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Twenty four New-Zealand White rabbit of both sexes (12 males and 12 females), 4 weeks old, with nearly equal live BW at the beginning of the experiment were randomly allotted to three groups of 8 rabbit each (4 males and 4 females). Three groups were established according to the cage floor type. The first group was raised on wire mesh cage floor throughout the experiment. The second group was raised on plastic hollow mat and the third was on rubber hollow mat. Rabbits were weighed at the beginning of the experiment and at weekly intervals thereafter during the experimental period (7 weeks). Individual BW and feed consumption throughout the experimental period were recorded weekly. BW gain, feed conversion ratio, ear and eye lesions, total and differential leucocytes count were also calculated. The results demonstrated that the cage floor type affected drinking and agonistic behavior but did not affect any other behaviors. Rabbits raised on wire mesh floor showed the highest proportion of agonistic behavior. The cage floor type had no influence on BW, feed consumption, BW gain and feed conversion ratio of growing rabbit during the last three weeks of experiment. The incidence of ear and eye lesions was higher in cages with wire mesh (25%) than cages with plastic and rubber mat floor (12.5%). wire caged rabbits revealed significant (P = 0.05) increase in white blood cells and lymphocyte counts. It could be suggested that placing of plastic or rubber mat on wire mesh of rabbit' cages has an important effect on reducing the incidance of ear and eye lesions caused by aggressive behaviors and reducing the effect of stress on the total and differential leucocytes count, as well as improving their welfare state.
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... Rabbit behaviour is influenced by the external factors which affect its welfare and is reflected on its production under such environment. Recently, animal welfare augments interest worldwide, therefore, investigating for a better housing condition is the aim of many researchers [1]. Different forms of cages or pens (dimensions, type of floor, enrichment, etc.) are considered in prospect of their impacts on animal welfare and luxury during rearing. ...
... The application of plastic or rubber mat on the floor of wire cage did not influence the productive performance of growing rabbits, but it simultaneously decreased the occurrence of eye and ear lesions which occurred as a result of aggressive behaviour [1]. In addition, it reduced the impact of chronic stress on total and differential Leukocytic count, consequently the floor of rubber and plastic cage had advantages from the perspective of animal welfare. ...
... Rabbits reared on plastic or wire-mesh floors revealed no differences in body weight (BW), weight gain and slaughter performance [12]. Cage floor type had no significant effect on the final BW and feed conversion efficiency, but the daily weight gain (at 6-7 weeks of age) was higher in rabbits raised in cages with floor of wire net when compared with the floor of rubber and plastic mat [1]. The study also revealed that the feed consumption at 5-8 weeks of age was significantly increased in rabbits housed in cages with floor of wire net when compared with other forms of cage floor, while feed consumption was the same in the three groups between weeks 9 to 11. Feed consumption was greater in rabbits reared on floor of rubber and wire at 7-8 weeks of age than those reared on plastic floor [1]. ...
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The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of cage floor type on different behavioural patterns, productive performance and carcass traits of growing rabbits. Twenty seven non sexed weanling growing New Zealand rabbits (4-5weeks of age) were used in this experiment. The animals were randomly divided into three groups of 9 rabbits according to the kind of cage floor. The first group was reared on wire mesh cage floor. While, the second group was reared on plastic hollow mat and the third one was on rubber hollow mat. A focal sample technique was used for recording the behavioural patterns throughout the experimental period (6 weeks). Rabbits were individually weighed at the commencement of the experiment and at weekly intervals along the experimental period. The feed consumption throughout the experiment was recorded weekly. The results revealed that the cage floor type had an effect on the drinking, aggression and abnormal behaviour time, but did not influence any other behaviours (feeding, ceacotrophy, comfort, social, resting and locomotion). The kind of cage floor had no impact on feed consumption, body weight, relative growth rate and carcass traits. While body weight gain, feed conversion ratio and feed efficiency were significantly better in the group reared on plastic cage floor (26.46±1.45g/day, 3.78±0.22 and 0.277±0.004, respectively). Cortisol level was significantly higher in wire caged rabbits than those reared on rubber and plastic cage floor (0.65±0.72 µg/dl vs 0.45±0.38 µg/dl and 0.37±0.12 µg/dl, respectively). It could be concluded that the application of rubber or plastic mat on the floor of wire cage reduced the aggressive and abnormal behaviour with lower cortisol level and improved growing rabbit productivity and potentially welfare.
