Cow what do they eat

For the next months, they will drink milk or milk replacer like baby formula. After months, calves are weaned off milk and fed a diet of grain, hay and water. Calves are picky just like most children, so most calf grain is coated in molasses to make it sweeter and taste better. Heifers and cows are fed grain mixed with hay, corn silage entire corn plant chopped and fermented and other feeds to create what farmers and nutritionists call a total mixed ration , or TMR. The TMR is made in a big mixer like the one below.

The abomasum, then, is located just beyond the omasum. This illustrates a similarity in function. You see, the abomasum has the same basic function as the stomach of the dog, man, or other mammal, which is the production of acids, buffers, and enzymes to break down food. After passing through the abomasum, partially digested food enters the small intestine where digestion continues and nutrients are absorbed.

The rumen efficiently extracts nutrients from food other animals cannot digest. For this reason, cows can eat plant materials such as seed coats, shells, and stems that remain after grains are harvested for human consumption. When oil is extracted from grains for example, soybean oil from soybean seed and Canola oil from rapeseed , or grains are used to brew alcohol or make fuel-ethanol, plant by-products are made.

Although key nutrients like fat, sugar, and protein are removed from the plant materials during processing, when used properly, these by-products can be fed to cows. The complex nature of their four-compartment stomachs and their rumen bacteria allow cows to eat and thrive on plant by-products that other animals cannot digest. So, the next time you have a cool glass of milk, a cup of ice cream, or a juicy hamburger, you will know that these products came from cows fed grass, grain, or by-products, and you will know, How Cows Eat Grass.

CVM Kid's Page. Orr, Ph. Eating Cows are unique in that they have fewer teeth than other animals. The Stomach Diagram 1. The Reticulo-rumen. All three diagrams courtesy of Sudz Publishing.

Figure 1. The Reticulum. Photo courtesy of Dr. Karen Petersen, Univ. What about that 20 percent that we could eat? Only 2. This means our resources are being put to good use: Dairy cows have the unique ability to convert feed into human food. Dairy farmers take their commitment to feed the nation and the world seriously.