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Caecotrophes intake in growing rabbits estimated either from urinary excretion of purine derivatives or from direct measurement using animals provided with a neck collar: effect of type and level of dietary carbohydrate

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 August 2016

A. Belenguer ,
J. Balcells ,
M. Fondevila  and
C. Torre
A. Belenguer
Affiliation:
Departamento de Producción Animal y Ciencia de los Alimentos, Universidad de Zaragoza, Miguel Servet 177, Zaragoza 50013, Spain
J. Balcells*
Affiliation:
Departamento de Producción Animal y Ciencia de los Alimentos, Universidad de Zaragoza, Miguel Servet 177, Zaragoza 50013, Spain
M. Fondevila
Affiliation:
Departamento de Producción Animal y Ciencia de los Alimentos, Universidad de Zaragoza, Miguel Servet 177, Zaragoza 50013, Spain
C. Torre
Affiliation:
Agribands, Purina España, S. A. Sant Joan 193, Barcelona, Spain
*
†To whom correspondence should be addressed; E-mail:balcells@posta.unizar.es
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Abstract

The present study compares estimates of caecotrophes production from urinary purine derivatives (PD) excretion with that from preventing caecotrophy by using a neck collar. A total of 64 New Zealand growing male rabbits were used to study the effect of diet composition on caecotrophes production. Diets were formulated using two sources of structural carbohydrates (fibre): alfalfa hay (AH) and sugar-beet pulp (SBP), mixed at two constant proportions, (0·75: 0·25) AH diets and (0·25: 0·75) SBP diets. Both diets included either barley or maize grain at two fibre: grain ratios (F/G, 80: 20 and 45: 55). Diets were given ad libitum. Growth rate, dry matter intake and digestibility were not modified by the grain source, although high F/G diets resulted in a lower growth rate (19·8 v. 26·4 g/day; P < 0·001). Between fibre sources, dry-matter intake and growth were higher in AH than in SBP diets (122·5 and 25·6 v. 101·6 and 20·4 g/day, respectively, P < 0·001 and P < 0·01). Rabbits given high F/G ratio and AH diets excreted more caecotrophes than those given low F/G ratio and SBP diets (19·5 and 20·9 v. 16·3 and 14·85 g/day, respectively). Microbial-N recycling through the caecotrophy process was higher when considering data from PD excretion (1·33 g/d) than when estimated by preventing caecotrophy (0·72 g/day).

Keywords

rabbitscaecotrophypurines
Type
Non-ruminant nutrition, behaviour and production
Information
Animal Science , Volume 74 , Issue 1 , February 2002 , pp. 135 - 144
Copyright
Copyright © British Society of Animal Science 2002

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