Tips on minimizing hay waste

[Lord Trellis]

Tips on minimizing hay waste...

So with hay being out of season now which makes it harder to find in larger amounts or at all in the worse cases, like for example I was buying 6KG of hay during the summer months in a shop called Bargain Buys for just 4.50 so I bought lots of it because that is cheap. They don't have any more. I wish I had bought more because I have noticed I'm getting through it very quickly and the rabbits eat more than half of it but there is also a lot that goes to waste so I want to try minimize the waste. I have tried hay racks but they just pull it all out onto the floor.

I have thought about giving them a handful of hay each time until its all been eaten but then I start to wonder about them not getting enough during the night when I'm sleeping or when I am out.

What do you do?

 

[Zoobec]

You can buy bales of hay cheaply all year round from agricultural merchants, stables and horse feed suppliers. This was the best hay rack solution I came up with http://forums.rabbitrehome.org.uk/showthread.php?474582-Frosty-and-Fern-enjoying-their-new-hayrack

 

[Liz47]

I find it works out better to buy as large a bag as possible, I buy the 9.5kg bag of ings hay from here for £19. Mine do have a hay rack but also hay in their litter trays but we don't have a lot of waste cos they love the hay

https://hay-and-straw.co.uk/home/p/ings-hay

 

[InspectorMorse]

I buy hay bales from an equine supplier A 25kg Bale costs just over £7.00

 

[Shimmer]

I buy hay bales from an equine supplier A 25kg Bale costs just over £7.00

Same here. Store in an old single duvet cover inside, or a bale just fits in a 240 litre wheely bin or some of the outdoor seating boxes - which could be used inside.
8 rabbits will go through a lot of hay for food and bedding. There's also the issue of disposing of used stuff. I compost mine on the allotment.
Hay is available all year round - that's the whole point of it - although it can be harder to get hold of from some suppliers from March onwards, until the new harvest is in. I just stock up. Equine suppliers are a good bet as horses need a lot of hay all the time, and it has to be of a decent quality (sick horses are very expensive). You should be able to get hay all year from them, even if they limit the amount you can buy (but one bale at a time will do the rabbits anyway). Some will do local deliveries as well.

You can also get hay bale bags. They are strong nylon bags with handles down the sides and drawstring top, so it's easier and less messy to transport bales.

 

[keletkezes]

I'm having real difficulty finding baled hay. My current supplier is in Essex! I mean, there must be some around here that haven't closed and have it in regularly (Risley is very hit&miss). Any suggestions what to google, ask etc.? Most of the hay suppliers around this end of Notts/Leics/Derbys that seem to sell to the public just do haylage

 

[Orenoko]

Try timothyhay.co.uk - they have different varieties and it comes in a big cardboard box, I keep mine in a cupboard. It's much better quality than what you get from a pet shop, same with equine providers, they are better quality too. It will generally work out cheaper as well. There will inevitably be some waste with rabbits but racks like those in the links provided may help. I absolutely stuff mine full so it's really packed in and it seems to help as the looser it is the easier it is for them to pull out massive clumps and then wee on it!

The heat last summer means it will be a bad year for hay but you should hopefully be able to get hold of some.

 

[tulsi]

I buy ings from hay and straw and have managed to find a local baled hay supply which I use for litter trays. The ings goes into their hay racks which are wooden free standing magazine racks.