CLIMATE CHANGES EFFECTS ON RABBIT PRODUCTION

One of the major problems facing rabbit production is heat stress in hot regions of the world, especially in Egypt through summer season. This is further aggravated by global warming being experienced as a result of climate change. Climate change is a variation or change in the climate (temperature, wind, precipitation patterns) in a specific location, region, or the entire planet. This change in weather patterns persists for a long period of time ranging from decades to millions of years. Heat stress adversely affect welfare and adaptation, feed consumption and utilization, immunity, health status, growth, reproduction, and milk production in rabbits. Rabbits have no or few sweat glands and thicker fur, increasing the heat dissipation complexity. Thermoregulation is extremely poor in rabbits because lack of sweat glands so, they are highly sensitive to high temperatures. This review summarizes available literatures in the last few decades (1990–2023)