Light colour preference of growing rabbits

Abstract

The objective of the experiment was to evaluate the light colour preference of growing rabbits placed in a free-choice cage. The experiment was carried out on 128 Pannon White growing rabbits weaned at the age of 5 weeks and placed into blocks (2m²) of four cages. The rabbits could move freely among the four cages (0.5m² each) through swing doors. The cages differed only in the colour of the light applied (white, yellow, green or blue). The lighting schedule was 16L: 8D. From 6 until 10 weeks of age, infrared video recording was performed once a week (24 hours). The number of rabbits in each cage was counted every 15 minutes. Feed consumption was measured weekly. Between 6 and 10 weeks of age the rabbits significantly preferred white light (28.0%). The preference order was the following: yellow (26.3%), blue (23.4%) and green (22.3%) (P<0.001). No significant differences were recorded in the feed consumption among the cages. In conclusion, the cage preference of the rabbits was slightly affected by the light colour.

Key words:

• Light colour
• Growing rabbit
• Preference test