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NIGERIAN SOCIETY FOR ANIMAL PRODUCTION
44 th Annual Conference – ABUJA 2019
Book of Proceedings
73
1Abdulrashid, M.,* 1Abdulkadir, A. and 2Gadzama, I.U.
1Department of Animal Science, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria
2National Animal Production Research Institute, Shika-Zaria, Nigeria
*Corresponding Author E-mail: manarzh@gmail.com; Phone: +2348071410652
Abstract
The study was conducted to evaluate the effects of cottonseed meal supplemented with lysine on growth
performance of rabbit bucks. Twenty five (25) mixed breeds of rabbit bucks, 6 – 7 weeks old, were weighed
and randomly assigned to five (5) dietary treatments consisted five animals per treatment in a Completely
Randomized Design. Treatment 1 served as the reference diet (control) with neither cottonseed meal nor
lysine, while T2, T3, T4 and T5 each contained 25% CSM with varying inclusion levels of lysine (0.00,
0.60, 0.80 and 1.00), respectively. The results obtained showed that the inclusion of lysine had positive
significant effect (P<0.05) on all the growth parameters studied namely final weight, average daily weight
gain (ADWG), average daily feed intake (ADFI) and feed conversion ratio (FCR). The final weight values
observed ranged between 1111.66 g (T2) and 1395.05 g (T1). The mean FCR values obtained indicated
better records (5.59) in rabbit bucks on T1, but indicated poorest records (8.79) in rabbit bucks on T2. The
results of this research show that cottonseed meal with different levels of lysine supplements have
significant effects on growth performance of rabbit bucks.
Key words: Cottonseed meal, Growth Performance, Lysine, Rabbit Bucks
Introduction
Rabbits have been known to possess the potentials to bridge the gap in the supply of animal protein to
humans, especially in the developing and underdeveloped countries. They are efficient converters of feed
to meat and can utilize up to 30% crude fibre as against 10% by most poultry species (Amao and Showunmi,
2016). In recent years, the cost of conventional protein sources (soybean meal, groundnut cake) for
livestock production has increased by 60%. Cottonseed meal (CSM) has been used as a cheaper alternative
to reduce the cost of animal production. However, the limitation or rather main challenge in feeding CSM
to monogastric animals is the presence of gossypol, a toxic polyphenolic compound that is naturally found
in the pigment glands of the cottonseed (Thirumalaisamy et al., 2016).
Gossypol has been shown to negatively affect the growth performance, digestive health and reproduction
in animals (Saki et al., 2012; Thirumalaisamy et al., 2016). Gossypol readily binds with a free epsilon
amino group of lysine during processing, thereby reducing proteolytic action (Saki et al., 2012). Hence, the
use of this CSM is limited. Supplementation with lysine is likely to ameliorate the negative effect of the
toxic principle (Amao and Showunmi, 2016). The objective of the present study was to evaluate the growth
performance of rabbit bucks fed cottonseed meal based diet supplemented with lysine.
Materials and Methods
Study Area
The study was conducted at the Rabbit Research Unit of the Department of Animal Science, Faculty of
Agriculture, Ahmadu Bello University, Samaru-Zaria, Nigeria. Zaria lies within the Northern Guinea
Savannah region of Nigeria. It is located on latitude 11o 121 N and longitude 7o 331 E at an altitude of 610m
above sea level (Ovimaps, 2018). The mean maximum temperature shows a major peak in April (39o C)
with a minimum daily temperature of 26.60o C. The annual average rainfall is about 1100 – 1200mm (IAR,
2018).
Experimental Animals and Design
EFFECTS OF COTTONSEED MEAL SUPPLEMENTED WITH LYSINE ON GROWTH
PERFORMANCE OF RABBIT BUCKS
NIGERIAN SOCIETY FOR ANIMAL PRODUCTION
44 th Annual Conference – ABUJA 2019
Book of Proceedings
74
Twenty five (25) mixed breeds of rabbit bucks (6 – 7 weeks old), with mean body weight of 853.66 ±0.34
g were used for the experiment. The rabbits were sourced from rabbit farm in Samaru, Zaria, Kaduna State.
The rabbit bucks were kept in individual cages equipped with feeding troughs and drinkers, and allowed to
acclimatize to the experimental site for two weeks. During the adaptation period, the animals were given
enrofloxacin, wormazine and enbazin forte (coccidiostat). The rabbit bucks were randomly assigned to five
(5) dietary treatments with five animals per treatment in a Completely Randomized Design.
