The Hoof Thing

[Terenia]

Okay, so we all know that Andalites absorb nutrition through their hooves. I've been thinking about it lately, and I'm not sure exactly how that works. Are the hooves hollow? How would they discriminate between grass and a foreign object, like a rock? Are the hooves only outer protection and then there are muscles on the very bottom of their "feet" that open and close at will? Do the hooves actually pick up the grass and whatnot? How does it pull the nutrition out?

Anyone seen a drawing or anything of the underside of an Andalite hoof? I'd be interested to see how it looks.

[goom]

i imagined the hooves doing some sort of osmosis.
dunno if it'd work for grass..

[Xan]

It's crush and THEN absorb, much like how a spider eats its prey. When the grass is liquefied by some enzyme in the hoof, then it can be absorbed through osmosis.

[anijen21]

that seems like it would take too long to happen while they're running...

I can't see the *absorbs nutrients like osmosis* thing either. They'd need to eat bulk food to maintain their size. I mean horses eat grass and they barely stop eating to do anything else. Grass is not calorically dense. The way Applegate describes it, it's like Andalites live off of 500 or 600 calories a day.

[ThinkAgain]

It's not just grass though. I forget which book, but I remember Ax talking about running in the rain, and accidentally absorbing a couple worms. He then complained that more protein than he needs keeps him awake. That means grass, while the main component isn't the only thing they eat. This partially solves the calorie problem, but complicates the absorption one.

[estrid]

well they can open and close their hooves (in AC member elfangor says he closed his hooves in the yeerk side not to taste it?) so i always pictured it like a sucking mouth that sucks up grass thru an esophogous type musle in the leg straight to the stomache

[ThinkAgain]

In the Oatmeal book, they had the Visser in a cinch when they described that he was in the pool, and Marco threaten to blow up a barrel of oatmeal into the pool. The Visser complied because he knew that he would absorb the oatmeal, which would ruin him. He is later described as escaping after he morphs something that eats with a mouth.

Wouldn't this mean that it is not voluntary?

[goom]

In the Oatmeal book, they had the Visser in a cinch when they described that he was in the pool, and Marco threaten to blow up a barrel of oatmeal into the pool. The Visser complied because he knew that he would absorb the oatmeal, which would ruin him. He is later described as escaping after he morphs something that eats with a mouth.

Wouldn't this mean that it is not voluntary?

maybe not for liquids?

[musicman88]

I always thought that the bottom of the hoof (at least a patch of it) was soft and can possibly give off some kind of organic acid which can quickly dissolve plant matter and then suck it up before the hoof is lifted from the grass.  And maybe Andalite's bodies are more efficient than our bodies and need less energy.  They do run around on grass all day so it's not like they're constantly searching for food either.

[estrid]

In the Oatmeal book, they had the Visser in a cinch when they described that he was in the pool, and Marco threaten to blow up a barrel of oatmeal into the pool. The Visser complied because he knew that he would absorb the oatmeal, which would ruin him. He is later described as escaping after he morphs something that eats with a mouth.

Wouldn't this mean that it is not voluntary?

i saw that as a KASU. cuz if that was so they would be constantly eating, cuz the hoove is always absorbing. there has to be a way to make it voluntary

[Shark Akhrrana]

didn't Aximili once say he accidentally ate a snail and gave him extra unwanted energy or something like that.

Also Elfangor was able to NOT eat  when he was walking on yeerk areas in the tiny universe so Andalites can voluntarily stop absorbing nutrients

[JFalcon]

Even as a kid reading the books I always thought it was wierd that it was, at least, implied that they would eat by running but drink by standing still, so I just figured they absorbed at will since maybe grass you run on tastes better? If they can choose to make a distinction on when they'll eat and drink and such I figure it's up to them when they absorb.
But I sort of expect since they live off of grass that they would have to absorb constantly or, you know, have an insanly slow metabolism, otherwise I figure they'd die what with all the limbs and with all the exhertion Ax and Elfangor are shown to be doing in the series and TAC.
But then I based that theory off of an episode of Gargoyles, my knowledge of metabolism as a child was indeed that limited and hasn't gotten any better in my old age 

[Intrepid]

Perhaps it's somewhere in between voluntary and involuntary, somewhat like breathing is for us.

[morfowt]

Perhaps it's somewhere in between voluntary and involuntary, somewhat like breathing is for us.

that's the best theory I've heard so far...

[ThinkAgain]

Perhaps it's somewhere in between voluntary and involuntary, somewhat like breathing is for us.

that's the best theory I've heard so far...

I Agree, that explains much of it. Avoiding it only consciously, but doing it involuntarily every other time. This could explain calories more, as to be constantly absorbing energy, yet being able to avoid things that may be toxic. That makes sense. It was likely the scene with the Visser in the pool was either a KASU or a plot device.