[Effect of route and place of minocycline administration on the zootechnical performance of rabbits].

Minocycline administered to rabbits per os or intramuscularly (30 mg/kg) over a period of three days led neither to digestive problems nor mortality. Administration per os left the growth curve unchanged. Intramuscular administration reduced rate of growth, and on the 15th day weight loss compared to controls was 3.2% or 11.7% depending on whether the place of administration was in the back muscles or in the thigh, and this despite a normal food intake. Minocycline did not modify microbial flora and level of ammonia in the caecum. Level of acetic acid was reduced by 50% on the fourth and 15th day after intramuscular administration of minocycline into the thigh. The depressive effect of minocycline on growth remains unexplained.