Effect of Replacing Wheat Offal with Asystasia gangetica Leaf Meal (ALM) on Growth Performance and Haematological Parameters of Weaner Rabbits

Abstract

A fifty six (56) day feeding trial was carried out to determine the effect of replacing wheat offal with Asystasia gangetica leaf meal (ALM) on the growth performance and haematological parameters of weaner rabbits. Four (4) diets were formulated such that the control diet (T1) contained 0%ALM while T2, T3 and T4 contained 33%, 66% and 100% replacement levels of wheat offal respectively. Twenty-four (24) unsexed and mixed-breed weaner rabbits were randomly assigned to four dietary treatments. Feed and water were offered ad-libitum throughout the period of the experiment. The result of the experiment showed that there were significant differences (P<0.05) in daily weight gain and feed cost/kg gain of rabbits. The experimental diets had no significant effect (P>0.05) on feed intake and feed conversion ratio of the experimental rabbits. There was a decrease in the cost of feed as replacement levels of ALM increased in the diets. Haematological parameters measured were not significantly (P>0.05) different except for WBC. Based on the finding of this study, it was concluded that replacing 66% of wheat offal in the diet of weaner rabbits with ALM will reduce the cost of rabbit production without adverse effects on the growth performance and haematological indices of the rabbits.