Veterinary Care of Farm Rabbits: A Complete Practice Guide to Rabbit Medicine and Production

ISBN-13: 9783031445415 / Angielski

Jo?o Sim?es; Jos? M. Monteiro

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O autorze

João Simões is a Professor of Large Animal Medicine and Reproduction at the University of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro (UTAD). As a clinician and academic, he has dedicated 27 years of his professional career to veterinary students and producers, and collaborated with national and European animal production associations. On the basis of this work experience and research, he has written numerous scientific and technical publications. In recent years, he has also edited several books and special issues on animal production and veterinary medicine for scientific journals.   

José Manuel Monteiro, DVM, graduated at UTAD, Portugal, in 1999. After working with rabbits, pigs and cattle, his professional activity has been exclusively dedicated to clinical support and preventive medicine of rabbit farms in Portugal and Spain. He served as the technical director of Sumicor Portugal, Lda. (2004-2018) and Coren Agroindustrial S.A.U. – Spain (2010-2018). In 2019, he created an owner enterprise (José Azevedo Monteiro, Lda., Portugal) to provide veterinary assistance to Iberian rabbit farms. Concomitantly, he keeps a close relationship with universities (UTAD, Lusofona University) and research institutions (INIAV) contributing to research and high-education in the field.

Blurb

This holistic guide brings rabbit production science and medicine together. It considers the full spectrum of commercial rabbit husbandry, including intensive, semi-intensive, and organic systems for meat, fur and leather. Drawn from an international authorship, the book addresses practical and fundamental topics. In comprehensive sections, readers will find easy-to-read chapters on: 

• rabbit breeds, anatomy essentials and lagomorph physiology
• rabbit production with details on animal facilities and farm design, international trading, rabbit meat processing and biosafety, including a vivid appendix on meat inspection
• rabbit herd and health management, considering latest findings in welfare and behavior, preventive medicine, antimicrobial resistance and demedication to necropsy and specimen collection
• significant rabbit diseases, covering encephalitozoonosis cuniculi, rabbit enteropathies, and many more
• complete veterinary treatment, supplemented by reference ranges and interpretation of hematological and biochemical values 

Besides an increasing keeping of pet rabbits, the animals are gaining interest for sustainable food production, leading to a rise in farming in various parts of the world. In this context, the present guide provides valuable contributions for consulting veterinarians and students, industry professionals, breeders and technicians, as well as for experts from the small and companion animal sector. The relevance of rabbit farming from the viewpoints of greenhouse gas reduction and sustainable use of ecological resources (use of local feed) also creates useful links for readers interested in the sustainable development goals SDG 2 (Zero Hunger) and SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production).

The book "Veterinary Care of Farm Rabbits" is unquestionably "The Book" of Cuniculture. It is an excellent handbook produced by technicians and clinicians, in collaboration with academia, for anyone interested in learning about this unique and very addictive animal species.
It is undoubtedly a beneficial tool for veterinary clinicians and agronomists, as well as professional and amateur rabbit breeders. It addresses different diseases and their underlying causes, as well as the best management approaches and facilities to avoid them and work more efficiently.
The sector's new knowledge and techniques have experienced an astonishing exponential growth in the recent decade, significantly transforming the sector's vision and its management, demanding major continuous training of professionals specialized in this area.
This work is an example of all of this, and it gives me great pride to see the immense motivation of the text's authors, as well as the outstanding job done by the work's coordinators. I am aware of how much it costs to write a little text, and this book represents many hours of work, revisions, and minor modifications to ensure that the reader has a nice and understandable reading experience. It gave me great pleasure to be able to read the manuscript of this book, and I hope that the readers share my excitement at seeing an initiative of this calibre and quality in our industry, and that they can enjoy a professional book that provides solutions and clear answers to their questions.
I want to thank and congratulate everyone engaged in this project for their hard work, professionalism, and, most importantly, their time.

Francesc Xavier Mora Igual, Barcelona, Cuninews Technical Director and Associate Professor at Faculty of Veterinary Medicine of the UAB (Autonomous University from Barcelona)