Growth performance, digestive function, thyroid activity, and immunity of growing rabbits fed olive cake with or without Saccharomyces cerevisiae or citric acid.

The present study investigated the impact of dietary inclusion of olive cakes (OC) with or without Saccharomyces cerevisiae (SC) and citric acid (CA) on growth, digestive function, thyroid activity, antioxidant status, immunity, and intestinal architecture of growing rabbits. One hundred forty 35-day-old male New Zealand white rabbits were randomly assigned into seven experimental groups with five replicates each, as follows: control (CN), fed the basal diet; OC20 and OC25, fed diets with 20 and 25% OC; OS20 and OS25, fed diets containing 20 and 25% OC with S. cerevisiae at 5 g/kg diet; OA20 and OA25, fed diets supplemented with 20 and 25% OC with 1.0% citric acid. No differences in live body weight, feed intake, feed conversion ratio, and carcass traits were noticed among experimental groups, while body weight gain and carcass (%) were increased (P < 0.05) in OS20 compared to the control. Digestibility coefficients of all nutrients and activities of amylase, cellulose, and trypsin did not differ in treated groups compared to the control except for OS20, which recorded enhancement in nutrient digestibility. Plasma triiodothyronine and thyroxine were elevated (P < 0.05), while triglycerides and cholesterol were reduced (P < 0.05) in OS20 compared to CN. Plasma concentrations of immunoglobulin M and G and superoxide dismutase were increased in treated groups compared to the control. Dietary inclusion of SC and CA improved rabbits' intestinal health, as the cecal Lactobacillus count was increased, E. coli count was decreased, and villus height was elevated in SC- and CA-treated groups. In conclusion, dietary incorporation of SC or CA enhanced the nutritional value of OC and improved growth performance, nutrient digestibility, thyroid activity, antioxidative status, and gut health of growing rabbits.

Effect of seasonal variations during dry and wet seasons on reproductive performance and biological and economic criteria of hair sheep under Halaieb rangeland conditions.

This study was conducted to evaluate the impact of seasonal variations (wet and dry season) on the reproductive and productive performance and to do an economic evaluation of hair sheep under Halaieb rangeland conditions and determine which season is the best in grazing areas. A total of 64 multiparous Abou-Delik ewes were bred in two different seasons. During the first season (dry season), a total of 35 ewes, 2-4 years of age and 32.02  ±  0.52 kg weight, were bred during May and June, while lambing and lactation took place in the months of November, December and January. On the other hand, during the wet season, 29 ewes, 2-4 years age and 31.06  ±  0.57 kg weight, were bred during November and December, whereas lambing and lactation took place in the months of May, June and July. Sheep grazed 8 h daily in the same pastures during the study and then moved back to the barns to receive a sorghum vulgare supplement with a dosage of 250 g per head per day. The results revealed that there were no significant effects of breeding season on conception, lambing and abortion rates. However, the wet season had higher ( P < 0.05 ) prolificacy, mortality rates, lambs' weight and lambs born to ewes serviced. Contrariwise, dry-season lambs had a higher ( P < 0.05 ) weaning weight. Also, milk yield (mL d - 1 ) and number of lambs weaned per lambs born (LW/LB) increased ( P < 0.05 ) in the dry season compared to the wet season. No significant differences between the two seasons regarding the biological criteria studied were observed. On the other hand, the flock bred in the dry season generated a higher gross margin than that bred in the wet season. In this context, variable costs of the wet breeding season flock were recorded to be close to the value of the dry breeding season. Hence, it is concluded that the reproductive and productive performance of hair sheep raised in grazing areas in the Halaieb triangle is affected when lambs are born during the dry season because of the higher lamb mortality rate during this period which eliminates any comparative advantage for the good reproductive performance of ewes during the period of feed availability in the wet season. The high lamb mortality rates and low weaning weights in the wet breeding season lessen the economical merits of higher reproductive performance during the seasonal availability of feed in the wet season.

Propolis supplementation improved productivity, oxidative status, and immune response of Barki ewes and lambs.

AIM: The present study was conducted to study the effect of propolis administration on bio-hematological parameters, antioxidant enzyme activities, and productivity of Barki ewes during late pregnancy and lactation under the arid conditions. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Twenty-five pregnant Barki ewes were fed the basal diet (n=12, control) and the basal diet plus propolis (5 g/kg diet, n=13) for 1 month before parturition and continued 2 months after parturition. Milk yield and milk composition, hematological constituents, antioxidant enzyme activities, thyroid hormones, and lambs birth and weaning weights, and antioxidants were determined. RESULTS: Significant (p<0.05) increase in white blood cells in the propolis group compared to control was observed. Mean corpuscular hemoglobin (Hb) (MCH) and corpuscular Hb (MCH concentration %) were decreased (p<0.05) in propolis compared to control group. Milk yield was increased (p<0.05) in the propolis group compared with control and continued to increase with the advancement of lactation. Milk fat and milk total solids increased (p<0.05) in the propolis group than the control. Plasma immunoglobulin A (IgA) was increased (p<0.05) in propolis compared to control with no effect in IgM and IgG. Superoxide dismutase, hydrogen peroxide (HP), and nitric oxide were decreased (p<0.01) in the propolis group compared to control. Weaning weight for lambs born to ewes fed propolis was increased (p<0.05) at week 8 after birth compared with control lambs. Malondialdehyde and HP activities were decreased (p<0.01) in lambs born to propolis ewes compared to control. CONCLUSION: Crude Chinese propolis (5 g/d) supplementation improved milk yield, milk composition, and the antioxidant enzymes in Barki ewes and immune functions, growth performance and antioxidant status in their lambs under arid conditions.