Effect of floor type on carcass and meat quality of pen raised growing rabbits

[EN] The aim of the experiment was to compare the carcass and meat quality traits of growing rabbits housed on different floor types. At the age of 35 d, rabbits (n=126) were randomly sorted into 3 groups and housed in pens with different floor types: plastic-mesh, deep-litter straw or wire-mesh. Slaughter weight, carcass and its parts’ weight, meat (Longissimus thoracis et lumborum [LL] muscle and hind leg) pH and colour, oxidative status and fatty acid profile were measured and correlations calculated. The deep-litter straw rabbits showed the lowest pHu and b* values of LL muscle and oxidation of the both muscles. The fatty acid profile of LL muscle of deep-litter straw rabbits showed a higher percentage of monounsaturated fatty acids and long chain n-3 polyunsaturated (PUFA) fatty acids, whereas the content of  18:2n-6 and total PUFA was lower. We concluded that housing the growing rabbits on wire- or plastic-mesh floors showed no substantial differences, while housing rabbits on deep-litter negatively affected certain qualitative traits.