| A 16-week study was conducted to evaluate the effect of biostimulation on behaviour, growth, and reproduction of rabbits. Seventy five (crossbreds) mature rabbits (2.6 -2.70 kg), comprising of 50 nulliparous does aged, 6-7 months old and 25 bucks, (8-10 months old), were used for this study. The rabbits were allocated into five treatment groups in a completely randomised design (CRD). Each treatment consisted of 10 nulliparous does and five bucks. The study plan involved an exposure ratio of one buck to two does, implying five replications per treatment and each replicate containing two does and one buck. However, the does in the control group were not exposed to any buck. The does in the treatment groups were placed in opposite cages separated by a distance of 2.5 cm to the bucks at a ratio of 2 does: 1 buck for 7,14,21 and 28 days of exposure. The results showed that the behavioural response of the does ranging from flattening at a corner, circling, mounting without lordosis and mounting with lordosis differed significantly (P<0.05) across treatments. The frequency of vulva colour occurrence varying from white, red to pink across treatments were observed. The reproductive performance of the biostimulated does also differed significantly (P<0.05) as gestation length, pregnancy rate and average litter weight at weaning were higher in the treatment groups. Reaction time, sperm motility, percentage live sperm, percentage dead sperm and percentage coiled tails of the exposed bucks differed significantly (P<0.05) from the control. There were evidence of linear increase in hormonal profiles (estradiol and testosterone), as duration of exposure advanced to 7 and 14 days, respectively. Therefore, this study suggests that biostimulation can be a veritable tool for improving reproductive performance in rabbits. Also, it was noted that exposing rabbit does to rabbit bucks longer than 7-14 days prior to mating may adversely affect their reproductive performance. Hence, it is recommended that farmers should expose rabbit does to rabbit bucks 7 days prior to mating or artificial insemination for higher reproductive performance. |
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