<b>Replacement of soybean meal by cottonseed meal as feed for growing rabbits</b> - DOI: 10.4025/actascianimsci.v29i3.556

Abstract

Two experiments were carried out aiming to evaluate the use of cottonseed meal as feed for growing rabbits. Eight White New Zealand rabbits, 50 days old, male and female, were used in the digestibility trial. The experimental period lasted for 12 days (8 days of adaptation and 4 days of whole faeces collection). Cottonseed meal was offered as the only food source, with the addition of 0.5% NaCl and 0.4% vitamin mineral mixture. The cottonseed meal was then moisted with 40% water, forming a paste. The apparent digestibility coefficients were: 66.81; 84.65; 41.14; 39.00 and 68.27% for dry matter, crude protein, neutral detergent fiber, acid detergent fiber and gross energy, respectively. In the performance trial, 32 White New Zealand rabbits (16 males and 16 females), 41 days old, were used and kept in individual cages. Data was analyzed under a randomized design with eight replications and four treatments (four levels of crude protein replacement of soybean meal by cottonseed meal crude protein: 0; 33; 66 and 100%). At the end of the experiment, the rabbits (76 days old) were finished for carcass evaluation. An increase was observed (p < 0.05) in daily feed intake and feed/gain ratio, but there was no significant effect on average live weight gain and carcass quality. The results show that cottonseed meal can totally replace soybean meal as feed for growing rabbits, depending only on economic factors, such as the ever-changing prices for each type of feed.