Abstract
The objective of this study was to evaluate the performance and digestibility of diets containing different levels of crude propolis for growing rabbits. Forty-eight New Zealand White rabbits, 43 days old, of both genders, were used, distributed in a completely randomized design. There were four diets with different inclusion levels of crude propolis (0.0; 0.5; 1.0 and 1.5%). There was no statistical difference for performance regarding the inclusion levels of crude propolis (p = 0.85), as well as for the variables dry matter consumption, neutral detergent fiber and acid detergent fiber (p ≥ 0.07). Crude protein consumption showed a statistical difference in relation to gender (p = 0.04): males showed higher consumption. However, final weight, total weight gain, daily weight gain and feed efficiency were not influenced by the addition of crude propolis (p ≥ 0.37). Dry matter digestibility, crude protein, neutral detergent fiber and acid detergent fiber were not influenced by the inclusion levels of crude propolis in the diets (p ≥ 0.12). This study indicates that the inclusion of raw propolis up to 1.5% in the diets does not affect the performance parameters of rabbits.
Highlights
IntroductionRabbit breeding is easy to implement, besides being a low-cost technique, and is a source of income for the breeder, for meat production, and for the use of manure, skin, fur, blood and viscera
The rabbits were weaned at 35 days of age and started the experimental period at 43 days of age, with an average weight of 1.05±0.04 kg, distributed in a completely randomized design (CRD), in a 2 x 4 factorial scheme, two genders: male and female; and four inclusion levels of crude propolis: 0.0; 0.5; 1.0 and 1.5%, replacing inert kaolin, totaling six females and six males at each inclusion level, with twelve animals per replication
The variable final weight showed no statistical difference (p > 0.86) between the levels of propolis increased in the diets
Summary
Rabbit breeding is easy to implement, besides being a low-cost technique, and is a source of income for the breeder, for meat production, and for the use of manure, skin, fur, blood and viscera. The use of dietary additives aims to increase feed efficiency, provide better productive performance and reduce costs in animal production. In this scenario, natural additives have interesting properties for animal feed, and some of them have been studied as a way to replace antibiotics commonly used in animal breeding, such as ionophores. There is a need to establish the mechanisms of action of these additives and the real benefits, to enable their use in rabbit breeding (Sakomura, Silva, & Costa, 2014)
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