... Direct focal observations of rabbits in their home cages were conducted to record different behaviors for 15 consecutive days throughout the experimental period (Abdelfattah et al., 2013). After the preliminary experiment, the behavioral observations began on the 16th day of the experiment. ...
... Circling and biting are usually considered stereotypical behaviors of captive rabbits (Trocino et al. , 2019;Seidel, Beaton & Teague, 1979), and the decreased circling and biting behaviors among the EE-cohort rabbits may suggest that the EE re-directed the rabbits' attention. These findings support those of previous studies, which showed that EE reduced abnormal behavior in growing rabbits (Mohammed & Nasr, 2017;Abdelfattah et al., 2013). We believe this is because EE relieved boredom and satisfied ethological needs. ...
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Many studies have shown that stress is associated with gut microbiota. Environmental enrichment (EE) could reduce stress in farm animals; however, limited information is available on the microbial community composition in rabbits raised with or without EE. This study aimed to identify EE influences on the behavior, serum hormonal levels, and cecal microbiota of rabbits. Two hundred Rex rabbits were segregated randomly within four cohorts ( n = 50); reared for 76 d within standardized enclosures (non-enriched) or within cages containing a willow-stick (WS), rubber-duck (RD), or a can of beans (CB). The rabbits’ ingestive, rest, locomotion, exploratory, grooming, and abnormal behavior were observed. The serum hormone levels for rabbits were measured, and cecal specimens were sequencedfrom the V3–V4 region using 16S rRNA amplicons. Environmental enrichment increased feeding and drinking time, promoted exploratory behavior, and reduced abnormal behavior in rabbits. Insulin-like growth factor 1(IGF-1) levels of the enriched cohorts were elevated in comparison to the control cohort. Serum cortisol level for CB cohort was markedly reduced in comparison to the control cohort ( p < 0.05), while dopamine levels for CB cohort peaked. Further, we found that EE mainly affected the dominant microbiota. Several families, such as Erysipelotrichaceae, Tannerellaceae, Enterobacteriaceae, Burkholderiaceae, and Prevotellaceae were markedly reduced within the CB cohort. Bacteria such as Alloprevotella, Bifidobacterium, Enterobacteriaceae, Parabacteroides , and Erysipelatoclostridium were identified as having negative associations with the presence of serum cortisol. EE influenced rabbit behavior and serum hormonal levels, and CB enrichment was the most suitable for rabbits. Further, cecal microbiota composition and diversity were affected by CB enrichment. These findings suggested that CB could be considered for use in rabbit husbandry.
... Devido a isso, tipos de piso vêm sendo estudados como estratégia de enriquecimento ambiental na cunicultura, visando melhorar o bem-estar dos coelhos de produção. Materiais como concreto, malha plástica, cama de palha, plataforma elevada, estrados de madeira, ferro e ação foram testados em animais mantidos em gaiolas ou baias coletivas, visando maior conforto (Morisse et al., 1999;Princz et al., 2008;Trocino et al., 2008;Abdelfattah et al., 2013;Trocino et al., 2015;Windschnurer et al., 2019). Além disso, o tipo de piso utilizado deve ser economicamente viável e contribuir para a sanidade do sistema de produção (Barbosa et al., 1992). ...
