Abstract
Sixty 7-week-old New Zealand White rabbits were randomly distributed into 5 equal experimental groups. The experimental rabbits were fed the tested diets till 14 weeks of age during summer season. The basal diet without feed additives (control; T1) and the other experimental diets were supplemented with enzymes at 0.5 g/kg (T2), organic acids at 1.0 g/kg (T3), Beta-pro at 0.2 g/kg (T4) or their combination (T5). The criteria of response were body weight, weight gain, feed consumption, feed conversion ratio, some blood constituents, carcass traits and economic efficiency. The obtained results can be summarized as follows: Positive effects of feed additives were observed on live body weight, daily weight gain and feed conversion of growing rabbits. There were no significant effects on blood parameters or carcass traits due to feed additives. It can be concluded that dietary Beta-pro (enzymes+probiotics) or a combination of enzymes, organic acids and Beta-pro at the tested levels can be used to improve the rabbit performance, with no adverse effects on carcass characteristics or blood parameters.
Highlights
Maximizing nutrient utilization is essential to the profitability and sustainability of rabbit production
The treatment five recorded the highest significant value of live body weight compared with the other experimental treatments, the control rabbits had the lowest significant value of live body weight among experimental treatments in the thirteen and fourteen weeks of age
Attia et al (2012) observed improvements in caecal fermentation pattern and nutrient metabolism due to feeding enzyme-supplemented diets which were coincided with higher live body weight in rabbits
Summary
Maximizing nutrient utilization is essential to the profitability and sustainability of rabbit production. Probiotics and organic acids can be used as viable alternatives to antibiotic growth promoters for rabbits (Falcao-e-Cunha et al, 2007). Dietary supplementation of organic acids can improve growth, feed conversion and nutrient utilization in rabbits (Dibner & Buttin, 2002; Falcao-e-Cunha et al, 2007). Rabbits are more susceptible to diarrhea and intestinal disorders due to the transition from feeding on mother's milk to hard food Different stressors such as dietary, environmental and behavioral factors affect feed consumption, intestinal tract development and adaptation to the weaning diet. This study was undertaken to evaluate the effect of dietary supplementation with enzymes, organic acids, β-pro and their combination on performance and carcass traits of growing rabbits
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