Cow pancreas is a soft, solid gland that possesses both the exocrine and endocrine portions. However, it is considered the most essential accessory organ of the cow’s digestive system.
Here, I will describe the cow’s pancreas anatomy with hand-drawing diagrams and real images.
Quick answer: Cow pancreas is an irregular quadrilateral soft gland that attaches to the visceral surface of the liver and presents various surfaces, borders, and angles for anatomical description.
Thus, I will describe the location and relationship of the cow’s pancreas along with its different anatomical features.
What is cow pancreas?
Figure 1 presents the hand-drawing schematic presentation of a soft solid and lobulated gland. It is the accessory organ of the cow’s digestive system and is termed the pancreas.
Begin with a compound gland, the cow’s pancreas has both the exocrine and endocrine portions. Here, the exocrine portion secretes the digestive enzyme, which passes through its duct.
Both portions of the cow’s pancreas are well viewed with their histological section. However, I will focus on the description of the anatomy of the cow’s pancreas in this guide.
Figure 1 also shows that the pancreas attaches to various organs of the cow’s abdomen and has a specific shape. Thus, first let’s know the location, shape, and relationship of the cow’s pancreas with other various visceral organs of the abdomen.
Where is the cow’s pancreas located?
Figure 2 shows the location of the cow’s pancreas within the abdominal cavity. I made this figure showing the location of the cow’s pancreas using hand-drawn illustrations and real pictures.
Location: The cow’s pancreas is located transversely across the dorsal part of the abdominal cavity. It lies almost entirely to the right of the median plane of the cow’s body.
However, the topographic relationship might help you better understand its location. Table 1 shows the overview of the relationship of the cow’s pancreas with other organs –
| Cow’s pancreas | Relationship with other organs |
| Dorsally | Crura of the diaphragm,Celiac and cranial mesenteric arteries, Visceral surface of the liverRight kidney, andCaudal vena cava |
| Ventrally | Dorsal sac of the rumenPart of the colon, Hepatic artery and portal vein, and Some lymph nodes |
However, you will learn the details of these relationships, while I will describe the anatomy of the cow’s pancreas.
What does a cow’s pancreas look like?
So, according to Figures 1 and 2, the cow’s pancreas is irregular quadrilateral in form. However, it presents fine lobulation on the surfaces.
Cow pancreas anatomy
Figure 3 presents a summary of the cow’s pancreas anatomy. It is the combination of the pancreas’s location, parts, surfaces, borders, and angles.
However, you might also describe the weight and color of the cow’s pancreas. Here, the weight and color of the pancreases are given in Table 2 –
| Physical portieres of the pancreas | Weight and color |
| Color | Reddish cream/yellow |
| Weight | 350 – 500 grams (for medium-sized cow) |
In fresh condition, the pancreas resembles the cow’s salivary glands. However, the weight of the pancreas may vary in different breeds of cows.
Parts of the cow’s pancreas: The cow’s pancreas presents two lobes: the larger right and smaller left lobes. However, there is no clear demarcation between these two lobes of the cow’s pancreas.
- Right lobe: Here, the part of the gland on the right side of the portal vein is considered the right lobe.
- Left lobe: The part of the gland on the left side is considered the left lobe, which is smaller than the right lobe.
Figure 4 highlights the parts of the cow’s pancreas with a hand-drawing diagram.
Again, the cow’s pancreas presents 2 surfaces, 4 borders, and 4 angles –
- Surfaces: dorsolateral and ventromedial surfaces,
- Borders: right, left, cranial, and caudal borders, and
- Angles: craniolateral, caudolateral, craniomedial, and caudomedial angles.
Now, I will describe all the above-mentioned surfaces, borders, and angles from the cow’s pancreas.
Surfaces of the cow’s pancreas
Figure 5 presents the dorsolateral and ventrolateral surfaces of the pancreas of a cow. Both surfaces are attached to the various organs or structures of the abdominal cavity.
Dorsolateral surface: Here, the dorsolateral surface faces cranially and dorsally and is covered with the peritoneum. It attaches to the visceral surface of the cow’s liver.
However, this surface also attaches laterally to the portal fissure and crura of the cow’s diaphragm.
Between the adhesion of the liver and diaphragm, it is free and forms the ventral wall of the epiploic foramen. However, it extends beyond the right caudate lobe of the liver.
