Abstract
Maternal care in the European rabbit is limited to one brief nursing visit a day. To investigate the nature of this unusual mother- young relationship, four domestic does and their litters were kept separately except for the once-daily nursing, and the following parameters were recorded; from post-natal days 1 to 30, the duration of nursing bouts, daily milk yield, deposition of faecal pellets in the nest by does. daily weight gain of pups, eating of faecal pellets and nest material by pups, their water intake, and from post weaning days 31 to 44, their weight gain. Does were mated immediately after giving birth, and the measures for the first litters raised when does were pregnant were compared with the results for the second litters raised when does were not pregnant. Four control does and their litters were treated in the same way but without separating mothers and young. Pups progressed from drinking milk alone, to nibbling faecal pellets, to ingesting nest material, drinking water and finally to eating lab food. However, growth rates and the pattern of weaning depended on does' reproductive state. The first litters, raised by pregnant does, were significantly lighter and were weaned earlier than the second litters raised by the same does when not pregnant. The rabbit thus provides a particularly good opportunity to investigate the processes underlying the transition to independent feeding in a mammalian species.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 39-48 |
| Number of pages | 10 |
| Journal | Zeitschrift fur Saugetierkunde |
| Volume | 61 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| Publication status | Published - 1996 |
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ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Ecology
Cite this
Nursing, weaning and the development of independent feeding in the rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus). / Hudson, R.; Bilko, A.; Altbäcker, V.
In: Zeitschrift fur Saugetierkunde, Vol. 61, No. 1, 1996, p. 39-48.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Nursing, weaning and the development of independent feeding in the rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus)
AU - Hudson, R.
AU - Bilko, A.
AU - Altbäcker, V.
PY - 1996
Y1 - 1996
N2 - Maternal care in the European rabbit is limited to one brief nursing visit a day. To investigate the nature of this unusual mother- young relationship, four domestic does and their litters were kept separately except for the once-daily nursing, and the following parameters were recorded; from post-natal days 1 to 30, the duration of nursing bouts, daily milk yield, deposition of faecal pellets in the nest by does. daily weight gain of pups, eating of faecal pellets and nest material by pups, their water intake, and from post weaning days 31 to 44, their weight gain. Does were mated immediately after giving birth, and the measures for the first litters raised when does were pregnant were compared with the results for the second litters raised when does were not pregnant. Four control does and their litters were treated in the same way but without separating mothers and young. Pups progressed from drinking milk alone, to nibbling faecal pellets, to ingesting nest material, drinking water and finally to eating lab food. However, growth rates and the pattern of weaning depended on does' reproductive state. The first litters, raised by pregnant does, were significantly lighter and were weaned earlier than the second litters raised by the same does when not pregnant. The rabbit thus provides a particularly good opportunity to investigate the processes underlying the transition to independent feeding in a mammalian species.
AB - Maternal care in the European rabbit is limited to one brief nursing visit a day. To investigate the nature of this unusual mother- young relationship, four domestic does and their litters were kept separately except for the once-daily nursing, and the following parameters were recorded; from post-natal days 1 to 30, the duration of nursing bouts, daily milk yield, deposition of faecal pellets in the nest by does. daily weight gain of pups, eating of faecal pellets and nest material by pups, their water intake, and from post weaning days 31 to 44, their weight gain. Does were mated immediately after giving birth, and the measures for the first litters raised when does were pregnant were compared with the results for the second litters raised when does were not pregnant. Four control does and their litters were treated in the same way but without separating mothers and young. Pups progressed from drinking milk alone, to nibbling faecal pellets, to ingesting nest material, drinking water and finally to eating lab food. However, growth rates and the pattern of weaning depended on does' reproductive state. The first litters, raised by pregnant does, were significantly lighter and were weaned earlier than the second litters raised by the same does when not pregnant. The rabbit thus provides a particularly good opportunity to investigate the processes underlying the transition to independent feeding in a mammalian species.
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M3 - Article
VL - 61
SP - 39
EP - 48
JO - Mammalian Biology
JF - Mammalian Biology
SN - 1616-5047
IS - 1
ER -