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Effect of sweet potato vines on performance parameters and some carcass characteristics of rabbits
Author(s) -
Klinger A. C. K.,
Silva L. P.,
Toledo G. S. P.,
Galarreta B.,
Goulart F.
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
journal of animal physiology and animal nutrition
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.651
H-Index - 56
eISSN - 1439-0396
pISSN - 0931-2439
DOI - 10.1111/jpn.12672
Subject(s) - hay , zoology , feed conversion ratio , dry matter , biology , weight gain , body weight , carcass weight , large white , completely randomized design , glycogen , alfalfa hay , food science , rumen , fermentation , endocrinology , biochemistry
Summary Conventional feedstuffs in Brazil are expensive, which has led to the search for less conventional cheaper and locally available feedstuffs. Thus, this study was carried out to determine the dietary effect of dry sweet potato vines ( SPV ) on the performance and some carcass characteristics of rabbits. A total of twenty‐seven weaned White New Zealand rabbits (14 male and 13 female) 35 days old with an average initial weight of 755 g were allocated into three treatments. Nine rabbits were assigned to each treatment in a completely randomized design. Three diets were formulated to similar protein and energy levels: 0 SPV – diet without inclusion of dry sweet potato vines; 10 SPV – diet with 10% alfalfa hay replaced by dry sweet potato vines; and 15 SPV – diet with 15% of alfalfa hay replaced by dry sweet potato vines. The experiment lasted for 49 days during which data for feed intake and body weight were recorded. The daily feed intake ranged from 73.17 to 78.02 g; daily weight gain from 22.32 to 23.17 g; feed conversion ratio ( FCR ) from 3.16 to 3.49 and final live weight ranged from 1839.44 to 1880.55 g. None of the evaluated performance parameters as well as carcass weight, heart weight and percentages of fat and protein in meat were significantly affected by any of the tested dietary treatments. However, the liver weight was statistically lower in animals fed the diets containing 10% of SPV , mainly due to lower glucose content. Glycogen within the tissue, did not differ significantly among treatments. It was therefore concluded that up to 15% of SPV can successfully be included in the diet of rabbits as a cheaper replacement for alfalfa hay without adversely affecting performance.