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Timothy hay
- Thread starter bluebunny
- Start date
monkeypuzzler
Mama Doe
The only brand of Timothy Hay I've had is Western, which is thick and green. My buns love it!
Yep mine is the oxbow Western one and it is green and hard. I think that's the idea - it is great for keeping their teeth ground down.
Actually, I'm sitting here next to an open bag of Timothy hay and I'm thinking "mmmm that smells soooo good". I've definitely had bunnies for too long :lol:
Actually, I'm sitting here next to an open bag of Timothy hay and I'm thinking "mmmm that smells soooo good". I've definitely had bunnies for too long :lol:
As with all things Hay changes depending on the time of the year and the location its grown.
We carry 2 types, one is quite course, and the other is a bit leafier, but still course. Oxbow is a leafy timothy hay that is quite soft. Our hay is from Alberta in canada
The chin site and ourselves sell a first cut timothy. that gives us a good mix of stem, leaf and seed head. We also dont chop the hay.
Oxbow use a early 2nd cut that gives them a higher leaf ratio. they also chop the hay to enable them to pre pack. Oxbow hay is a mix of US grown and Canadian Grown Hay.
The second cut tends to have less fibre as the growing cycle is that bit shorter.
We carry 2 types, one is quite course, and the other is a bit leafier, but still course. Oxbow is a leafy timothy hay that is quite soft. Our hay is from Alberta in canada
The chin site and ourselves sell a first cut timothy. that gives us a good mix of stem, leaf and seed head. We also dont chop the hay.
Oxbow use a early 2nd cut that gives them a higher leaf ratio. they also chop the hay to enable them to pre pack. Oxbow hay is a mix of US grown and Canadian Grown Hay.
The second cut tends to have less fibre as the growing cycle is that bit shorter.
monkeypuzzler
Mama Doe
AlisonA said:
:lol: I almost commented in my post about good it smells! :lol:
HiyaBunnybasics said:
Ive bought this hay for her a bun with teeth probs,the vet has said if he didnt start to eat hay he would end up having regular dentals,someone recommended trying the timothy hay as ive tried other hays,but if he cant eat other hay which is soft cant see him being able to eat this,is there any other hay you can recommend?
Does he have incisor problems? I've had 3 buns with mallocluded front teeth and none were very keen on hay until I had them removed.
Since two of them have molar problems too, it's important for me to get them to eat hay, or as you said, they'll have more molar problems.
After Mary developed his first spur, he was needing dentals every month or two, so I had a good think about his diet and made some dramatic changes.
Firstly, he got timothy hay as his main hay, rather than meadow hay. I used to get it from the chinchilla2shop site, but now buy from Bunnybasics as it's cheaper (but looks exactly the same). Nowadays they also get meadow hay - I get my boss to order me in several different types at work if I think they look good quality, and switch around to give them a change, and they seem pretty keen on several of the ones I get so I'd rather they eat that if they like it. They also occasionally get seed hay from chinchillas2shop as they love it (but it's been out of stock for ages until now)
He only got the bare minimum of pellets - and only because he's an indoor bun needing the vitamins, and he's always been on the small side so I've not wanted to cut pellets out completely. I switched to Science Selective rather than Excel because of the higher fibre content and the shape of them - they seem more like the bun would have to grind them than just bite into them (probably a load of rubbish but he loves them and it's been good for my buns with sensitive tummies/fussy eating habits!)
I also started giving chopped hay in a bowl daily. I alternate between a few different kinds so they don't get bored, but I feed any/all of the following:
Readigrass (not all the time as it seems a bit rich for one of my buns)
JustGrass (like Readigrass but apparently better quality/higher fibre - available from chinchillas2shop)
Timothy chop (from Bunnybasics)
High fibre grass chop (Bunnybasics again)
Combomix (chinchillas2shop)
And now all my buns have had their vaccs I try to get them out on the grass as often as possible, so they eat that and wear their teeth down.
They also usually get a lot of green leafy veg - haven't recently because I've been ill for the last month or so and it's just drained all the energy out of me, and they seem fine without it (and have the grass as a replacement). When they had veg it was things that they'd have to grind down, like carrot tops, curly kale, green cabbage, etc. in pieces as large as they can manage (considering they're 3 dwarf/mini breeds with small mouths and no front teeth!)