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A cunicultura pode ser viável como atividade geradora de renda extra em pequenas propriedades rurais, uma vez que não requer altos investimentos para o seu desenvolvimento. A região sudeste do Pará é caracterizada por apresentar elevadas temperaturas e umidade relativa do ar, nesse contexto, o uso de material para enriquecimento ambiental pode auxiliar de forma benéfica o bem-estar dos animais e contribuir para minimizar o estresse em ambientes com altas temperaturas. O presente trabalho foi desenvolvido com o objetivo de avaliar o comportamento e interação com materiais utilizados para enriquecimento ambiental de coelhos mantidos em baias coletivas nas condições climáticas do Sudeste do Pará. O experimento foi desenvolvido no setor de cunicultura da Universidade Federal Rural da Amazônia, campus Parauapebas, PA. Foi avaliado o comportamento e preferência por material para enriquecimento ambiental de quatro coelhos alojados em galpão coletivo. A coleta de dados foi realizada durante três dias, pela manhã e tarde em intervalos de 10 minutos, totalizando 18 horas de observação. A temperatura ambiente variou entre 33ºC e 26,3ºC. O comportamento com maior frequência tanto pela manhã quanto no período da tarde foi o ócio. No período da manhã houve maior interação dos coelhos com a cerâmica e a tarde maior preferência pelo piso de chão batido, estes dois materiais apresentaram as menores temperaturas durante o experimento. Conclui-se que o enriquecimento ambiental pode ser uma estratégia para diminuir o estresse e favorecer as trocas térmicas de calor em criações de coelhos mantidas sobre altas temperaturas.
... The display of investigatory and locomotory behaviors was the greatest during the first and the last hours of the dark and light period, respectively, a finding that is in accordance with previous studies (Simitzis et al., 2015). On the other hand, Abdelfattah et al. (2013) found that weaned rabbits had higher values for locomotion and exploration early in the morning compared with the other periods of the day. ...
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Does are usually fed ad libitum during pregnancy, a fact that can result in intrauterine overfeeding and can have detrimental effects on embryonic programming with permanent changes in the physiology and behavior of the offspring. An experiment was therefore conducted to examine the effect of does’ overfeeding during two different periods of pregnancy on the behavior of kits after weaning. Fifteen does were allocated into three groups: control (M) (100% of maintenance energy requirements [MER] throughout pregnancy), O1 (129% of MER between the 7th and 19th of pregnancy), and O2 (138% of MER between the 20th and 27th day of pregnancy). At the ages of 50 and 65 days, the behavior of 24 randomly selected rabbits in home cages was recorded for three consecutive days, while an open field test that constitutes a good indicator of locomotion score and stress was conducted for another 24 rabbits. Rabbits in O1 and O2 groups had more meals in shorter duration and moved and explored their environment less than the controls (P < 0.05). No significant effects on the exhibition of behavior were found during the open field test with the exception of rearing that was displayed more by the O1 and O2 rabbits. Comfort behaviors and resting had increased values, although frequency and duration of eating and drinking were significantly decreased at the age of 65 days (P < 0.05). Males had higher values for frequency of eating than the females (P < 0.01). We concluded that behavior of rabbits born from overnourished does was modified, with decreased values for locomotion and exploration.
... Only the wooden floor and layer of straw resulted in a lower daily gain. Also, Abdelfattah et al. [10] did not find differences in growing performance and behavior between rabbits kept on wire mesh, plastic slatted floor (1.5 cm slot width), and slatted floor from rubber (1.5 cm slot width). Lang [11] and Wagner et al. [12] had already demonstrated that a plastic grid with a slot width of 13 mm and a slat width of 5 mm (perforation rate of approx. ...
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In Germany, an animal welfare ordinance for the housing of rabbits was issued which did not take into account the current investigations on floor design. The aim of the investigations was to study the effects of floor design on dirtiness and occurrence of lesions on the legs of growing rabbits. A total of 1837 weaned rabbits, kept on four different floor designs, were examined for body lesions and the dirtiness of the soles of the feet at the end of the growing period. Two four-stage scoring systems (0–3) were used to record the dirtiness and the lesions on the feet. A floor according to the provisions of the German animal protection ordinance (10 mm slat width; 50% perforation on floor area; <15% perforation on the elevated platform) led to the most polluted and injured rabbits. The best cleanliness and the lowest injury rate of the growing rabbits was achieved on a plastic floor with 5 mm slat width and 13 mm slot width, both on the ground and elevated platform (75% perforation). The requirements of the German housing regulations on the floor for growing rabbits do not correspond to animal welfare.
