The behaviour of individually housed growing rabbits and the influence of gnawing sticks as environmental enrichment on daily rhythm of behavioural patterns duration
The aim of our study was to examine average duration and frequency of behaviour of growing rabbits and possible influence of gnawing sticks as environmental enrichment on their daily rhythm of behavioural patterns duration. For this purpose 16 males of Slovenian sire line SIKA for meat production w...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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University of Ljubljana Press (Založba Univerze v Ljubljani)
2011-07-01
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| Series: | Acta Agriculturae Slovenica |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://journals.uni-lj.si/aas/article/view/14597 |
| _version_ | 1797390793115172864 |
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| author | Dušanka JORDAN Gregor GORJANC Ajda KERMAUNER Ivan ŠTUHEC |
| author_facet | Dušanka JORDAN Gregor GORJANC Ajda KERMAUNER Ivan ŠTUHEC |
| author_sort | Dušanka JORDAN |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description |
The aim of our study was to examine average duration and frequency of behaviour of growing rabbits and possible influence of gnawing sticks as environmental enrichment on their daily rhythm of behavioural patterns duration. For this purpose 16 males of Slovenian sire line SIKA for meat production were recorded 24 hours per day, between 45 and 48, 58 and 61, 72 and 75, and 86 and 89 days age of rabbits. Animals were housed individually in wire-mesh cages equipped with a feeder and a nipple drinker. Half of the cages were enriched with wooden sticks of Norway spruce (Picea abies). Animals had free access to the feed and water; the daily duration of lighting was 12 hours. Rabbits spent a major proportion of time resting (59.03%). They were lying most of the time in abdominal (38.84%) and abdominal – lateral position (18.05%). The most common active behavioural patterns were body care (sum of grooming and scratching; 20.16%), feeding (10.25%) and sniffing (4.60%). Rabbits changed their behaviour on average 53.55-times, from three to 197-times per hour. The difference in daily rhythm of individual behavioural pattern duration between rabbits in enriched and control cages was mostly expressed around the time lights were turned on or off.
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| first_indexed | 2024-03-08T23:23:26Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-16ee20163c6d4a69bdde46baab75a975 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1854-1941 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-08T23:23:26Z |
| publishDate | 2011-07-01 |
| publisher | University of Ljubljana Press (Založba Univerze v Ljubljani) |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Acta Agriculturae Slovenica |
| spelling | doaj.art-16ee20163c6d4a69bdde46baab75a9752023-12-14T22:14:35ZengUniversity of Ljubljana Press (Založba Univerze v Ljubljani)Acta Agriculturae Slovenica1854-19412011-07-01981The behaviour of individually housed growing rabbits and the influence of gnawing sticks as environmental enrichment on daily rhythm of behavioural patterns durationDušanka JORDAN0Gregor GORJANC1Ajda KERMAUNER2Ivan ŠTUHEC3Univ. of Ljubljana, Biotechnical Fac., Dept. of Animal Science, Groblje 3, SI-1230 DomžaleUniv. of Ljubljana, Biotechnical Fac., Dept. of Animal Science, Groblje 3, SI-1230 DomžaleUniv. of Ljubljana, Biotechnical Fac., Dept. of Animal Science, Groblje 3, SI-1230 DomžaleUniv. of Ljubljana, Biotechnical Fac., Dept. of Animal Science, Groblje 3, SI-1230 Domžale The aim of our study was to examine average duration and frequency of behaviour of growing rabbits and possible influence of gnawing sticks as environmental enrichment on their daily rhythm of behavioural patterns duration. For this purpose 16 males of Slovenian sire line SIKA for meat production were recorded 24 hours per day, between 45 and 48, 58 and 61, 72 and 75, and 86 and 89 days age of rabbits. Animals were housed individually in wire-mesh cages equipped with a feeder and a nipple drinker. Half of the cages were enriched with wooden sticks of Norway spruce (Picea abies). Animals had free access to the feed and water; the daily duration of lighting was 12 hours. Rabbits spent a major proportion of time resting (59.03%). They were lying most of the time in abdominal (38.84%) and abdominal – lateral position (18.05%). The most common active behavioural patterns were body care (sum of grooming and scratching; 20.16%), feeding (10.25%) and sniffing (4.60%). Rabbits changed their behaviour on average 53.55-times, from three to 197-times per hour. The difference in daily rhythm of individual behavioural pattern duration between rabbits in enriched and control cages was mostly expressed around the time lights were turned on or off. https://journals.uni-lj.si/aas/article/view/14597growing rabbitsindividual cagesanimal behaviourethologydaily rhythmsenvironmental enrichment |
| spellingShingle | Dušanka JORDAN Gregor GORJANC Ajda KERMAUNER Ivan ŠTUHEC The behaviour of individually housed growing rabbits and the influence of gnawing sticks as environmental enrichment on daily rhythm of behavioural patterns duration Acta Agriculturae Slovenica growing rabbits individual cages animal behaviour ethology daily rhythms environmental enrichment |
| title | The behaviour of individually housed growing rabbits and the influence of gnawing sticks as environmental enrichment on daily rhythm of behavioural patterns duration |
| title_full | The behaviour of individually housed growing rabbits and the influence of gnawing sticks as environmental enrichment on daily rhythm of behavioural patterns duration |
| title_fullStr | The behaviour of individually housed growing rabbits and the influence of gnawing sticks as environmental enrichment on daily rhythm of behavioural patterns duration |
| title_full_unstemmed | The behaviour of individually housed growing rabbits and the influence of gnawing sticks as environmental enrichment on daily rhythm of behavioural patterns duration |
| title_short | The behaviour of individually housed growing rabbits and the influence of gnawing sticks as environmental enrichment on daily rhythm of behavioural patterns duration |
| title_sort | behaviour of individually housed growing rabbits and the influence of gnawing sticks as environmental enrichment on daily rhythm of behavioural patterns duration |
| topic | growing rabbits individual cages animal behaviour ethology daily rhythms environmental enrichment |
| url | https://journals.uni-lj.si/aas/article/view/14597 |
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