Dr. Luis Arroyo, a professor in the Department of Clinical Studies in the Ontario Veterinary College, was among the science experts who had answers during the annual holiday listeners’ question show on CBC Radio’s Quirks and Quarks. The show aired on New Year’s Day.

Asked why some animals are unable to vomit, Arroyo said many rodents have weak diaphragms and have evolved to keep down their stomach contents.

He said rodents compensate through strong senses of smell and taste, and avoid eating anything that may make them sick.

An expert in equine and bovine health, Arroyo studies gastroenterology of horses and cattle as well as vascular pathologies in horses.