Which animal has a four-compartment stomach described in the material?

Which animal has a four-compartment stomach described in the material?

• A. Horse
• B. Chicken
• C. Cow
• D. Pig

Answer: (C)

Four-compartment stomachs belong to ruminant animals, which rely on microbial fermentation in a sequence of stomach chambers to break down fibrous plant material. In cows, the stomach is divided into four parts: the rumen and reticulum, where microbes ferment ingested forage; the omasum, where water and some nutrients are absorbed and the material is filtered; and the abomasum, the true stomach where acid and enzymes digest proteins. This arrangement allows the animal to regurgitate and re-chew cud, enhancing fiber breakdown and nutrient extraction. Horses, though herbivores, have a non-ruminant digestive system with a single-chamber stomach and rely more on hindgut fermentation in the cecum and colon. Chickens have a different system altogether, with a crop, a proventriculus, and a gizzard, not four stomach chambers. Pigs have a simple monogastric stomach, also lacking four compartments. So the animal described as having a four-compartment stomach is the cow.

Four-compartment stomachs belong to ruminant animals, which rely on microbial fermentation in a sequence of stomach chambers to break down fibrous plant material. In cows, the stomach is divided into four parts: the rumen and reticulum, where microbes ferment ingested forage; the omasum, where water and some nutrients are absorbed and the material is filtered; and the abomasum, the true stomach where acid and enzymes digest proteins. This arrangement allows the animal to regurgitate and re-chew cud, enhancing fiber breakdown and nutrient extraction.

Horses, though herbivores, have a non-ruminant digestive system with a single-chamber stomach and rely more on hindgut fermentation in the cecum and colon. Chickens have a different system altogether, with a crop, a proventriculus, and a gizzard, not four stomach chambers. Pigs have a simple monogastric stomach, also lacking four compartments.

So the animal described as having a four-compartment stomach is the cow.