Natural and Biological Dietary Herbal Extracts Supplement on Productive and Physiological Parameters, Cecal Fermentation, and Meat Characteristics of Growing Rabbits
Natural and Biological Dietary Herbal Extracts Supplement on Productive and Physiological Parameters, Cecal Fermentation, and Meat Characteristics of Growing Rabbits
Sherein H. Mohamed1, Soad El Naggar2*, Ayman A. Hassan3, Mohamed A.M. Mousa3, Mohamed M. Basyony3, Mohamed F. Sadek3, Mohamed A. A. Ahmed4, Saadia M. Hashem5
ABSTRACT
The objective of this study was to determine the influence of five herbal extracts in rabbit diets on productive performance, digestibility, cecal fermentation, antioxidant enzyme activities, immunity and meat quality. One hundred twenty six male growing New Zealand White rabbits aged eight weeks old with an average body weight of 675±47.95 g were divided into six equal groups 21 rabbits each, control diet group, C fed the basal diet and the other five groups (GE, ClE, ThE, TE, and CE) fed on basal diet supplemented with 200 ppm of garlic, clove, thyme, turmeric and cinnamon extracts respectively. These extracts revealed an increase in final body weight, daily weight gain, digestibility coefficient of crude protein, crude fiber, neutral detergent fiber and acid detergent fiber, nitrogen balance, acetic acid and propionic acid, the aerobic and facultative anaerobic bacteria (Lactobacillus spp.) in all treatment groups. Concurrently, they showed increase (P<0.05) in total protein, albumin, and globulin, total antioxidant capacity, superoxide dismutase, catalase, glutathione peroxidase, immunoglobulins G and A. Moreover, the extracts supplementation decreases ammonia-nitrogen, butyric acid, Escherichia coli, Clostridium spp., and Enterococcus spp., total cholesterol, high density lipoprotein, low-density lipoprotein, and triglyceride compared to the control group. Also, these extracts had positive effects (P<0.05) on the rabbit meat nutritional compounds, and decrease meat fat content, thiobarbituric acid and increased antioxidant activity. It was concluded that these extracts as a natural biologically active substance improved growth performance, feed digestibility, antioxidant activities and immunity, allowing growing rabbits to produce high quality meat of growing rabbits.
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