Effect of Dietary Garden Cress Seeds on Growth Performance, Feed Utilization, Carcass Characteristics and some Physiological Responses of Growing Rabbits

Abstract

A total number of 72 growing rabbits (V-Line) with an average initial weight of 605 ± 8.79 g live body. Rabbits at the age of 6 weeks were used to investigate the effect of increasing levels of garden cress, Lepidium sativum, seeds (0, 3, 4.5, 6%) on growth performance, feed utilization, digestibility, carcass characters and physiological performance. The growing rabbits were fed the experimental diets for 7 weeks. The results revealed that garden cress seeds contain considerable levels of crude proteins and crude lipids levels. The dietary garden cress significantly improved final weight, weight gain, and total relative growth rate compared to the control. The maximum growth response was recorded between 3-4.5% garden cress seeds levels according to the high significant quadratic regression. The feed conversion ratio significantly improved with 3 and 4.5% dietary garden cress seeds levels. The digestibility of crude protein 70.37, 72.46, 73.30 and 79.04%, lipids 77.76, 81.36, 85.20 and 76.94% and nitrogen balance 1.64, 2.22, 2.02 and 2.18 for 0,3,4.5 and 6% garden cress seeds improved with increasing dietary garden cress seeds. The carcass treats did not affect with different treatments, except a significant reduction in the Kidney fat with dietary garden cress seeds. The serum lipid profile did not affect by garden cress seeds supplementation. Finally, the dietary garden cress seeds at levels of 3-4.5% could be recommend as dietary supplementation to the ration of growing rabbits to improve growth, feed utilization, digestibility, and immune response.