Hindgut+Fermenters+-+Rabbits

=Hindgut Fermenters - Rabbits=

Pre-Small Intestine (Group 2 - Abigail F)
A rabbits is a herbivore and have quite an amazing dental anatomy. They have about 8,000 taste buds and since their teeth are unrooted their incisors grow about 5 inches a year and their molars grow about 3 to 4 inches a year. Behind their upper incisors are the second incisors which are also called the peg teeth. Their form of prehension is to use their chisel-like incisors to cut vegitation and use their cleft upper lip which has sensitive vibrissae to feel what they are eating since they can not see directly infront of them. Their premolars and molars are tightly fit together to form one long grinding board to break down the vegitation. To help with the breaking down of the feed, the rabbit has four major pairs of salivary glands (parotids, mandibulars, sublinguals, and zygomatics).

After the break down of the feed, it is formed into a bolus and sent down the esophagus to the stomach. Just like horses, rabbits are unable to vomit which may cause problems if something is ingested that should not be.

The stomach of a rabbit is kept at a Ph of about 1 or 2 causing most microbial organisms to die off. Passage of food in the stomach is estimated to take 3-6 hours and during that time enzymes and HCL are secreted into the stomach to start the break down of the feed.

Large Intestine (Group 2 - Emily D)
Cecum- The rabbit has the largest cecum in comparison to the proportions of other animals. The microbial digestion occurs here where the fiber from carbohydrates is broken down. There is also secretion of bicarbonate which breaks down the volatile fatty acids produced. These are absorbed through the cecal wall. B vitamins are made here as well. Colon- The colon is composed of cuboidal cells that are named for the simple fact that they take the shape of cubes. The goblet cells present are the cells that produce mucous to coat the lining. The large colon synthesizes the B-vitamins and VFAs produced by the cecum. The colon also concentrates the waste that is turned into feces and absorbs all the excess water in the body.

Post Large Intestine (Group 2 - Angie E)
This is for just the anus, since the LI is the cecum, colon, rectum and this section is POST-LI.
 * The cecum:** The remains of the food left after absorption, which consists both of undigested and fibrous material, passes into the cecum, wherein bacteria attack and to some extent digest it. Contractions of the cecum force some of this material through the colon and rectum, thus forming the peculiar type of pellet eaten by the rabbit during coprophagy.
 * The colon:** The final residue of the twice digested food passes through the colon wherein much of the moisture is removed, and the normal fecal pellets formed.
 * The rectum:** The pellets then pass through the rectum and being excreted.