30 PRINCIPLES OF FEEDING FARM ANIMALS 
It contains three different ferments: (1) Erepsin, which acts upon the 
decomposition products of the proteins, albumose and peptones, in the 
same way as trypsin; (2) an amylolytic ferment which converts starch 
to sugar (maltose), and (3) invertases (sucrase, maltase, and lactase), 
changing the di-saccharides, cane-, malt-, and milk-sugar, into mono- 
saccharides (dextrose or glucose, see p. 14). 
From the small intestines the undigested material passes into 
the large intestine, where the formation of the solid excrements 
takes place. The ferments and bacteria, present here in immense 
numbers, continue their action until the mass has assumed the con- ' 
sistency peculiar to each species and is voided as faces. 
Summarizing the various steps in the digestion of the different 
components of feed, we note that— : 
Starch is changed into sugar (maltose) by the ptyalin of the 
saliva, the amylopsin of the pancreatic juice, and an amylolytic fer- 
ment in the intestinal juice. 
Fats are changed into free fatty acids and glycerin by the lipase 
of the pancreatic juice, and by the bile into emulsified fats or soaps. 
Proteins are changed into proteose and peptones by the pepsin of 
the gastric juice, and into amino bodies by the trypsin of the pan- 
creatic juice and the erepsin of the intestinal juice. 
In addition to the action of these various digestive ferments the 
feed is subjected to bacterial action in the paunch and the intes- 
tines. Through the fermentation processes caused by bacteria, the 
cellulose and considerable quantities of other carbohydrates are de- 
composed and converted into gaseous products, like marsh gas, 
carbon-dioxide, and free hydrogen, which are of no value to the ani- - 
mals except incidentally through the heat generated in these proc- 
esses; this may be of benefit in aiding to maintain the body 
temperature of the animals. 
Digestion of Feed by Non-ruminants.—The digestion of feed 
by the non-ruminating farm animals takes place, as previously 
suggested, in much the same way as in the case of the ruminants. 
The same digestive fluids act on the feed of the horse and other 
animals of this class as in the case of the ruminants, viz., saliva,’ 
gastric juice, pancreatic juice, bile, and intestinal juice. These 
differ from the corresponding fluids secreted by ruminants mainly 
in point of concentration. The protein compounds are broken up 
into simple soluble substances, like peptones and amino acids; the 
starch is changed into maltose, and the fats into free fatty acids, 
emulsified fats, or soaps. The stomach of the horse has a capacity 
of 12 to 15 quarts, while the paunch of a cow or steer holds over 
100 quarts. The horses cannot, therefore, eat as much of bulky 
