Haematological and serum biochemical characteristics of weaner rabbits fed plantain leaf and concentrate

Abstract

An experiment was undertaken with 30 mixed bred rabbits (6-8 weeks), with initial weight of 0.70 ± 0.02 kg, to assess their haematological and serum biochemical response when fed plantain leaf and concentrate. The plantain leaf was offered at levels of 0g, 25g, 50g, 75g and 100g in treatment 1 (control), 2, 3, 4 and 5 respectively, with six rabbits per treatment and for an eight week feeding trial. Control had concentrate alone. The growth performance in terms of final liveweight ranged from 0.98 kg (T2) – 1.50kg (T4). After the feeding trial, blood samples were collected for haematological and serum analysis. The packed cell volume, haemoglobin, red blood cell, mean cell volume, mean cell haemoglobin, mean cell haemoglobin concentration, monocytes and Eosinophils were similar (P>0.05) amongst the five treatments, except total white blood cell, neutrophils, leukocyte counts and platelet counts which were significantly (p<0.05) different. The alanine amino transferase, aspartate amino transferase, alkaline phosphatase activities and creatinine levels of rabbits fed plantain leaf were not significantly different (P>0.05) from those fed the control treatment. This invariably suggests that feeding plantain leaf up to 100g in rabbit diet per day will not illicit any deleterious effect on the blood profile of weaner rabbits.

Keywords: Musa paradisiaca leaf, weight, blood indices, electrolytes