Caecal and Metabolic Effects of Nutritionally Induced Enteropathy in Growing Rabbit495

Diarrhoea is the main clinical sign in rabbits affected by digestive disorders [21, 24] and is mostly observed during the first three weeks after weaning [20]. It is possible to distinguish enteropathies originating from specific pathogenic agents such as coccidia or enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (like O15 or O103 serogroups) from those where no clear pathogenic origin is detected. For these non specific enteropathies change in bacterial community balance and activity is assumed in the caecal ecosystem. In addition, since the frequency of digestive troubles is higher in the young animals, several authors try to describe the relationship between caecal ecosystem parameters around weaning [29] and the diet composition [9]. Among the nutritional factors, the dietary fibre level is the most important in order to modulate the digestive health in the young rabbit [13, 15] and caecal microbial community [2]. Besides, some studies report metabolic changes, in particular in hydromineral metabolism in rabbits suffering from diarrhoea [11], coccidiosis [22, 23, 31] and colibacillosis [30]. However, few studies analysed the physiological status of young rabbits affected by digestive troubles (diarrhoea), and particularly the changes in the caecal ecosystem associated with metabolic criteria. Thus the aim of the present study is to describe the caecal activity (fermentation, end-products levels, and bacterial fibrolytic activity) and metabolic blood profile according to a nutritionally induced enteropathy model in the growing rabbit. It is also intended to compare the physiological impact of specific (coccidiosis, etc.) to that of non-specific enteropathy. SUMMARY