Please help, Hay allergy!

Argh, please can anyone help. I am new to these forums but have posted an intro on the correct area.

We got our buns last weekend. As I was helping my 9yr old get the hutches ready & settling buns in, I got all chesty/wheezy and had problems breathing...runny eyes etc. I thought oh poop, I'm allergic to buns However, we've brought them in the house a cpl of times in the week for grooming, and I've been fine.

Today my son and myself cleaned out their hutch, and I had the same symptoms, only a lot worse - I really had problems catching my breath. I spoke to my Dad, who reminded me that when I was a kid and I used to go horse-riding, I used to be the same way. Our conclusion is, I am allergic to the hay...least it's not the buns!

So now, I have a dilemma. I obviously can't expect my 9yr old to clean the hutch out alone (altho he has done a vg job today!) - I feel as a parent they are my responsibility although he's their adopted Daddy ... my wonderful hubby can't really help as he's disabled...although he could tell my son what to do .... couldn't be hands on as such.... and my 16 month old would probably just eat the hay :lol: .........

Sooooooooo..... oh bright ones... my :?: is, can buns live without hay? We use newspaper, then shavings then hay on the top in their bedroom.. with a little bit of hay in their `lounge` too. I suspect I'd react the same way to straw :roll: so don't think that's an option either.

The worst scenario is something I don't want to contemplate... so any help or ideas would be very greatfully received......

Many thanks,

Sarah

Heya, Welcome to the forums firstly!

Okay, I'm no expert but I don't think Bun's can live without hay? It's meant to be 80% of their diet.

Wait and see what everyone else says thou.. I could be wrong

Sarah x

No, buns definately need hay, it's a very important part of their diet. Unless they were on grass all day, but I'm not 100% sure if they'd still need hay too (plus there's the safety aspect of leaving them in a hutch and run all day, you'd have to make it very secure, so they couldn't get out and predators couldn't get in)
You could possibly try a different kind of hay? I assume at the stables and in their hutch it's meadow hay being used? There are many different kinds of hay that rabbits can eat. Timothy hay is a very good hay for them, and looks totally different to meadow hay, and you may find you're not allergic/as allergic to it - try looking at www.timothyhay.net
There's also hays like brome hay, oat hay, etc. which are similar to timothy hay. Or you could try the shorter cut hays and grasses, like the timothy chop on the website above, and something like Readigrass.
The other option would be to use a different setup in the hutch. You could line the inside with lino, and just have a littertray for the buns to wee in. You could put all their hay in this and your son could empty this into a dustbin bag and you could sweep out and disinfect the hutch, with minimal contact to the hay? Or if the buns won't use the littertray perfectly, you could put something like Vetbed down on top of lino and newspaper?

..hows about you take a 'non-drowsy' antihistamine tab(Loratidine) before you go near the hay!! ? :? :? Tesco sell them ....98p for 7 tabs. If you needed to use them daily then you could explain your situation to your GP (IF YOU CAN GET A FLIPPIN' APPOINTMENT BEFORE THE NEXT MILLENIUM!! :roll: :roll: ) and he/she could do you a prescription for a greater quantity thus making it more economical. Jane and Bunsxx

I'm allergic to hay too. I often have to dash for a swig of piriton after dishing out the hay, and I have to use my inhalers regulary or I wheeze when I am around it. I can tell when I haven't been using the preventer enough as my chest gets tight when I go near the hay. I also have to be really careful about washing my hands ofter touching it or my eyes swell up. But I manage, the rabbits are worth it

As you don't have as many as I do, you could check if you are allergic to readigrass. It isn't hay that is essential in a rabbits diet, but grass. If you could pick enough fresh grass year round they could eat that, or eat readigrass. You would have to find something warm to use as bedding though, maybe shredded paper, or you might not be allergic to straw.

Good luck finding a solution.

You could use timothy hay cakes instead of hay:
http://www.vetbed.co.uk/smallanimals/haycakes.html
Either that or supliment the diet with high fibre pellets
http://www.bunnybasics.net/timothy-pellets-500g-p-208.html?osCsid=db5494adc8a2ccb1cde077dd71226d71, or have them instead of pellets. Either way your rabbits needs alot of fibre. Hope this helps.

Fibre isn't the only thing necessary from the hay. The grinding motion they use to eat it is essential to keep their teeth healthy, so feeding a pellet-only diet isn't in the best interests of the rabbits.