Thus, the dorsolateral surface extends between the layers of the mesoduodenum. Here, it remains in contact with the upper part of the flank of the abdominal wall at the lumbocostal angle.
However, this surface relates to the ventral face of the right kidney, adrenal gland, caudal vena cava, and portal vein. Its ventrolateral border relates to the ventral border of the cow’s duodenum.
Ventromedial surface: It faces ventrally, caudally, and remains in contact with the dorsal curvature of the rumen and intestine. Thus, this surface is also termed the gastrointestinal surface.
It presents a deep notch for the portal vein, hepatic artery, and hepatic lymph nodes (Figure 6).
Borders of the cow’s pancreas
Figure 7 shows the four borders of the cow’s pancreas. Here, it shows the right, left, cranial, and caudal borders of the cow’s pancreas.
- Right border: It is nearly straight and corresponds to the second curve of the duodenum, which is part of the small intestine.
- Left border: This border is irregular, concave, and related to the rumen (part of the cow’s stomach) and the splenic vessels.
- Cranial border: It is also straight and situated across the cow’s liver at the level of the portal fissure.
- Caudal border: This border of the cow’s pancreas is irregular and presents a deep notch. The portal vein passes obliquely and reaches the portal fissure of the liver through the deep notch.
Angles of the cow’s pancreas (bovine/ox/sheep/goat pancreas)
Figure 8 highlights the various angles of the cow’s pancreas. It shows the craniolateral, caudolateral, craniomedial, and caudomedial angles of the pancreas.
- Craniolateral angle: It is at the level where the duodenum forms a bend and where it receives the bile duct. However, this angle is also known as the duodenal angle of the pancreas (Figure 8).
- Caudolateral angle: This angle is located at the site where the pancreatic duct leaves the gland and opens into the duodenum.
- Craniomedial angle: It is at the point where the vessels of the spleen pass between it and the liver.
- Caudomedial angle: This angle forms the left extremity of the cow’s pancreas. It is also related to the rumen.
Notes: The cow’s pancreas is attached to the kidney, the suspensory ligament of the spleen, and the vena cava by connective tissue.
Cow’s pancreatic duct
The cow’s pancreatic duct arises from the posterior part of the right border. However, it opens into the duodenum about twelve inches behind the opening of the bile duct.
Figure 9 highlights the pancreatic duct of the cow’s pancreas. However, it also presents the bile duct of the cow’s liver.
In some of the cows, one additional small pancreatic duct drains the left lobe of the pancreas. However, this small additional pancreatic duct joins the bile duct.
Exceptions in small ruminants: In small ruminants like sheep and goats, you will find only one pancreatic duct in their pancreas. However, it joins the bile duct and opens into the duodenum.
However, Table 3 presents the deposition of the pancreatic ducts in different animal species, including the cows –
| Animals | Pancreatic duct | Accessory duct |
| Cow/ox | Present | Present |
| Horse | Present | Present |
| Dog | Present | Present |
| Pig | Absent | Present |
| Sheep/Goat | Present | Absent |
Branches of the celiac, hepatic, and ruminal arteries supply the cow’s pancreas. However, the celiac-mesenteric plexus innervates the cow’s pancreas.
FAQ’s on cow’s pancreas anatomy
Well, the pancreas of the goats, even in the sheep, possesses almost similar features to the cow’s pancreas. However, it weighs about 50-70 g in sheep and goats.
In sheep and goats, there is only one pancreatic duct, as opposed to the occurrence of two ducts in cows.
In the horse, the pancreas is roughly triangular in shape, unlike that of a cow. Its ventral surface is related to the cecum and colon.
Again, the larger pancreatic duct opens into the duodenum by the side of the hepatic duct at the hepato-pancreatic ampulla. However, the accessory pancreatic duct of the horse opens into the duodenum on a papilla opposite to the large duct.
In the dog, the pancreas is V-shaped, consisting of right and left lobes. Thus, it is exceptional in dogs compared to horses and cows.
However, the dog pancreas also has two ducts: a larger and a smaller one. Here, the smaller duct opens into the duodenum with the common bile duct or close to it.
Again, the larger duct opens into the duodenum about 3-5 centimeters caudal to the opening of the smaller duct.
Conclusion
So, the pancreas of a cow is a soft gland situated transversely across the dorsal part of the abdominal cavity. It is an irregular quadrilateral with various lobes, surfaces, borders, and angles for description.
References
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