Abomasal displacement can occur on the left or right side of the cow; the abomasum is the fourth stomach of the cow, which is usually situated in the low, right front quadrant of the abdomen and inside the 7th through the 11th ribs.

On occasion, the muscular wall can lose its tone, causing the stomach to fill with gas, this can sometimes result in movement of the abomasum upward and to the left of the rumen. If it moves to the right, it moves up high on the right side underneath the last ribs due to gas and fluid enclosed inside. When it moves to the right it has a higher risk of twisting, and showing abomasal torsion, which is often fatal to the cow.