How can I tell my bunny that hay is food?

One of my rabbits, Ham, is five years old, but didn't have any hay until he came into our care. He's a big boy from being given too many pellets, so we're trying to gently reduce the amount we give him each day, and are giving him a generous handful of kale, spinch, brocolli, carrot tops and herbs too. He has usually finished it all off midday and acts like he's starving when we shut them in for the night. He has an abundance of meadow hay in his hutch - both on the floor and in a feeder, but he never touches it. I have seen him nibble a tiny amount on the off occassion.

Do you think this is because he's grown up never being given it? And can anyone advise maybe another type of hay that might be more tempting to him? Beatrice eats hay all day, as she should, and always seems content. Ham seems restless in the evenings and is always nosing around his food bowl. I have to hold myself back from not giving him more pellets and greens even though I know he's had more than enough for the day!

As we're trying to get him to a healthier weight and I know hay is meant to be 80% of their daily intake, I'd really appreciate any advice on how to tempt Mr. Ham with some hay. Tonight I have literally put a handful in his bowl in an attempt to make him realise it's edible!

Thank you for any advice, everyone

Have you tried him on grass? This will be as good as hay
Readigrass is another option, or Timothyhay (available from Timothyhay. Co.uk and other outlets)

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In my view he will decide that hay is OK to eat once he is bonded with Beatrice. I would be surprised if he just sat still while she munches on hay when they are together. Also are you certain that he's not eating any hay at night? I was surprised a few weeks ago, when I stayed in the shed with them for much of the night, just how much hay they consumed during those hours.

Hi. We have had rescues that just were not in the habit of eating hay. As suggested try readigrass and try playing "ooh doesn't this long strand of hay that I'm stroking your face with look tastey" game (yes I know I this is not normal and I probably need help). I was once cross at a vet for telling me I needed to make the rabbit eat more hay- like that would ever be possible- but make it more appealing, don't over feed other food stuffs and feed in the right order and you will get there. [emoji39]

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If he hardly eats any hay or grass, how does Ham manage to stop his teeth from overgrowing? I thought rabbits need to eat hay/grass partially to wear down the continuous tooth growth. Or, turning the question round, could it be that he has tooth problems and therefore unable to graze properly?

Other than that, I'm not sure what to say - when I rescued Charlie from the sad life he had in a hutch, he was used to pellets but also ate his bedding straw. I doubt he'd seen a blade of grass before I adopted him but once I put him on the grass he knew immediately what it was for.

Have you tried hiding the tasty stuff / pellets in his hay so he has to go routing through for them? He will eat more hay 'accidentally'.

Another thing that might be worth trying is some of the tastier varieties of hay, mine definitely prefer hay with dandelion & marigold (Burgess Excel) than the plain timothy hay. Maybe the sweet smell will tempt him. I think there is a chamomile variety as well although I haven't tried it.

Hi, Here are some tips based on what I have searched online. You can try these.
1. Feed Tastier Hay
2. Put Hay Where Your Rabbit Sits
3. Incorporate Hay into Toys
4. Add Garnish
5. Feed Less Dry Food

Take away the other food. Provide plenty of water and hay. Meadow hay, cheap and cheerful, fresh and smelling delightful, with tiny amounts of fancy hays mixed in. What's the dried grass called? Readigrass, as mentioned upthread. I used to love having a variety of hays to play with, and I think the rabbits (now all gone) appreciated it.

Thank you everyone, for the helpful advice. I really appreciate it. I tried putting hay in Ham's food bowl the other night, rather than in the hay feeder. We can see him in his hutch from the dining room window and he was tucking into it. I don't know if it's the psychology of 'the bowl is where the food is', but it didn't take much to persuade him to eat it.

Like you say Omi, I think that maybe he also does munch on it at night when we're not watching. Lagomorphine, he does chew on wood a lot. He has nearly completely destroyed the stairs to the second floor of his hutch...I think he only stopped when he realised there would be nothing left to climb on!

I think the main problem is that he is used to a bowl topped with pellets, as he was being given in his previous home. Probably 5x what he was meant to be getting. He looooves pellets and we're weaning him off them gently so it isn't a nasty shock. I like the sound of the hay with marigolds and dandilions - I'll look into that.

If he likes chewing you could try some of those hay tunnels as well and stuff them with hay.

And if he likes bowls then the beco ones are great because they (somewhat!) contain the hay with the higher parts of the edges, but have lower edges they can easily eat from :wave:

I was going to say mix his pellets in with his hay, scatter them around. but I see someone beat me to it!