Katahdin ewe lambs

Lambs on pasture

Chewing her cud
Cud chewing

Four compartments

 Ewes eating haylage
Ewes eating haylage

 Flock grazing
Flock grazing

Chow time

Eating creep feed 
Eating creep feed

Katahdins grazing
Katahdins grazing

 Eating hay
Eating hay



    Let's ruminate on it

    Sheep belong to the ruminant classification of animals. Ruminants are characterized by their four-chambered stomach and "cud-chewing" behavior. Cud is a food bolus that is regurgitated, rechewed, and reswallowed.

    There are about 150 different domestic and wild ruminant species including cows, goats, deer, buffalo, bison, giraffe, moose and elk. Ruminant animals are further classified by their foraging behavior: grazers, browsers, or intermediate grazers. Grazers, such as cattle, consume mostly lower quality grasses while browsers such as moose and mule deer stay in the woods and eat highly nutritious twigs and shrubs.



    Camelids (llamas and alpacas) are sometimes called "small ruminants." In reality, they are "pseudo-ruminants" because they have a three-compartment stomach instead of four, like ruminants. Horses are not ruminants. They have an enlarged cecum that allows them to digest fibrous materials. Animals of this type are called "hind-gut fermenters." Rats and rabbit have similar digestive systems.

    The rumen digestive system
    The rumen occupies a large percentage of the abdominal cavity of the ruminant. It is a large storage space for food that is quickly consumed, then later regurgitated, re-chewed, and re-swallowed in a process called cud-chewing. Rumination or cud chewing occurs primarily when the animal is resting and not eating. Healthy mature sheep will chew their cuds for several hours each day.

    The rumen is a large fermentation vat. It contains billions of microorganisms, including bacteria and protozoa, which allow ruminants to digest fibrous feeds such as grass, hay, and silage that other animals cannot efficiently utilize. Fermentation in the rumen produces enormous quantities of gas that ruminants get rid of by belching (burping). Anything that interferes with belching is life-threatening to the ruminant and may result in a condition called bloat. Mild cases of bloat can usually be successful treated with an antacid or sodium bicarbonate.


     Capacities of digestive tract of mature sheep
     Compartment Capacity
    1.2 to 2.0 quarts
    5.0 to 10.0 gallons
    0.5 to 1.0 quarts
    2.0 to 3.0 gallons
     Small intestines 2.0 to 2.5 gallons (80 ft)
     Large intestines 1.5 to 2.0 quarts
    Source: Sheep Production Handbook, 2002.

    Young ruminants
    At birth, the lamb's rumen and reticulum are not yet functional. As lambs begin to nibble on dry feeds, these two compartments become innoculated with microorganisms. As the microbes multiply and begin to digest feed, they stimulate the growth and development of the rumen and reticulum. The lamb's rumen and reticulum are usually functional by the time the lamb is 50 to 60 days old.

    Because lambs are not born with a functioning rumen, supplemental feeds, such as creep feed, need to be highly digestible. Creep rations typicaly consist of feedstuffs that have been cracked, rolled, ground, or pelleted. Creep feeding enhances development of the rumen in the young lamb. The rumen in creep-fed lambs will develop quicker than the rumen in lambs that are fed strictly a forage diet.

    Grazers by design
    Though ruminants can digest grain (starch), their more natural diet is forages: grass, weeds, browse, hay, and silage. If too much grain is consumed at one time or the diet is switched too quickly to grain, a large amount of lactic acid is produced in the rumen and the pH of the rumen drops. This can be a fatal condition to the ruminant animal. Grain must be introduced slowly to the diet of ruminants to give the rumen time to adjust, which it can easily do.

    Not too much grain

    Some forage should always be fed to ruminants to keep their rumens functioning properly and to keep them content. Sometimes, if a sheep doesn't get enough forage in its diet, it will pick at another's wool.

    Read article The truth about feeding grain to sheep and goats=>

    Greenhouse gases
    An environmental impact of ruminant livestock production is that when ruminants belch (burp), they emit methane, one of the greenhouse gases. A small amount of methane is also produced by their manure. Methane accounts for only 8 percent of greenhouse gases. Ruminant livestock account for less than 40 percent of methane emission, and cattle account for 95 percent of that.

    Less methane is produced in intensive livestock systems as compared to more extensive, pastoral systems. Scientists are studying other ways to reduce methane production from ruminant livestock. For example, livestock fed certain plants produce less methane. Genetics also affects the amount of methane that a sheep emits. Australian scientists are testing a vaccine to reduce methane emissions.


Last updated 21-Sep-2015
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