EFFECT SOME SELECTED LEAVE MEALS ON MEAT QUALITY OF RABBIT

Abstract

This study was carried out to seek the effect of feeding some selected leaf meals on meat quality. A total of 48 cross breed unsexed weaner rabbits of 6 weeks‘ old were divided into four dietary treatments of 4 rabbits in 3 replicate in a completely randomized design. The initial weight of all the animals in each treatment were taken before the beginning of the experiment. The experimental animal was housed, one per hutch. Gliricidia sepium, Moringa oleifera and Leucaena leucocephala leaves were harvested from Dagwom Farm Division of the National Veterinary Research Institute Vom, Plateau State (NVRI) by hand picking, washed with distill water and air dried under shade until they were crispy to touch. The leaves were thereafter crushed with hammer mill before incorporation each at 25% inclusion level. After termination of the feeding experiment, three representative rabbits randomly chosen from each group were fasted for overnight, weighed and slaughtered. Meat quality parameters were measured. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics and ANOVA at α0.05. Cold shortening, thermal shortening and oxidative rancidity were significantly higher in meat from rabbits fed control diet without leaf meal compared to meat from rabbits fed leaf meals. Cooking loss was higher in meat from rabbits fed gliricidia-based diet compared to other diets. The water holding capacity was significantly higher in the meat from treated groups. Inclusion, adding leaf meals such as gliricidia, leuceana and moringa at 25% inclusion level to the diet of rabbit pose no advert effect but rather improves the meat quality.