PRODUCTIVE INDICATORS OF YOUNG RABBITS USING THE FEED ADDITIVE “NUTRIL SE”

Abstract

The article presents the results of a scientific and economic study devoted to assessing the impact of the water-soluble feed additive "Nutril Se" on the productive and biological indicators of young rabbits of the Californian breed during the fattening period. The relevance of the work is due to the need to increase the efficiency of rabbit farming by optimizing feeding, in particular, the use of modern feed additives containing a complex of vitamins, essential amino acids and trace elements, in particular selenium, which plays an important role in metabolic processes, immune protection and animal growth. The studies were conducted in a private rabbit farm in the Rivne region in 2024–2025 on 160 heads of 43-day-old young rabbits, which were divided into a control and three experimental groups according to the principle of pairs of analogues. The rabbits of the control group received the main diet without the supplement, while the animals of the experimental groups were fed with drinking water with the feed supplement "Nutril Se" in doses of 0.25; 0.5 and 1.0 ml per head per day, respectively, according to the recommended application scheme. During the experiment, the dynamics of live weight, absolute, average daily and relative gains, as well as indicators of the survival of young animals were evaluated. It was established that the effectiveness of the effect of the supplement significantly depended on the level of its introduction into the diet. The best results were obtained in the second experimental group, where "Nutril Se" was used in a dose of 0.5 ml/head/day. These animals showed a significant increase in growth rate, the largest absolute gain in live weight for the
entire fattening period (1800 g), higher average daily gains and maximum live weight at the time of slaughter at 77 days of age, which exceeded the control by 0.11 kg (3.55%; p≤0.001). At the same time, the survival of young animals in this group was 100%, which indicates good tolerability of the supplement and its positive effect on the general physiological condition of animals. The use of the supplement in lower (0.25 ml/head/day) and higher (1.0 ml/head/day) doses did not provide a similar positive effect and was accompanied by a decrease in productive indicators and, in the case of the maximum dose, a decrease in the survival of the livestock. The results obtained prove the feasibility of using the feed additive "Nutril Se" in the optimal dose of 0.5 ml per head per day as an effective means of increasing the productivity and zootechnical indicators of young rabbits in industrial and farm farms.