EFFECT OF PARTIAL RESTRICTION OF DRINKING -WATER ON FEED-INTAKE, WATER OUTPUT AND REPRODUCTION PERFORMANCE IN RABBIT

Fourty multiparous rabbits (<<Thies>> strain) were used to study the e ffect of partial water deprivation during pregnancy on voluntary food intake, water balance and fecundity under sahelian climate conditions. The animals were kept in individual metabolism cages and were fed com mercial pelleted diet. Room temperature and humidity were respectively 28 +/- 2 degrees C and 25 %. Two weeks before mating, the rabbits wer e allocated in two groups of 20 : one reference group which received w ater ad libitum and one experimental group which quantity of drinking water was reduced to 50 % of the normal daily water consumption. Food and water consumptions, feces and urine water output were recorded dai ly. Inter-groups comparison was performed weekly until the end of preg nancy. Reproduction performance was recorded just after parturition. I n non-pregnant rabbits and during the first half of pregnancy, water r estriction decreased significantly (P < 0,05) the food intake, while d uring the second half of pregnancy there were no significant differenc es in food intake between the two groups of animals (P > 0,05). Furthe rmore, water content in feces became significantly (P < 0,05) lower in the experimental group than in the reference group, only in the secon d part of pregnancy. Before and during pregnancy, urine output decreas ed markedly in the experiental animals as compared to in the reference ones, particularly at the end of pregnancy (P < 0,01). The partial re striction of drinking water induced a significant (P < 0,05) decreased of the number of newborn rabbits.