This diet really seems to work - Mary's not had a dental since March last year and is still going strong (though going to the vet this afternoon for a routine checkup) and Squishy hasn't needed a dental at all for his molars (and I've had him about 6-8 months - he's always been on this diet as I was aware he may get molar problems, having had malloclussion for genetic reasons like Mary rather than a trauma to the teeth like Rex did)
Since two of them have molar problems too, it's important for me to get them to eat hay, or as you said, they'll have more molar problems.
After Mary developed his first spur, he was needing dentals every month or two, so I had a good think about his diet and made some dramatic changes.
Firstly, he got timothy hay as his main hay, rather than meadow hay. I used to get it from the chinchilla2shop site, but now buy from Bunnybasics as it's cheaper (but looks exactly the same). Nowadays they also get meadow hay - I get my boss to order me in several different types at work if I think they look good quality, and switch around to give them a change, and they seem pretty keen on several of the ones I get so I'd rather they eat that if they like it. They also occasionally get seed hay from chinchillas2shop as they love it (but it's been out of stock for ages until now)
He only got the bare minimum of pellets - and only because he's an indoor bun needing the vitamins, and he's always been on the small side so I've not wanted to cut pellets out completely. I switched to Science Selective rather than Excel because of the higher fibre content and the shape of them - they seem more like the bun would have to grind them than just bite into them (probably a load of rubbish but he loves them and it's been good for my buns with sensitive tummies/fussy eating habits!)
I also started giving chopped hay in a bowl daily. I alternate between a few different kinds so they don't get bored, but I feed any/all of the following:
Readigrass (not all the time as it seems a bit rich for one of my buns)
JustGrass (like Readigrass but apparently better quality/higher fibre - available from chinchillas2shop)
Timothy chop (from Bunnybasics)
High fibre grass chop (Bunnybasics again)
Combomix (chinchillas2shop)
And now all my buns have had their vaccs I try to get them out on the grass as often as possible, so they eat that and wear their teeth down.
They also usually get a lot of green leafy veg - haven't recently because I've been ill for the last month or so and it's just drained all the energy out of me, and they seem fine without it (and have the grass as a replacement). When they had veg it was things that they'd have to grind down, like carrot tops, curly kale, green cabbage, etc. in pieces as large as they can manage (considering they're 3 dwarf/mini breeds with small mouths and no front teeth!)
This diet really seems to work - Mary's not had a dental since March last year and is still going strong (though going to the vet this afternoon for a routine checkup) and Squishy hasn't needed a dental at all for his molars (and I've had him about 6-8 months - he's always been on this diet as I was aware he may get molar problems, having had malloclussion for genetic reasons like Mary rather than a trauma to the teeth like Rex did)
racheyrabbit
Alpha Buck
After the vet noticing the starts of spurs on Kahlo's back teeth when she had her Myxi jab I've been hay obsessed....
First of all she had P@H Timothy Hay, which she ignored... obviously didn't agree with her expensive taste!
I ordered a sample from Bunnybasics and west wales willows to see if she liked them, and she happily ate both. So, we ordered her a large bag from bunnybasics, which she has now decided isn't to her liking and just pulls it out of her hayrack and wees on it.....
So, now we've had a £30 order of the different Oxbow hays delivered, all of which seemed to be a great hit when I hand fed her some the other day. So, now she has a mix of bunnybasics timothy hay, Oxbow western timothy hay, Oxbow Orchard Grass, Oxbow Brome hay and Oxbow Oat Hay. The last couple of days its pretty much all been eaten so maybe we've found a winning formula! She also gets a bowl of supaforage excel dried grass every day because at least if she doesn't touch her hay she wolfs that down......
So, I've realised that Kahlo is turning into a very spoilt little madam..... hmmmm.......
First of all she had P@H Timothy Hay, which she ignored... obviously didn't agree with her expensive taste!
I ordered a sample from Bunnybasics and west wales willows to see if she liked them, and she happily ate both. So, we ordered her a large bag from bunnybasics, which she has now decided isn't to her liking and just pulls it out of her hayrack and wees on it.....