Experimental Diets
The experimental diets were manufactured using conventional feedstuffs, the diets identified as T1, T2,
T3, T4 and T5 were offered to the experimental animals in treatments 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5, respectively.
Treatment 1 served as the reference diet (control) with neither cottonseed meal nor lysine, while T2, T3,
T4 and T5 each contained 25% CSM with varying inclusion levels of lysine (0.00, 0.60, 0.80 and 1.00),
respectively. The experimental diet composition is presented in Table 1.
Experimental Procedure and Management
The weights of the rabbit bucks were measured on the day of commencement of the experiment. During
the experimental period, the animals were weighed on a weekly basis to determine the weekly weight gain.
Amount of feed was weighed each morning before given to the animals and the leftover was weighed the
next morning; the differences of feed consumed by each animal were subsequently determined. The
drinkers and feeders for the rabbits were made of plastics with narrow but blunt mouth to discourage feed
wastage and injuries. The parameters that were measured weekly included feed intake and weight gain. The
experimental duration lasted for a period of twelve weeks.
Growth Performance
The initial body weight of the rabbit bucks was taken at the commencement of the experiment while the
final weight of the animals was taken with the aid of a precision digital weighing scale. The weight gain
was deduced using the difference between the final weight and initial weight. The feed conversion ratio
(FCR) was determined by the ratio between total feed consumed and total weight gain.
Statistical Analysis
Data collected was subjected to Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) using the General Linear Model (GLM)
procedure of SAS (2002). Significant differences among the treatment means were separated using
Duncan’s Multiple Range Test (DMRT) in the SAS package.
Table 1: Gross Composition of the Experimental Diets Fed to Rabbit Bucks Containing Varying
Inclusion Levels of Lysine
Inclusion Levels of Lysine
Ingredients (%)
T1
(Control)
T2
(0.00)
T3
(0.60)
T4
(0.80)
T5
(1.00)
Maize Offals
33.00
35.00
34.00
34.20
34.00
Corn Cobs
25.00
10.00
10.00
10.00
10.00
Brewer’s Dried Grain
10.00
10.00
10.00
10.00
10.00
Palm Kernel Meal
15.00
15.00
15.00
15.00
15.00
Groundnut Cake
15.00
3.00
3.00
3.00
3.00
Cottonseed Meal
0.00
25.00
25.00
25.00
25.00
Bone Meal
1.50
1.50
1.50
1.50
1.50
Common Salt
0.50
0.50
0.50
0.50
0.50
Lysine
0.00
0.00
0.60
0.80
1.00
Premix
0.20
0.20
0.20
0.20
0.20
Total
100.00
100.00
100.00
100.00
100.00
Results and Discussion
NIGERIAN SOCIETY FOR ANIMAL PRODUCTION
44 th Annual Conference – ABUJA 2019
Book of Proceedings
75
Growth Performance of Rabbit Bucks Fed Cottonseed Meal Based Diet Supplemented With Varying
Inclusion Levels of Lysine
The growth performance of rabbit bucks fed cottonseed meal based diet supplemented with varying
inclusion levels of lysine is presented in Table 2. The initial weight of the rabbit bucks was not significantly
different (P>0.05) across the treatment levels. The initial weight values ranged from 853.00 to 854.00 g.
The mean values obtained for final weight of the rabbit bucks were significantly affected (P<0.05) by the
varying inclusion levels of lysine in the diet. The final weight of the rabbit bucks ranged between 1111.66
and 1395.05 g. The mean values obtained for final weight of the rabbit bucks did not follow a definite
pattern across the treatment; however, rabbit bucks in T1 (control) had the highest final weight values
(1395.05 g) while rabbit bucks in T2 had the least final weight value. The average daily weight gain
(ADWG) of the rabbit bucks were statistically different (P<0.05) across the dietary treatments. The ADWG
values of the rabbit bucks on T3 (6.35 g), T4 (6.37 g) and T5 (7.05 g) were statistically similar. Lysine had
a positive effect on the average daily weight gain of the rabbit bucks as observed in T3, T4 and T5 indicating
a better feed utilization as a result of lysine supplementation which reduced the negative effect of gossypol
found in cottonseed meal as compared with T2 which had the least ADWG values (4.60 g). The average
daily weight gain values obtained (4.60 to 9.66 g) were lower than (19.24 to 26.78 g) and (8.84 to 14.9g)
reported by Selim et al. (2008) and Megbuwe et al. (2018), respectively who fed dietary vitamins E and C
to growing rabbit bucks but the values obtained were higher than that reported (-1.75g to 0.67g) by Bisong
(2015). The results obtained is in contrast with the repot by Bisong (2015), who stated that graded levels
of vitamin C at 100 mg/kg to 300 mg/kg diet does not improve growth of rabbit bucks during dry season.
