or Ventriculus. The chief function of gizzard is for grinding, mixing, and pulverizing food before it pass through the small intestine for absorption of nutrients.