Effect of Dietary Supplementation of Fish Oil as a Source of Omega-3 Fatty Acid on Growth Performance and Physiological Parameters of Growing Rabbits
Effect of Dietary Supplementation of Fish Oil as a Source of Omega-3 Fatty Acid on Growth Performance and Physiological Parameters of Growing Rabbits
Y. Eid1, S. Abo El-Sood1, A. Fawzi1, W.A. Morsy2* and H. Mehany3
ABSTRACT
This study aimed to assess the impact of fish oil levels in growing rabbit diets on growth performance and some blood parameters. One hundred and twenty APRI line rabbits, with an average live body weight of 914.4±12.35 g and an age of 6 weeks, were divided and randomly assigned into four experimental groups, each with 30 rabbits. Four experimental diets were formulated containing 0, 0.5, 1.0, and 1.5% fish oil, respectively. The results indicated that rabbits fed diets containing 1.0 and 1.5% fish oil had the highest final body weight, whereas those fed the control diet had the lowest final body weight. Also, the feed conversion ratio was the best in rabbits given fish oil diets containing 1.0 and 1.5% and the worst in those given the control diet. Serum total protein concentration was significantly increased (P<0.01) with increasing fish oil levels in diets. Malondialdehyde contents of serum, meat, and liver were significantly decreased with increasing fish oil levels in diets. It may be concluded that the inclusion of fish oil up to 1% of growing rabbits’ diet enhanced the growth performance and improved their physiological status without any harmful effects on liver and kidney functions, under Egyptian environmental conditions.
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