Domestic cattle

• In the rumen of domestic cattle, microorganisms produce enzymes capable of breaking down cellulose and other substances. During chewing the cud, the food is regurgitated, chewed again, and returned to the rumen.
• Most female calves from twin births are unable to reproduce; they are called freemartins. Their appearance resembles bulls, and the birth weight of calves may reach 60 kg.
• Cows can distinguish tones and high-frequency sounds (up to 35,000 Hz) that are similar in pitch. Their movable ears turn to better locate the sound source.
• The cow "Big Bertha" lived 48 years — a record for lifespan. This period exceeds the usual 20 years for cows and 15–20 years for bulls.
• Domestic cattle communicate with each other using scents and pheromones, identifying individuals of interest among a large herd. Their sense of smell helps them perceive the emotions of their herd mates, especially when they are frightened or excited.
• Cow saliva does not contain digestive enzymes, unlike the saliva of most monogastric animals. The drier and coarser the feed, the more saliva is produced.
• The cow's smallest fore-stomach is the reticulum, with a volume of 4–10 liters. The inner surface of the reticulum has a honeycomb-like structure, where foreign objects can get trapped.
• Gases are formed in the rumen of cattle, with volumes reaching 30–50 liters per hour. Fibrous particles may remain in the rumen for 20 to 48 hours.
• Bulls have a field of vision of 330°, but they cannot see what is behind them without turning their heads. Their blind spot is located from 0 to 20 cm from the tip of their nose.
• The temperature in the scrotum of a bull is lower than in the abdominal cavity, which is favorable for sperm development. In calves, testes initially are in the abdominal cavity and then move to the scrotum.
• In the Belgian Blue breed, the action of myostatin is genetically blocked, leading to hypertrophic muscle development. In this breed, the frequency of this anomaly is 100%.
• Bulls have a well-developed sense of smell: they detect the smell of ammonia at a dilution of 1:100000. For this, they use the vomeronasal organ, which helps detect pheromones and regular odors.
• Bovine spongiform encephalopathy in humans causes Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. This disease is transmitted from cattle to humans and is a rare neurodegenerative illness.
• In domestic cattle, there are currently up to 400 genetic deviations. Some breeds were developed during research on genetic anomalies.
• Modern European breeds of Bos taurus have decreased in size by about a third over 3,000 years. This happened due to economic benefit, when cattle breeders more often bred young animals that reached sexual maturity.
• One bull can inseminate up to 2000 cows per year. During one mating, he releases 4–5 cm³ of semen, sufficient to inseminate 15–20 cows.
• Zebu have a hump on their back that starts immediately behind the neck. The back is slightly concave, and the hump begins immediately behind the neck.
• In cattle, the length of the intestine reaches 39–63 m. The ratio of body length to intestine length is 1:20.
• Bulls produce semen with a high concentration of sperm—up to 2 million per 1 cm³. In bulls, the testicle length is 12–15 cm, thickness—6–7 cm.
• Cattle embryos can remain frozen for a long time in liquid nitrogen. With proper biotechnology, their survival rate during transplantation reaches 90%.
• Cows can recognise individual humans and remember them for a long time.
• Cow’s milk contains a unique set of proteins.