What would happen to a herbivore (specifically a caribou, even more
specifically a reindeer) if it ate meat? Would it actually do such a
thing if it'd been starved and was really hungry? If not, what if the
meat was mixed with some vegetables? I'm specifically talking about
turkey - would a reindeer eat turkey, and what would happen to it?
Would it die, pass out, just get sick, throw up, be fine?
Thanks, David

An herbivore like a reindeer would not be able to properly digest the
muscle fibers in meat. The hydrochloric acid in an herivore's stomach
is much weaker than in the stomach of a carnivore or an omnivore, and
the digestive enzymes are different. I suspect that the meat would
probably either be vomited up, or passed through the intestines
virtually undigested, providing little nourishment.

"It is interesting to note that in nature there are basic differences
between herbivores, who do not eat meat, and carnivores. An herbivore
has flat teeth designed for grinding food, while a carnivore's teeth
are designed for tearing. The intestines of a herbivore are 24 to 26
feet long, allowing the necessary time for digesting the nutrients
found in plants, while the intestines of a carnivore are only 8 feet
long, allowing for rapid digestion of flesh before it putrefies in the
body. The saliva of a herbivore contains alpha-amylase, the sole
purpose of which, is to digest the complex carbohydrates found in
plant food. The saliva of a carnivore contains none. The digestive
system of a carnivore produces ten times the amount of hydrochloric
acid that the system of a herbivore does, a digestive juice that is
necessary for meat digestion."

http://www.champs-of-truth.com/health/protein.htm

Indeed, herbivores eating meat or meat products may be the cause of
Mad Cow disease in cattle and elk.

Kriswrite

Please excuse the typographical error in my comment above. For "The
hydrochloric acid in an herivore's stomach," please read "The
hydrochloric acid in an herbivore's stomach."

I don't know too much about reindeer, but I'll do some qualified
guesswork:  Reindeer are ruminants.  Ruminants use their
four-compartment stomach (reticulum, rumen, omasum, abomasum) to
digest grass and other plant material.  Simply spoken, the ruminant
keeps its own "herd" of microroganisms in its rumen.  It feeds this
herd with plant material, and the microorganisms are in turn digested
by the ruminant.  So ruminant doesn't really digest grass, they digest
microorganisms.

(See http://www.mun.ca/biology/scarr/Ruminant_Digestion.htm for an
illustrated explanation)

Ruminants do have the ability to digest animal protein.  This is most
evident when the young animal drinks milk from its mother.  In modern
agriculture, it is not uncommon to feed cattle with residual products
from the dairy industry (such as dried whey).

It also happens that curious ruminants (such as goats) eat food
containing meat if they like the taste.  Many ruminants lack salt in
their diet, and will happily eat anything with a salty taste.

I believe that a reindeer would taste a turkey stew if it had the
chance, out of curiosity and the desire for salt.  It would probably
not get much problems if it ate a small amount, but if it ate lots it
would probably lead to some kind of indigestion.

Note that there are stories from the arctic island Svalbard of
under-fed horses catching and eating lemmings and small rodents.  The
horses seemed to cope with this.  (Horses are not ruminants, though.)

Would you mind telling us why you'd like to know this - are you
writing some kind of strange Christmas story?  :-)

Hello everyone,
I posted the question and just wanted to thank you for the responses.
I am, indeed, writing a weird Thanksgiving/Christmas story involving
turkeys and reindeer.

I'll post a link sometime next week so that you can read it if you
wish sometime next week.

Thanks again,
David