JCO said:

..hows about you take a 'non-drowsy' antihistamine tab(Loratidine) before you go near the hay!! ? :? :? Tesco sell them ....98p for 7 tabs. If you needed to use them daily then you could explain your situation to your GP (IF YOU CAN GET A FLIPPIN' APPOINTMENT BEFORE THE NEXT MILLENIUM!! :roll: :roll: ) and he/she could do you a prescription for a greater quantity thus making it more economical. Jane and Bunsxx

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i am actualy allergic to the rabbits but i use a preventer and inhalers to try and help to live with the problem, i did speak to my doctor about it whos reponse was "get rid of the rabbits" but you lot know i cant! she said having to take the inhaler when i am causing the problem myself is not god and should not take antihystermines (sp?) regular was a good idea? so do you think this is wise?

Eve x

I'm allergic to hay so hubby has to feed the bunnies!! That's my excuse anyway!

I find that benydril (sp?) tablets are very good. You take one every morning and it dramatically reduces allergic reactions. Also if your eyes and chest are bad, a nose spray is very effective for immediate relief (available over the counter but better ones on prescription).

Good luck!

AMETHYST

I'm allergic to the hay and my bunnies

My doctors attitude was 'get rid of them' as well, but instead I got more

I found the cheap hay fever tabs worked best- Tesco's Hayfever and Allergy relief (Yellow Box[Cetirizine Dihydrochloride]) and Tesco's Non- drowsy hayfever and allergy relief (blue box [Loratadine 10mg])

Not sure on the price as I didn't buy them

I'd imagine that the dust causes the most problem? I've heard of people poping the bedding in a pillow and hovering it - I don't know if that works?

Dry grass (redigrass) might cause less of a problem.

Another would be to check it's the hay and not the wood shavings.

If you're not alergic to straw then you could use that as bedding and confine the hay to a hayrack which you could ask your son to remove prior to you cleaning out.

In summer they don't really need any bedding (so the hayrack might work) but in winter hay/straw or similar is needed to help keep them warm.

Tam

Ooooh! I've remembered something else that helps me alot- a dust mask, makes you feel a bit silly if you work in a rescue and have members of the public walk past buts it's worth it

I have asthma and loads of allergies so I can completely empathise. I'm allergic to hay but do find that some are better than others. As someone else said try to find the least 'dusty' hay - in my experience this is normally timothy hay rather than meadow hay. I also take antihistamines before I clean the buns out each day, and just be careful - ie no touching eyes, wash hands straight after etc etc.

Although, one thing I will also say is that allergies can often decrease with exposure - I am a lot less allergic to buns and hay than I used to be, another example is my cat allergy - when I go to my parents I am in a complete sake for the first 2 days and then it starts to get better.

Persevere - talk to your Dr, and you'll work out a way you can cope with this, but like others have said buns can definitely not go with hay! Good luck.

bunnylove said:

JCO said:

..hows about you take a 'non-drowsy' antihistamine tab(Loratidine) before you go near the hay!! ? :? :? Tesco sell them ....98p for 7 tabs. If you needed to use them daily then you could explain your situation to your GP (IF YOU CAN GET A FLIPPIN' APPOINTMENT BEFORE THE NEXT MILLENIUM!! :roll: :roll: ) and he/she could do you a prescription for a greater quantity thus making it more economical. Jane and Bunsxx

Click to expand...

i am actualy allergic to the rabbits but i use a preventer and inhalers to try and help to live with the problem, i did speak to my doctor about it whos reponse was "get rid of the rabbits" but you lot know i cant! she said having to take the inhaler when i am causing the problem myself is not god and should not take antihystermines (sp?) regular was a good idea? so do you think this is wise?

Eve x

Click to expand...

Well, I am not asthmatic but am allergic to SOME hays and get very itchy and wheezy. :roll: :roll: So if a particular batch of hay (I buy it in bales from a Farm) is causing me prob's I take the Non-drowsy antihistamine (Loratidine). Piriton just zonks me out!! :lol: :lol: Does your GP surgery run an Asthma Clinic??. :? It is often the Practice Nurse who runs them and they are sometimes more empathetic than the Docs'...?? :roll: She might be able to advise in a less 'judgemental' way. Jane and Bunsxx

I have a mild hay allergy but as I am on Xyzal for hayfever during the summer I don't get any reactions to the hay and now I have come off it for the winter I have started getting a runny nose etc (not as bad as yours). I use Beconase and Xyzal if it is really bad, otherwise a dust mask is a great idea. You can get the disposable ones cheap from B&Q/Homebase and just reuse them. I also wear disposable gloves to clean them out and an apron then I can take it all off and don't take it into the house (hubby has worse hayfever than me).

Unfortunately unless your rabbit has daily access to fresh grass grazing, hay needs to be present at all times for a healthy digestive system and teeth!

Caz