White Blood Cells Tolerance Levels of Adult Rabbits Exposed to Crude Oil Ingestion in Niger Delta Region Nigeria

Abstract

A study was conducted to determine the white cells threshold levels of rabbits exposed to crude oil ingestion in the oil producing region of Niger Delta of Nigeria. a total of thirty four (34) rabbits consisting of two bucks kept separately away from the thirty two (32) does randomly allotted to four treatment groups of A, B, C and D with the following (Bonny light) percentage crude oil inclusion rate per kg of feed mash of 0.0%, 0.01%, 0.02% and 0.03% were used in this study respectively. Each treatment was replicated into two replicates of two does. Results obtained revealed significant difference (p<0.05) in the percentage values of lymphocytes, ersinophils and giant cells- recorded amongst the treated groups. The percentage values of basophils showed that, group B recorded lower values than the root group. It was therefore concluded that, rabbits can tolerate exposure to crude oil ingestion up to 0.03% in formulated feed. The degree of stress imposed can be monitored by studying the leucocytes. Such indices can form useful parameters for laboratory application in clinical examination