CAGE SYSTEM OF REARING RABBIT FOR OPTIMUM PRODUCTION

CAGE SYSTEM OF REARING RABBIT FOR OPTIMUM PRODUCTION

 

Dr. Alimudeen S

Post-Graduate Scholar,

Department of Veterinary and Animal Husbandry Extension Education,

College of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Pookode, KVASU, Wayanad – 673576. 

Dr. Yasotha A

Associate Professor,

Department of Livestock Production Management

Veterinary College and Research Institute, TANUVAS, Udumalpet-642126

 

Portable components should be cleaned outside the rabbitry building, which is recommended. Keep the rabbits away from the stronger cleaning agents. For equipment more effective methods like – powerful disinfectants, lengthy soaking, and prolonged exposure to the sun’s rays can be followed. Equipment made up of galvanized iron is easy to clean and disinfect.

 

1. Cages (hutches) with straw litter

 

Cages designed for breeding animals should have at least a 60 to 70 cm × 80 to 100 cm floor space and are 50 to 60 cm high.  Identical cages are often used for fattening five or six young rabbits (to 2.5 to 2.8 kg).  For the “deep litter” system slightly taller cages should be used. The floor should be covered with bedding (minimum thickness 15 to 20 cm) of absorbent material (husk, wood shavings, etc.,) evenly covered with straw. Every six or seven weeks the whole lot, absorbing layer plus accumulated litter, has to be replaced.

 

2. Cages (hutches) without litter.

 

Litter less floors (hard earth or wooden planking). The hygienic conditions are nearly always possible (uncontrolled local humidity favoring parasitism), despite daily cleaning. This system is not recommended because of the health risks involved. So, it is recommended, to rear the rabbits in the raised state above the ground on a wire-mesh or slatted floor.

 

The wire-mesh floors should be thick enough not to injure the pads of the rabbits’ feet (diameter 2.4 mm, minimum 2 mm); the mesh should be wide enough to let the droppings fall through (diameter 1 to 1.3 cm, according to feed) but narrow enough to prevent the feet getting caught in the mesh.

 

 CAGE SYSTEMS

 

Cage systems are good and provide appreciable accessibility, supervision, and comfort to the animals, as well as the convenience of waste removal. For cages without litter, mainly cages with wire-mesh floors, the structure is usually in metal or wood (the latter out of reach of the rabbits’ teeth). Walls are usually entirely in wire mesh, but this is not obligatory. There are four main systems: flat-deck, Californian, inclined-slope battery, and compact battery.

 

1. Flat-deck type of cages

 

In this system, the cages are all on one level. They usually open at the top. They can be suspended by chains or set on feet or low walls. Floor litter drops into pits (ranging in depth from 20 cm to 1.5 m). Shallow pits are cleared daily or every two or three days and deep pits every one to three years.

 

The advantages of the flat-deck system are:

 

1. Convenient supervision and handling of animals;
2. Long life for the material used;
3. Animal and producer comfort;
4. No elaborate ventilation system is required.

 

 

Cage sizes for breeding animals (in centimeters)

 

	Front	Depth	Height
Doe’s cage with Inner nest box	65-70	50	30
Doe’s cage with outer nest box	50-60	50	30
Buck’s cage	40	50	30
Cage for future breeding animal	30	50	30

 

1. Californian type of cage

 

In this system the cages are staggered, one deck higher than the other but not above it. The cages on the lower level open at the top and those on the upper level at the front (poorer access). Floor litter drops beneath the cages and is collected as in the flat-deck system.

 

 Advantages of the California system are:

 

1. Same advantages as the flat deck about ventilation;
2. Slight increase in animal density per square meter of building.

 

Drawbacks:

 

1. Access to upper cages and supervision difficult;
2. Frame more expensive than flat-deck.

 

 

 

1. Inclined-slope battery type of cages

 

The cages are placed one above the other. Waste slides down Ferro cement or metal panels into troughs from which it is removed manually with scrapers or with running water. The cages open at the front.

 

Advantages of the inclined slope are:

 

1. Higher animal density;
2. Reasonable cost, although more expensive than flat-deck.

 

Drawbacks:

 

1. No matter what material is used for the panels or how steeply they slant,

waste does not drop properly and must be periodically raked down;

1. High animal density demands careful ventilation;
2. Access to the cages, supervision, and handling of the animals is more difficult.

 

1. Compact battery type of cage

 

Animal waste can be removed by conveyor belts or vats can be installed beneath the cages and emptied by cable-operated scrapers (manual or electric). As with the inclined-slope battery, the cages must open from the front. The advantage of this system is that the maximum density of animals reduces costs per animal housed.

 

Drawbacks:

 

1. As for the inclined-slope battery regarding ventilation, access to cages, supervision, and handling of animals;
2. Quicker wear and tear on materials;
3. With automatic scraping there is the risk of breakdown and harmful gases from the scrapers;
4. Poor distribution of light for breeding does.

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