... Behavioural observation was performed according to Paul and Patrick (2007). During the trial, the obser-vations were carried out for 3 hrs every week for each group by direct observation, where the rabbits were observed three times (20 minutes per time) daily, at early morning (7 a.m. to 8 a.m.), early afternoon (12 p.m. to 13 p.m.) and late afternoon (16 p.m. to 17 p.m.) on three alternate days (Abdelfattah et al. 2013). The observed behavioral patterns (duration and frequency), as mentioned by Dusanka et al. (2008;2011), were as follows: ...
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The present study was done to evaluate the effect of boldenone undecylenate (BOL) on growth performance, maintenance behaviour, reproductive hormones and carcass traits of male rabbits. Sixty apparently healthy New Zealand White male rabbits, 5 weeks of age, were allotted to 3 equal groups. Each group was subdivided into 5 replicates, where the first group is control. The second group (B1) comprised rabbits that received 2 intramuscular injections of BOL (5 mg/kg) with 3 week intervals (9 and 12 weeks of age), while the third group (B2) included rabbits that received 3 intramuscular injections of BOL (5 mg/kg) with 2 week intervals (8, 10 and 12 weeks of age). The end of the trial was after 4 weeks from the last injection (16 weeks of age). The results revealed that the treated groups had a significant increase in total body weight, daily gain and feed efficiency, with a significant decrease in feed conversion ratio (FCR). Ingestive, locomotion and grooming behaviors were significantly higher in treated groups. Lateral pasture and exploratory behaviors were significantly higher in the control group. Administration of BOL resulted in a significant increase in dressing % and a significant decrease in testes %. Groups treated with BOL had a significantly (P<0.05) decreased serum testosterone level, simultaneously with a significantly increased estradiol level. The results indicate that BOL improves performance and carcass traits. Furthermore, there are hormonal-behavioral correlations through enhancement of ingestive and locomotion behaviors of treated animals.
... Direct focal observations were conducted in the home pen to record different behaviours for 1 h at alternate days during the whole experimental period (Abdelfattah et al. 2013). The observers stood inside the pen 10 min before starting the direct observation to allow the rabbits to acclimatise. ...
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The present study investigated the effect of gnawing sticks as environmental enhancers on the performance, carcass traits and behaviour of individually housed growing rabbits. Two batches of weaned New Zealand White (NZW) rabbits were used, each consisting of 135 animals. Rabbits were homogeneously classified into the following three groups, each consisting of 45 rabbits: rabbits housed individually in cages without enrichment (control), rabbits housed individually in cages enriched with wooden sticks from apple tree and rabbits housed individually in cages enriched with wooden sticks from willow tree. Rabbits reared in enriched cages with apple or willow sticks showed a significantly (P < 0.0001) better performance (live bodyweight at slaughter 2526 and 2591 g, total weight gain 1620 and 1683 g, average daily gain 21.04 and 21.87 g and daily feed intake 78.57 and 74.89 g respectively), and had a higher carcass weight (1648.39 and 1750.26 g respectively, P < 0.0001) than did the control group. Rabbits in apple-stick group had a higher daily feed intake (78.57 g, P < 0.0001) and lower carcass weight (1648.39 g, P < 0.0001) than did those in the willow-stick group. The cortisol concentration was significantly (P < 0.0001) lower in apple and willow groups (9.44 ± 0.02 and 9.35 ± 0.02 nmol/L respectively) than in the control group (17.24 ± 0.03 nmol/L). Moreover, cage enrichment with apple or willow sticks improved the duration of feeding (7.08 and 7.39 min/3 h respectively, P < 0.0001) and drinking (2.54 and 2.67 min/3 h respectively, P < 0.0001) time, and reduced abnormal behaviour (biting the bars of the cage 0.24 and 0.34 min/3 h respectively, P = 0.001) when compared with the control group. Overall, the current results indicated that cage enrichment (with wooden sticks from apple or willow trees for gnawing) increased the final bodyweight and some carcass traits, reduced abnormal behaviour and potentially improved rabbit welfare during intensive rabbit breeding.
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Scientific works of several scientists are summarized in the book.
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