Effects of two antioxidants on morfo-biometricals parameters, apparent digestibility and meat composition in rabbits fed low and high fat diets.

The objective of this study was to determine the effects of the inclusion of dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) and Spirulina platensis (SP) in low fat (LF) and high fat (HF) diets on the morpho-biometrical parameters, apparent digestibility and longissimus dorsi (LD) muscle composition of New Zealand White rabbits. The trial was carried out on 24 rabbits that were randomly allocated to six groups of four animals each, kept in individual cages. The three LF diets and the three HF diets (control, with 0.02% DHEA and with 1% SP, respectively) differed on the basis of the level of fat (3% and 13%, respectively). The experimental period lasted 3 months and the faeces were collected during the last week. The measured parameters were the initial and final weight, waist circumference and length, digestibility of dry matter (DM), organic matter (OM), crude protein (CP), ether extract (EE), and gross energy (GE). At the end of the experimental period, the rabbits from each group were slaughtered without fasting and the longissimus dorsi (LD) muscles were collected to the determine chemical composition and GE. The results show that the DHEA supplementation in rabbits fed high fat diets decreases EE digestibility, while the SP supplementation increases CP digestibility of low and high fat diets. The DM, OM, and GE digestibilities, morpho-biometrical parameters and meat composition were not significantly affected by the type of antioxidant, in either the rabbits fed low fat diets or in the rabbits fed high fat diets.