Physiological values of some blood indicators in selected dwarf rabbit breeds

Abstract

<p>The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effect of breed on haematological and biochemical indicators in 3 dwarf rabbit breeds. In the experiment, 30 sexually intact dwarf rabbit females aged 6 mo were used. With the sole exception of white blood cells and haematocrit value, breed had the most significant effect on the majority of haematological indicators monitored. The red blood cell count was higher in the Dwarf Lop compared to the Netherland Dwarf (+1.91×10¹² cells/L; P&lt;0.05) and also the Teddy Dwarf (+1.32×10¹² cells/L; P&lt;0.05). For haemoglobin concentration, a higher value was found in the Netherland Dwarf than in the Teddy Dwarf (+39.29 g/L; P&lt;0.05) and the Dwarf Lop (+26.36 g/L; P&lt;0.05). For erythrocytic indicators, the highest values of mean corpuscular volume, mean corpuscular haemoglobin and mean corpuscular haemoglobin concentration were found in the Netherland Dwarf. The breed had a significant effect on the urea and potassium values. A higher value of urea was recorded in the Dwarf Lop compared to the Teddy Dwarf (+1.56 mmol/L; P&lt;0.05). For potassium, a higher value was found in the Netherland Dwarf compared to the Teddy Dwarf (+0.85 mmol/L; P&lt;0.05). In addition, a significantly positive correlation (P&lt;0.05) was found between the live weight of dwarf females and values of haematocrit (0.49), albumin (0.54), alanine aminotransferase (0.51), and aspartate aminotransferase (0.41), while a significantly negative correlation (P&lt;0.05) was found between their live weight and values of triacylglycerols (–0.44), alkaline phosphatase (–0.38) and inorganic phosphorus (–0.52). </p>