Kigelia africana FRUIT AND LEAF MEALS: POTENTIAL REPRODUCTIVE ENHANCER IN RABBITS

Abstract

This experiment was conducted to investigate the potentials of Kigelia africana (KA) fruit and leave meals on reproductive performance of rabbit does. A total of 108 rabbits were used for this experiment. There were nine treatment groups consisting of 0%, 5%, 10%, 15% and 20% inclusions of KA fruit and leaf meals separately with a common control (0%) in a factorial 2×4 plus control. The results revealed that the KA significantly increased the percentage acceptability/receptivity of rabbit does with increasing inclusion levels. All the fertility parameters evaluated were not significantly influenced except for the litter size which was significantly (P>0.05) higher in rabbit doe fed the KA fruit. Conclusively, KA parts (fruit or leaf) did not influence receptivity at full maturity, however, receptivity was improved with increased inclusion levels (as a factor).