Table 2: Growth Performance of Rabbit Bucks Fed Cottonseed Meal Based Diet Supplemented
With Varying Inclusion Levels of Lysine
Inclusion Levels of Lysine
Parameters
T1
(Control)
T2
(0.00)
T3
(0.60)
T4
(0.80)
T5
(1.00)
SEM
Initial Weight (g)
853.80
854.00
853.00
853.50
854.00
12.34NS
Final Weight (g)
1395.05a
1111.66c
1209.00b
1210.32b
1249.00b
30.51
Total Weight Gain (g)
541.25a
257.67c
356.00b
356.80b
395.00b
23.00
ADWG (g)
9.66a
4.60c
6.35b
6.37b
7.05b
0.41
Total Feed Intake (g)
432.08a
321.98b
316.41c
315.08c
345.55b
11.85
ADFI (g)
54.01a
40.25b
39.55c
39.38c
43.19b
1.48
FCR
5.59a
8.79c
6.22b
6.18b
6.12b
0.11
abc means with different superscripts within the same row are significantly different at P<0.05;
SEM = Standard Error of Mean; ADWG = Average Daily Weight Gain; ADFI = Average Daily Feed
Intake; FCR = Feed Conversion Ratio
The mean average daily feed intake (ADFI) values obtained were statistically different (P<0.05) across the
dietary treatment. The ADFI value obtained for the rabbit bucks was highest (54.01 g) in T1 (the control),
followed by T2 and T5 which had statistically similar values (40.25 and 43.19 g), respectively. The average
daily feed intake of the rabbit bucks fed test diets with 1.00 mg lysine supplementation (T5) was statistically
higher than those on T3 and T4 but lower to that reported (64.10 to 69.40 g) by Azza et al. (2008) who fed
different types of organic acids to growing rabbits. The feed conversion ratio (FCR) values obtained for the
rabbit bucks were significantly affected (P<0.05) by the varying inclusion levels of lysine. The FCR values
ranged from 5.59 (T1) to 8.79 (T2). The results of FCR in this study agrees with the findings of Fitzsimmons
et al. (1989) who reported that FCR was not detrimentally affected by cottonseed meal supplemented with
lysine. The range of values for feed conversion ratio of the rabbit bucks (5.59 to 8.79) were within the (5.13
to 7.58) reported by Megbuwe et al. (2018) in rabbit bucks fed graded levels of vitamins C and E in the
Guinea Savannah region of Nigeria but were higher and poorer than the range of values (2.75 to 3.68)
reported by Selim et al. (2008). The range of values obtained for feed conversion ratio of rabbit bucks used
in this study was also poorer and higher than that reported (3.02 to 3.52) by Abdel-Khalek et al. (2012).
NIGERIAN SOCIETY FOR ANIMAL PRODUCTION
44 th Annual Conference – ABUJA 2019
Book of Proceedings
76
The FCR values obtained were slightly higher than the values (4.67 to 6.33) obtained by Makinde (2016).
However, the feed conversion ratio values obtained in this study were better for the rabbit bucks fed the
control diet (T1) followed by rabbit bucks supplemented with lysine compared to that obtained for the rabbit
bucks in T2 which had no lysine supplementation. The differences in feed conversion ratio value obtained
in this study compared to that reported by Selim et al. (2008), Abdel-Khalek et al. (2012) and Makinde
(2016) could be as a result of differences in age, sex, breed and nutrition. All growth parameters measured
were significantly (P<0.05) higher in rabbit bucks fed the control diet (T1). This is an indication that the
inclusion of cottonseed meal in the diet decreased the weight gains of the rabbit bucks. However, lysine
supplementation increased the feed utilization by the rabbit bucks. The improvement of the average daily
weight gain and feed conversion ratio obtained for the rabbit bucks in T3, T4 and T5 is an indication that
the varying inclusion levels of lysine in the diet aided growth of the rabbit bucks. It is also an indication
that inclusion of lysine at higher level will improve feed intake of rabbit bucks.
Conclusion
It was concluded that cottonseed meal with different levels of lysine supplement have significant effects on
growth performance of rabbit bucks. Further research is suggested to evaluate the effect of cottonseed meal
based diets supplemented with lysine on blood profile and reproductive performance of rabbit bucks.
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