Biochemistry Reference Values

 

 

The following table summarizes blood chemistry values for rabbits. Much of the obtained data comes from laboratory rabbits, kept in conditions that differ from those of house rabbits. Further parameters that influence blood chemistry are diet, husbandry, breed, age, sex, health condition and metabolic activity, indoor or garden rabbit, not to forget inbreeding.

 

Please notice that the values stated in the following tables represent a reference range and should never be interpreted rigidly. Grey areas are often found on the borders of any reference range. A blood biochemistry value that is found to be close to the reference value should therefore not be considered as a value alone, but be compared in relation to all the clinical findings of this specific case.

 

Blood sampling in the rabbit

 

 

Analyzed parameter

Abbreviation

Value

Units

 

Blood pH

pH

7.2 – 7.5

.

 

Red Blood Cells, or Erythrocyte

RBC

3.8 – 7.9 * 106

/mm3

Packed Cell Volume

PCV

33 – 50

%

Mean Corpuscular Volume

MCV

50 – 75

mm3

 

Hemoglobin

Hb

9.4 – 17.4

g/dl

Mean Corpuscular Hemoglobin

MCH

18 - 24

pg/cell

Mean Corpuscular Hemoglobin Concentration

MCHC

27 - 34

%

 

White Blood Cells

WBC

5 – 13 * 109

/l

Basophils

.

0 – 0.84

<0.5 * 109

%

/l

Eosinophils

.

0 – 2

< 1.0 * 109

%

/l

Lymphocytes

.

43 – 80

3 – 9 * 109

%

/l

Monocytes

.

0 – 4

< 0.5 * 109

%

/l

Neutrophils

.

34 - 70

%

Band neutrophils

.

< 6

0 – 0.2 * 109

%

/l

Adult neutrophils

.

1 – 4 * 109

/l

 

Clotting tests

.

.

.

Platelets

.

290 * 103

200 – 650 * 109

/mm3

/l

Reticulocytes

.

0 - 3

%

Coagulation time (in-vivo)

.

2 - 8

min

 

Proteins

.

.

.

Albumin

.

25-40

g/l

Bilirubin - total

.

3.4 – 8.5

0 – 0.75

mmol/l

mg/dl

Gamma GT

.

0 – 7

IU/l

Globulin

.

1.5 – 3.3

25 - 40

g/dl

g/l

Protein - total

.

50 - 75

g/l

 

Enzymes

.

.

.

Acid phosphatase

AP

0.3 – 2.7

IU/l

Alanine aminotransferase

ALT

25 - 65

IU/l

Alkaline phosphatase

ALP

10 - 70

IU/l

Amylase

.

200 - 500

IU/l

Aspartate aminotransferase

AST

10 - 98

IU/l

Creatinine phosphokinase

CK - CPK

140 – 372

IU/I

Lactate dehydrogenase

.

132 - 252

IU/l

 

Electrolytes

.

.

.

Bicarbonate

92 - 120

mmol/l

Calcium – ionized

Ca++

1.71

mmol/l

Calcium – total

Ca++

3.0 – 5.0

5.5 – 12.5

mmol/l

mg/dl

Chloride

Cl-

92 - 120

mmol/l

Iron

Fe

33 - 40

mmol/l

Lead

2 - 27

mmol/l

Magnesium

Mg++

0.8 – 1.2

mmol/l

Phosphate - inorganic

Pi

1.0 – 2.5

mg/dl

Phosphorus

HPO4-

4 - 6

mmol/l

Potassium

K+

4.0 – 6.5

mg/dl

Sodium

Na+

130 – 155

mmol/l

 

Other substrates

.

.

.

b-OH butyrate

.

< 1

mmol/l

BUN

.

13 - 30

mg/dl
Bile acids

.

3 - 15

mmol/l

Bilirubin

.

< 20

0 – 0-75

mmol/l

Cholesterol

.

0.1 – 2.00

10 - 80

mmol/l

mg/dl

Cortisol (resting)

.

1.0 – 2.04

mg/dl

Cortisol after stimulation with ACTH

.

12.0 – 27.8

mg/dl

Creatinine

.

53 – 124

0.5 – 2.6

mmol/l

mg/dl

Glucose

Glc

4.2 – 8.9

75 – 140

mmol/l

mg/dl

Phospholipids

.

40 - 140

mg/dl

Serum lipids

.

150 - 400

mg/dl

T4

.

82.37 – 106.82

6.4 – 8.3

nmol/l

mg/dl

Triglycerides

.

1.4 – 1.76

mmol/l

Urea

.

9.1 – 25.5

mmol/l

Uric acid

.

1 – 4.3

mg/dl

Vitamin A

Vit A

30 – 80

mg/l

Vitamin E

Vit E

> 1

mg/ml

 

 

Further Information

 

1.    Burke J. (1994) Clinical care and medicine of pet rabbit, in: Proceedings of the Michigan Veterinary Conference, pp 49-77.

2.    Fudge A.M. (ed) (1999) Laboratory medicine: avian and exotic pets. WB Saunders, Philadelphia.

3.    Gillet C.S. Selected drug dosages and clinical reference data. in: The biology of the rabbit, 2nd ed. (P.J. Manning, D.H. Ringler, C.E. Newcomer eds). pp 467-472. Academic Press.

4.      Goad DL, Pecquet ME, Warren HB. Total serum calcium concentrations in rabbits. J Am Vet Med Assoc. 1989 Jun 1;194(11):1520-1.

5.    Hillyer E.V. (1994) Pet rabbits. The veterinary clinics of north America, Small animal Practice 24 (1), pp 25-65.

6.    Jones RT. Normal values for some biochemical constituents in rabbits. Lab Anim. 1975 Apr;9(2):143-7. No abstract available.

7.    Kaneko J.J (1989) Clinical biochemistry of domestic animals. Academic Press, New-York.

8.    Kerr M. (1989) Veterinary Laboratory Medicine. Clinical Biochemistry and Haematology. Blackwell Scientific Publications.

9.    Mitruka B.M., Rawnley H.M. (1977) Clinical biochemical and haematological reference values in normal and experimental animals. Masson Publishing USA, Inc. pp 83, 134-135.

10. Okerman L. (1994) Diseases of domestic rabbits. Blackwell Scientific Publications, Oxford

Warren HB, Lausen NC, Segre GV, el-Hajj G, Brown EM. Regulation of calciotropic hormones in vivo in the New Zealand white rabbit. Endocrinology. 1989 Nov;125(5):2683-90.

 

 

 

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