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Not into the hay
- Thread starter MargieX3
- Start date
I would try some alternative types of hay, some rabbits are fussy :roll: other ideas you could try are sprinkling his pellet ration into the hay, spraying the hay with a bit of diluted apple juice, mixing in a bit of grated carrot or readigrass or ordinary grass into his hay to try to encourage him to eat it. At his age (I think he's 3 months old? from your other post) he is allowed unlimited pellets, when they are older they should be decreased to an eggcupful per day, if they over indulge on pellets they don't eat so much hay.
If he hasn't had carrot/readigrass/grass etc before, introduce slowly a small amount. Carrot shouldn't be fed in much more than a tiny amount occasionally as it is very high in sugar
If he hasn't had carrot/readigrass/grass etc before, introduce slowly a small amount. Carrot shouldn't be fed in much more than a tiny amount occasionally as it is very high in sugar
Aly&Poppy<3
Wise Old Thumper
Hay For Pets, timothyhay.co.uk, Dust Free Hay company are all lovely and last ages 
Get a storage box, I use 32L ones as they can't lift their tails to wee over the edge like they can with most cat litter trays. But for a young bun a cat litter tray might be easier to start with Just line it with newspaper and fill it with hay, rabbits like to toilet where they eat so it can encourage hay eating Also hay racks/hay balls etc over the litter tray works well, I do this with mine and also have hay in bowls/£1 basket thing from asda full of hay which they love eating from
They can never have too much hay so don't be afraid to 'over do it'! I have 5 dental rabbits so just put hay everywhere to encourage hay eating to help prevent/prolong the time between dentals
Get a storage box, I use 32L ones as they can't lift their tails to wee over the edge like they can with most cat litter trays. But for a young bun a cat litter tray might be easier to start with
Just line it with newspaper and fill it with hay, rabbits like to toilet where they eat so it can encourage hay eating Also hay racks/hay balls etc over the litter tray works well, I do this with mine and also have hay in bowls/£1 basket thing from asda full of hay which they love eating from 
They can never have too much hay so don't be afraid to 'over do it'!
I have 5 dental rabbits so just put hay everywhere to encourage hay eating to help prevent/prolong the time between dentals 
MargieX3
Young Bun
Thank you everyone! He eats a little bit of his hay when he is in his little box... but i am going to the pet store and getting another brand... He has his pellets and I give him just a little bit of lettuce, kale and spinach... He has been here a week and he has gotten his "salad mix" only two times for dinner... He loves it! I will keep everyone updated on the new hay brand! Thanks again everyone! any suggestions for your bunnies favorite hay brand?
Walter says happy Saturday everyone!
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any suggestions for your bunnies favorite hay brand? Walter says happy Saturday everyone!
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MargieX3
Young Bun
A handful in the morning and a handful at night... He is only 3 and a half months so he can have a lot... well that is what I read about... I did one day just a half of a hand full and mostly hay... came home and the hay wasn't even messed with... :/
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Two handfuls a day does sound a lot. I think if it were me I would start very gradually reducing - but it does have to be done slowly. Eventually the generally recommended amount is an eggcupful once a day for average rabbits. Hay is so important in the diet for both teeth and the digestive system that it is well worth finding one he likes. You do have to stick with it, though, as most rabbits would eat a huge bowl of pellets if they were offered (like children wanting sweets rather than a proper meal).
The hay you can buy on-line from somewhere like HayforPets is far superior to, say, Pets at Home hay, which mine won't touch and doesn't even smell fresh. You need to give fresh hay a couple of times a day - they don't like it when it's been hanging around.
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It may simply be that the hay you're feeding is quite stale. It will probably have been cut around July last year, ie during the heatwave hence is almost a year old. Hay i currently being cut now in many areas and the crop is good thanks to months of heavy rain followed by weeks of hot sun. I'd try him on some fresh hay and see if he finds this more appetising.
MargieX3
Young Bun
My boyfriend and I are going to get a new brand of hay and some grass today... so I hope that works.. also... I shouldn't of said a full handfull.... I have small hands... In his little foot bowl it's half hay and half pellets... I will take a picture of it and we can see if I need to increase or decrease the amount so 3 month year old rabbits shouldn't get more pellets? thanks again everyone!!
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so 3 month year old rabbits shouldn't get more pellets? thanks again everyone!! Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk
sunnibunny
Alpha Buck
Youre lucky to get him on hay straight away, before bad eating habits start. Too often ppl state their rabbits dont eat hay, including mine. So youre v lucky. Happy hay eating!
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