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Improvement of Rabbit Production

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Abstract

In this chapter, I will introduce some of the techniques for efficient colony management and production of rabbits. The artificial insemination (AI) can be a useful technique which shows a better performance rather than natural mating. The pregnancy rate and mean litter size after AI are not different from those found after natural mating. Moreover, judging from our result, one ejaculate from one male rabbit can be sufficient to fertilize about 25 female rabbits with AI. In addition to AI, sperm freezing is also an important technique for a stable maintenance of rabbit strains for long time at low cost. These techniques can contribute to an enhancement of productivity and stability of maintenance of rabbit colonies.

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Kitajima, S. (2009). Improvement of Rabbit Production. In: Houdebine, LM., Fan, J. (eds) Rabbit Biotechnology. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-2227-1_2

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