Carcass traits of four rabbit genotypes

Seventy-three rabbits of four genotypes (A - SIKA maternal line; C - SIKA sire line; AxC - hybrids between line A and C; AxCal - crossbreds between line A and the Californian breed) were used to evaluate the effect of genotype on carcass traits. Rabbits were weaned at 35 days and slaughtered at 93 d...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Ajda Kermauner, Silvester Zgur
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Taylor & Francis Group 2010-01-01
Series:Italian Journal of Animal Science
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.aspajournal.it/index.php/ijas/article/view/907
Description
Summary:Seventy-three rabbits of four genotypes (A - SIKA maternal line; C - SIKA sire line; AxC - hybrids between line A and C; AxCal - crossbreds between line A and the Californian breed) were used to evaluate the effect of genotype on carcass traits. Rabbits were weaned at 35 days and slaughtered at 93 days of age. Rabbits were fed standard feed mixture ad libitum. The highest live weight at slaughter and dressing percentage was achieved by line C, and the lowest in line A. Hybrids between line A and C exhibited slightly worse carcass traits than rabbits in line C, but the differences were not statistically significant. The Californian breed gave worse results than crossbreeding with line C, though in most cases the differences between AxC and AxCal were not significant. The differences between genotypes in hind leg tissue composition, pH and meat colour were not statistically significant.
ISSN:1594-4077
1828-051X