Effects of different dietary crude protein and energy levels on production performance, carcass characteristics and organ weights of rabbits raised under the humid environment of Nigeria
2010
Obinne, J.I.,Federal Coll. of Education, Asaba (Nigeria). Dept. of Agricultural Education | Mmereole, F.U.C.,Delta State Univ., Asaba (Nigeria). Dept. of Animal Science
An experiment was conducted to test the effects of different dietary crude protein and energy levels on the production performance, carcass characteristics and organ weights of rabbits raised under the humid environment of Nigeria. Twenty-seven 6-8-week-old crossbred kittens (comprising New Zealand White, Flemish Giant and California as parent-stock) of mixed sexes were fed diets containing 14.2,16.2 and 18.1 % crude protein (CP), and 6.7, 8.7 and 10.8 MJ/kg digestible energy (DE), respectively. The experiment lasted 84 days. The rabbits were assigned to the nine dietary treatments in a 3 x 3 factorial design with three rabbits per treatment. Each rabbit was housed in an individual hutch. Feed and water were supplied ad libitum. Faecal excretions were collected in perforated catch tray in the last 7 days of the feeding trials. CP and DE levels produced highly significant effects on carcass dressing percentage. Carcass yield significantly increased with increasing CP. Weight of lungs and liver expressed as percentage of the body weight significantly improved with increasing CP and DE levels. Weights of heart and abdominal fat were not significantly affected. Based on the carcass dressing percentage values, a diet with 16.2% CP and 6.7 MJ/kg DE is proposed as the optimal one.
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