الفهرس | Only 14 pages are availabe for public view |
Abstract The first experiment was carried out using a total of 32 Nulliparous Blanc de Bouscat does, they were equally distributed into four experimental groups. The experimental groups were categorized according to the duration of exposure to UVB radiation (non-UVB, 12-h UVB, 8-h UVB and 4-h UVB). The results showed that rabbits in non-UVB control group exhibited the lowest levels of activity, grooming, sniffing and the highest levels of inactivity compared to rabbits in 12-h, 8-h and 4-h UVB groups. Weaning weight and body weight gain from birth to weaning were higher in kits from does kept in 8-h UVB group when compared to non-UVB control group. Serum analysis showed that mean values of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D at day 15 of pregnancy in female rabbits were higher in 12-h, 8-h and 4-h UVB groups when compared to non-UVB control group.After weaning, a total 60 weaned rabbits from all experimental groups were transferred to fattening cages and subjected to the same UVB exposure conditions as their mothers. The results showed that rabbits kept in 12-h, 8-h and 4-h UVB groups had the highest final market body weights compared to control group. Moreover, exposure of growing and fattening rabbits to 8-h of UVB radiation up-regulated the relative expression levels of IGF-1 gene.The third experiment was carried out using a total of 32 Nulliparous Blanc de Bouscat female rabbits, they were randomly assigned into 4 groups. Rabbits in the 1st group were kept as a control group. The 2nd and 3rd groups were supplemented with 250 mg of ginger and curcumin powder per animal per day respectively. While the 4th group was supplemented daily with 1 ml/L of selenium and vitamin E in drinking water. The results showed that the supplementation with different natural antioxidants had a positive impact on scores of nest building time and nest quality. It could be concluded that supplementation with natural antioxidants such as ginger, curcumin and Vit E + Se might be a promising strategy to reduce the deleterious effects of heat stress on behavioural responses, maternal behaviour and reproductive performance in female rabbits. |