Meat and carcass quality of weaner rabbits placed on three different plant protein-based diets

Abstract

The study assessed the effect of replacing groundnut cake (GNC) with palm kernel cake (PKC) or cotton seed cake (CSC) on the meat and carcass characteristics of rabbits. Sixty mixed breed weaner rabbits of both sexes with an age range of eight to nine weeks old were randomly divided into three treatments 1, 2, and 3 of 20 rabbits per group. Rabbits in the group one (T1) served as the positive control and were fed GNC-based diet, while those in treatments two (T2) and three (T3) were fed PKC-, and CSC-based diets respectively. The results differed non-significantly (p>0.05) in the final body weight and carcass quality of the rabbits in each group. Carcass evaluation varied non-significantly (p>0.05) in terms of visceral (liver, lungs, hearts, and kidneys) and weights of primal cuts (neck, forelimbs, hindlimbs, chest, and back). Also, some of the meat’s physicochemical properties showed no difference. The meat ratios bone of groups fed PKC- and CSC-based diets were insignificant (p>0.05) above the control. CSC significantly (p<0.05) increased the moisture, while PKC significantly decrease the nitrogen and crude protein contents of the meat of experimental rabbits. This study suggests that rabbits could be raised on a diet formulated using CSC as a replacement for GNC, while a PKC-based diet tends to decrease the protein content of rabbit meat.