So, now we've had a £30 order of the different Oxbow hays delivered, all of which seemed to be a great hit when I hand fed her some the other day. So, now she has a mix of bunnybasics timothy hay, Oxbow western timothy hay, Oxbow Orchard Grass, Oxbow Brome hay and Oxbow Oat Hay. The last couple of days its pretty much all been eaten so maybe we've found a winning formula! She also gets a bowl of supaforage excel dried grass every day because at least if she doesn't touch her hay she wolfs that down......
So, I've realised that Kahlo is turning into a very spoilt little madam..... hmmmm.......
For £1.50 you can get a sample bag of the Bunnybasics timothy hay from www.timothyhay.co.uk I ordered one myself about an hour ago and it's already been dispached!
racheyrabbit
Alpha Buck
West Wales Willow do one too for £2.50 although you have to phone them to pay or send them a cheque.....
I have a feeling (and I may be wrong) that WWW is timothy rich hay rather than pure timothy hay, so personally I prefer the imported stuff. I usually use the Oxbow western, but I'm running low so thought I'd see how the bunnybasics canadian one compares, as it's quite substantially cheaper!
HiyaKarly said:
its his top back teeth that had grew spurs they wernt to bad though,when i got alfie he was very thin,and had no muscle tone,so i uped his pellet intake he has put weight on now,but i cant cut the pellets out as he only eats veg,he doesnt eat any hay at all,i thought by trying him on the timothy hay he would eat it,but seems ive spent £6 for him to poo and wee on it!
Alfie also has a bone absess
racheyrabbit
Alpha Buck
You're right AlisonA, I've just had a look on the website and West Wales Willow is only Timothy rich hay. I hadn't noticed this before, and judging by the price I'd assumed it was the 'full monty'! Oh well.... Kahlo liked the sample she had, but I hadn't got around to ordering her anymore and probably won't now. If only she would actually eat the bunnybasics one rather than wee on it..... it could save me some money on the expensive Oxbow mixture that has her so enthralled.... good job I've only got one bunny!
Have you tried him on any of the chopped hay/grasses I mentioned? My french lop cross girly ate barely any hay when I first got her. She soon learnt I wasn't as soft as the petshop and she got hay or nothing! But she goes mad for the chopped stuff, it was practically all she would eat to begin with, but now she's settled in and been fed on that she munches her way through loads of hay too.
It's strange that he won't eat any of it, almost sounds as if he's not able to for some reason. Have his front teeth shown any problems in the past or is it solely just the molars?
It might be worth trying some of the others - if you don't want to pay for all the bags then I can send you a small bag when I get my next lot in (sometime soon) to try. To encourage Nina to eat it at first I mixed some of her food (she was on Rabbit Royale when I got her) in with it and she accidentally ate bits (not huge amounts, but some) and then developed a taste for it (that and realising she wouldn't get much else!)
Have you tried the small animal/cat grass you grow in pots? Mine go mad for this too.
I just bought a bag of the Friendly Dried grass and have to admit they're not so keen on it as they are the other stuff - they'll wolf the mix down immediantly but the grass tends to sit there until they're really hungry.
It might be worth trying some of the others - if you don't want to pay for all the bags then I can send you a small bag when I get my next lot in (sometime soon) to try. To encourage Nina to eat it at first I mixed some of her food (she was on Rabbit Royale when I got her) in with it and she accidentally ate bits (not huge amounts, but some) and then developed a taste for it (that and realising she wouldn't get much else!)
Have you tried the small animal/cat grass you grow in pots? Mine go mad for this too.
I just bought a bag of the Friendly Dried grass and have to admit they're not so keen on it as they are the other stuff - they'll wolf the mix down immediantly but the grass tends to sit there until they're really hungry.
His front teeth are fine,i tried chopping the timothy hay and mixing that in his food but he just left it!Karly said:
i did do a post not long ago saying i was sure he couldnt eat it
http://forums.rabbitrehome.org.uk/tam/viewtopic.php?t=14369&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0
That would be brill if you could send me some of it!
