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Hay vs Grass..?!

R

rascal_rabbits

Young Bun
Hi! :wave:

I have been mildly concerned lately that my buns (5 months old now) aren’t eating enough hay – they have access 24/7 but just don’t get through a lot. Certainly not through their body size worth of hay. They get pellets morning and evening, a handful per bun each time and they gobble it up like I starve them. We all know how important hay is to a bun in all sort of ways – I was wondering if grass straight from the garden has the same benefits, because this I do know they eat all evening long for about 4 hours non stop when I get home from work and let them free range in the garden!

So, I guess my question is – do I let them get on with nomming on their pellets and grass and not worry too much about hay (so long and they keep eating the grass, and hay will still be accessable the whole time), or should I still be finding ways to encourage them to eat more hay?

Thanks for any advice :p

6.jpg
 
Right, 2 handfulls each per day, per bun is far too much!

I'd suggest giving them an egg cup full each per day per bun.

You're filling them up, and that's why they're not eating the hay.
 
Squee, how cute. :love::love::love:

Hay is just dried grass - they both wear down the teeth and have the same benefits.

Keep on providing plenty of hay as well as they might grow to like it just as much & it's important that they're constantly grazing. It helps to sprinkle some dried herbs on top of the hay - while they're digging out the herbs, they'll actually eat some of the hay too.
 
If they are eating lots of grass then that's fine, it has the same effect as hay since they have to chew it in the same way. They do need their pellets because if they only ate grass they probably wouldn't get enough of all the vitamins etc. Wild bunnies would eat lots of grass and also a variety of other plants to get everything they need.
 
*Spider* said:
Right, 2 handfulls each per day, per bun is far too much!

I'd suggest giving them an egg cup full each per day per bun.

You're filling them up, and that's why they're not eating the hay.
Click to expand...

I agree with Hetty on this my group of four get two handfulls between them once a day and they eat loads of hay. I would gradually reduced their pelletts over a few days. This should encourage them to eat more hay. Be careful relying on grass as it wont be around so much in the winter.

If you struggle to get them eating hay try a few different ones. Once they get the idea of it I'm sure they will be happy munchers
 
I agree with reducing the pellets, i used to give them too much and now i've cut down to one small handful on a morning between two they get through their hay like no tomorrow. They don't like ordinary hay though, they like the readigrass dried grass with some dried herb mix mixed through it so you might need to get a few sample packs so see what they like and go from there. :wave:
 
Ooopppsssss...I shall cut those pellets down even more then!! I'm glad to hear though that grass is just as beneficial as hay though in nutrients and on their teeth though because they really do get through a lot of it - havent mowed the lawn in weeks ;)

They love those pellets (Allen and Page) so much it's hard to say no to them, but I shall be ultra strict from now on!

I cant seem to load a video of the bun playing with their toy I made to get them to eat more hay, but heres a piccy of a smaller hay toy - also home made as you can tell!!!

gullyhay.jpg
 
You do feel so mean cutting them down, expecially if yours are as good as mine at appearing permanently starved at all times :lol: but honestly it's for their own benefit, it's not that the nuggets are bad for them as such, it's just they just kind of crunch on them with an up and down movement, whereas with hay/grass they move their mouths side to side which is what keeps their teeth down. They'll be fine :)
 
rascal_rabbits said:
Ooopppsssss...I shall cut those pellets down even more then!! I'm glad to hear though that grass is just as beneficial as hay though in nutrients and on their teeth though because they really do get through a lot of it - havent mowed the lawn in weeks ;)

They love those pellets (Allen and Page) so much it's hard to say no to them, but I shall be ultra strict from now on!

I cant seem to load a video of the bun playing with their toy I made to get them to eat more hay, but heres a piccy of a smaller hay toy - also home made as you can tell!!!

gullyhay.jpg
Click to expand...

I bet it doesnt last for very long - Biscuit will devour one of those 'free toys' within minutes along with the hay in it!
 
My rabbit (near 1 year now) didn't eat hay when I first got him, but it was partly a matter of finding a type he likes. He turned out to dislike Excel herbage, recommended by his previous owner. This gets a good name, Spenser just doesn't like it. I have cut down his pellets a bit, which helped, but was reluctant to do so as he isn't overweight. The Hay Experts do a sample pack, but my bunny is now quite happily munching meadow hay from the local pet shop (with a sprinkling from a sample pack bag as a treat). He doesn't eat his body size in hay though. :wave:
 
If they are on Allen and Page I think I would give them a bit more than a egg cup full each as it doesn't seem to be as "rich" as other pellets :? Maybe a halve what you give now, so a handful between them morning and just a few in the evening? They are gorgeous by the way :love:

Grass is great, so don't worry too much, top up their hay regularly as buns seem to prefer hay which has just been put in :roll: If you have a farm nearby try and get some hay there, tends to be better than pet shop hay. Also the Hay Experts do "Taster packs" with different types of hay so you can find one they like :D
 
louise and Gus said:
top up their hay regularly as buns seem to prefer hay which has just been put in :roll:
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Agreed, I haven't a clue why but the newly added stuff always seems much tastier. :roll: Either that or they like the minging stuff from yesterday's litter tray. :mrgreen: (But I wouldn't advise feeding that :lol:)
 
I read that there is not as much fibre in grass as there is in hay, I am sure that I have been told that on here too. When my buns eat more grass than hay, their poo is black and small but when they eat a lot of hay, their poo is big and golden.
 
KarenM said:
Agreed, I haven't a clue why but the newly added stuff always seems much tastier. :roll: Either that or they like the minging stuff from yesterday's litter tray. :mrgreen: (But I wouldn't advise feeding that :lol:)
Click to expand...

Or the dusty bits out of the dustpan :roll:
 
If they prefer grass to hay then I don't see a problem with that, but do bear in mind that it would be pretty difficult to snip an entire body size of grass per bun from your garden every day. In winter as well the grass won't be growing so it will be hard to get them to eat enough.

So I would still try and encourage them to eat more hay - even if you mix the grass in with it so they get more used to the texture, smell and taste of it as they forage around (you can also do the same with their pellets and some tasty herbs). Hopefully when combined with reducing the amount of dried food they eat, you should see an increase in their hay munching :)
 
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