Feeds of animal origin in rabbit nutrition – a review

Abstract

Rabbits are classified as obligate herbivores. However, under natural conditions, some members of the family Leporidae incorporate animal products into their diets. Therefore, it seems biologically justified to supplement the diets of farmed rabbits with feeds of animal origin as sources of protein, fat and minerals. The aim of this review was to describe, from a historical perspective, the use of various feeds of animal origin in rabbit nutrition. The applicability of by-products from mammal, poultry, fish and invertebrate processing for rabbit feeding was evaluated, including the future prospects for their use. A review of the available literature revealed that various animal-based feeds can be valuable protein sources in rabbit diets, but their inclusion levels should not exceed 5-10%. Studies investigating their efficacy have been conducted since the 1970s. In some regions of the world, the use of animal-derived protein in livestock feeds was prohibited due to the risk of spreading bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE). However, the interest in animal by-products as protein sources in livestock diets is likely to increase since the above ban has been lifted.

Nutrient Digestibility and Physiological Parameters of Crossbreed Weaner Rabbits Provided Dehydrated Bovine Rumen Digesta

“…The crossbreed weaner rabbits fed DBRD15 had a better performance compared to the control. This may be attributed to more feed protein involvement (protein microbes), long chain fatty acids and partially digested feed protein (Gugołek and Kowalska 2022;Wessels 2022). The enhanced growth activities may be a result of tolerable level of fiber in the diet.…”

Dietary Inclusion of Crickets (Acheta domesticus) and Yellow Mealworm Meal (Tenebrio molitor) in Comparison with Soybean Meal: Effect on the Growth, Total Tract Apparent Digestibility, and Nitrogen Balance of Fattening Rabbits

“…In addition to plant-based coproducts of agro-industrial production, it seems that rabbits are also able to utilize feed components of animal coproducts (blood meal, enzymatically digested feather meal, fish meal, leather hydrolysates, meat meal, dried skimmed milk, dried or fresh whey, bone meal, etc.) [20,21]. Most of these products were experimentally tested as protein sources, whereas fresh whey or dried whey was the source of lactose (energy) [20].…”

“…Most of these products were experimentally tested as protein sources, whereas fresh whey or dried whey was the source of lactose (energy) [20]. Similarly, insect meals are increasingly considered a valuable source of nutrients and energy for farmed animals [21,22]. As the sustainability of soy production as a sustainable value chain is increasingly criticized (because of deforestation and the carbon footprint), nutritionists now have a concentrated focus, among others, on replacing the feed ingredient soy with insects [22].…”

“…It was observed that insect meal in the rabbit diet did not detrimentally affect the growth performance [23][24][25][26][27][28][29], feed efficiency [23,28], nutrient digestibility and nitrogen output [27,28], gastrointestinal function [27], and rabbit meat and carcass quality [25]. Thus, there are reports in the literature that mealworm larvae meal, silkworm pupae meal, and housefly pupae meal can be utilized in a rabbit diet [21].…”