342 THE VETERINARY SCIENCE 



of the paunch. The inside is full of folds, or layers of mem- 

 brane, into which all the coarse parts of the food pass and 

 are rolled about until they are fine and well prepared to pass 

 into the last division. When this part of the stomach be- 

 comes deranged and the food becomes dry and hard between 

 the folds, the disease called impaction of the many-plies, or 

 dry murrain is the result. 



(d) The Abomasum or fourth stomach is the true di- 

 gestive part. In it the food is completely digested. The walls 

 are redder in color than those of the three first divisions and 

 contain the glands which secrete the acids and gastric juices. 

 This stomach has two openings, one through which the food 

 enters and the other through which it passes into the small 

 bowels. 



9. The Bowels or Intestines. 



The intestines of the ox are divided into large and small 

 bowels. This, together with their structure and action, re- 

 sembles that of the horse. The small bowels are only half 

 the size of those of the horse, being about one-half inch in 

 diameter, and about 150 feet in length. The large bowels are 

 not nearly so large as those of the horse, and are 36 feet in 

 length. 



10. The Liver. 



The Liver of the ox resembles that of the horse except 

 that it is provided with a gall bladder which resembles a pear 

 in shape. This acts as a sac in which to store the gall dur- 

 ing the time it is not required in digestion. When digestion 

 is going on the walls of the gall sac contract and force the 

 gall down to the food. The other two glands, the pancreas 

 and spleen, resemble those of the horse. The juices from 

 these glands have the same action in cattle as they have in 

 the horse. 



11. Rumination or Chewing the Cud. 



Food when first taken into the mouth of a ruminant is 

 but lightly masticated and mixed with the saliva from the 

 salivary glands, after which it is swallowed, passing through 

 the oesophagus into the paunch. This division acts as a sort 

 of storehouse for food thus eaten quickly. When the animal 

 has time, so to speak, he lies or stands quietly and completes 

 the mastication of his food by chewing the cud. This peculiar 



