Mortality Caused by Melon and Cassava Diets Fed to Chinchilla Rabbits During Experimental Trial

An experiment was carried out in the Teaching and Research Farm of Rivers State University of Science and Technology, Nkpolu-Port Harcourt, to determine the mortality rate of the feedstuffs, namely, melon (Citrullus vulgaris), cassava (Manihot utilissima) cowpea (Vigna unguiculata) and soyabean (Glycine max) in rabbits during the experimental period (feed trial), using 30 Chinchilla grower rabbits. The rabbits were randomly allotted to 5 treatments thus: T1, Corn meal (Zea mays) as control; T2, Cowpea; T3, Melon; T4, Soyabean; and T5, Cassava. Each treatment comprised one (1) male and one (1) female, replicated thrice, in a randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD). The rabbits were fed non-isonitrogenous and non-isocaloric diet, ad libitum for 12 weeks, housed individually in hutches. At the end of 12 weeks, the 30 rabbits were slaughtered to determine the effects of the treatments on the following parameters: Total Lipid, Cholesterol, High Density Lipoprotein (HDL), Low Density Lipoprotein (LDL) and Triglyceride (TG). The mortality observed in the different treatments were recorded. It was observed that there was significant difference (P < 0.05) in serum Total Lipid, Cholesterol, LDL and TG levels in the Melon and Cassava diets than those of Cowpea and Soyabean, showing that melon and cassava feedstuffs are atherogenic. Also, it was observed that mortality occurred only in the treatment groups of melon and cassava and that the mortality rate in the melon treatment group was higher than that observed in the Cassava treatment group. It was therefore included that melon and cassava which are atherogenic feedstuffs can cause early mortality in rabbits during the experimental period.