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Where can I buy Timothy hay?

Rex Rabbity

Warren Scout
I would like to try my rabbits on Timothy hay. Does anyone know of a supplier in Cornwall or south Devon where I can collect, or do you have to buy online and pay extra for postage?
 
do you have a pets at home near you? I think they do it.
Im sure ive heard people on here say that they get it on line, in big kilo bags so even though it will be plus postage it should work out cheaper, sorry not much help :D
 
You can get timothy hay from Pets at Home but it really isn't all that good to be honest, more bedding than eating.

I recently found this site

http://www.sphsupplies.co.uk//index.php?cPath=26&osCsid=18d472d41880a19194bdbb78c22a05e1


The Oxbow stuff really is as good as the hype, very high quality varities of hay, if you can afford to try the oat hay that seems to go down very well as does the orchard grass though I got them all for Jacob as he eats each with glee! (Haven't given him the afalfa as fattening but am keeping for if he has a loss of appetite as he does love afalfa).

It is more money but hay is supposed to keep the teeth healthy and frankly the better the hay etc. It's part of maintanance I feel. I did get some from West Willows but that was 'Timothy rich' not pure Timothy. It smells good as does stuff from Bunny Basics, Canadian I believe but having seen the Oxbow I wouldn't buy any other ever again.

I sound a bit evangelical but I had put off buying some for ages as too many kinds and seemed alot of money. I have the West Willows and Canadian in a digging box now as it never really got eaten past nibbling, the Oxbow is munched for long periods and is long bits of hay which is what buns really need.

If you go to

www.oxbowhay.com

they explain the make and varieties, they know their bunny stuff too. If you do get Oxbow and ever get a prairie dog they like it too!!!!!!

PS They also do a timothy hay food though not tried it as just got onto Science Selective so don't want to confuse things!
 
If you want to buy in a store, Endsleigh garden centre, just up the road from Plymouth, sell it. Cost of petrol to get there from Newquay, would probably mean that it would be cheaper for you to order online though. :lol:

SPH that tomjacob mentioned are very good if you want to order online.
 
Both bunnybasics and west wales willows will send you out a sample for the price of postage. Its a good idea as a big bag isn't cheap, and buns can be fussy about what they'll eat!

I use the Oxbow stuff at the moment, which I get from SPHSupplies.... if you spend over £50 then you get free postage and it often arrives the following day. With just one bun my £52 of hay should last a fair few months!
 
The Oxbow Western Timothy hay looks brilliant, but it is REALLY expensive :shock: Our 2 rabbits eat a lot of hay. It would cost a small fortune to keep them supplied with that! And I thought the Timothy hay on Bunny Basics was expensive! We are using Devon meadow hay at the moment, which costs £2.69 for an XL bag, which I think is 2kg. I know the good stuff is going to cost more, but I did not think it would be nearly 4 times more expensive than meadow hay. The other problem is that we can't buy in bulk, as we have no storage space. Maybe 2 or 3 2kg bags a time at the most. Adding the shipping costs of buying Timothy hay online also makes it even more expensive :(
 
I have the same snag, I'm in a market town in the middle of nowhere and only bags of hay, no name are available. I can't get very far anyway so the internet is a godsend. It costs more in P+P but I can get what I want and what my boys need. Mine is under the stairs so it's kept dry, not alot room for anything else, but bird seed and stuff I keep in dustbins in my outhouses so it's safe from mice, dry and out the way.

I see hay and food as part of the price of having a bunny to be honest. I am on disability benefits and most of that goes on my boys. I just don't get so many new clothes, shoes, CD's, make up etc! I don't smoke/drink etc, animals are like kids, cost alot but well worth it.

Nowadays there's so much evidence that 'we are what we eat' ( I hate that woman) but I have always thought that food is fuel, we are complicated machines animals and humans, if you put in rubbish there's more problems with health, weight etc, you eat well, less chemicals etc and your body is better maintained. My guys can't go to the shops and get their own food, they are entirely reliant on me and I do my best.

There was a hay survey recently if I recall, all I know is that I can't imagine many people using Oxbow and then going back to random dusty stuff that could be old and not stored well.
 
Tomjacob, I do agree with what you are saying fully and I want only the best for my rabbits. It is hard to find the extra money though sometimes, especially as I have 2 young kids and I am on a fairly low income. However, where there's a will there's usually a way!

I think alot of our meadow hay is actually wasted. Our rabbits have 2 large hutches which they have free use of via a ladder link. We put down barley straw bedding and line them both with large amounts of hay. Lots of hay does get eaten, but then again, alot gets trampled into the bedding. We are looking at possibly getting some willow hay racks so that they are not eating soiled hay and we can see exactly how much they are eating daily. Hopefully this will mean that if we do go for better hay, then we won't need as much. After reading about the Oxbow Western Timothy and how it is cultivated and packed, I have to say that I really want to buy some! I will try and hunt for the cheapest supplier and buy a small amount first for my furs to try!

Thanks for your help so far everyone :D
 
A note abuot Pets at Home Timothy Hay.

Candy as a baby would eat hay quite happily, I bought some Timothy Hay from P@H and she wouldn't touch it and in fact would touch hay full stop after that for months, she is only now starting to eat it again and apearing to enjoy it. Couldn't say why or wether there was anything wrong with it but I wont buy any food stuffs from there again.
 
I get Oxbow timothy hay from a local petshop (Seapets in Colchester), but they also sell it in bulk quantities online at www.bunnybazaar.co.uk

Just having 2 guinea pigs didn't break the bank, but now I've got 2 enormous bunnies too I will probably go bankrupt, but will probably still use it if I can - it's fantastic stuff. :)
 
You could use cheaper timothy hay as bedding and then have oxbow for eating. I have the other kinds I've tried in the digging box and oxbow in big bowls, I want some hayracks too!

I also have the oxbow in the litter trays for nibbling and get a clump every morning and put it in an obvious place for extra interest. Jacob isn't haymad really so I have to push it more than you might! I don't know of UK shops that sell it, that would be good a list as the postage can be a pain, quite alot of the bunny stuff sites such as bunnybazaar (which has one P+P charge whatever you order I think) have it too so when you get the hayracks you could get some hay too!! I really do know about the money, I didn't think it could be all that great as the other timothy hay hasn't overwhelmed me but it is good. I need a haircut but that won't be possible for a while now! Mind you, as I seem to always have hay in it perhaps I shouldn't worry too much, that and a wet fridge from the water bowls!

I just bulk bought to save on P+P though and prayed to God it was as good as they say! They do a Timothy hay too, I got a bigger bag and seemed quite a lot. Jacobs in the house but I can see how with hutches it wouldn't go so far, I like the hayracks from bunnybasics, the wooden ones. Trouble is I like alot of stuff and the P+P gets high on that site and penniless now so I'll have to wait!

Kids and rabbits...blimey I bet there's chaos..a house full of fun and love though!
 
Just ordered a 425g bag of Oxbow Western Timothy from SPH. I will get some hay racks this week and see how they get on with it.
 
Rex Rabbity said:
Just ordered a 425g bag of Oxbow Western Timothy from SPH. I will get some hay racks this week and see how they get on with it.


Wow!
It's a super site and the baskets of goodies sound scrummy, maybe Jacob can have the hay and I have the cookies???
 
Rex Rabbity said:
The other problem is that we can't buy in bulk, as we have no storage space.

I can't buy in bulk cos I have already used up all available shed space with a full size bale of hay and a full size bale of straw. :lol: My friend brought me the straw in her little Yaris. 8)
 
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