LoveCrumb
Well-Known Member
Hi guys,
I live in the GTA region in Canada (Burlington) and I'm looking for other people who live in the same area to see if you can help me solve this puzzle.
TL;DR: Do you know of any feed stores/farms in this area that sell fresh rabbit-quality hay (my guy only eats Orchard grass, but I would be happy to try timothy if it's fresh enough!)????
A few months ago, I was able to make a major turn around in my rabbit's health by providing the freshest hay I can find. He went from eating very little hay, to eating more hay than I could ever imagine.
Right now, I'm buying 9 pound bags of Oxbow orchard grass from a somewhat unreliable source. It is the freshest hay I've ever found, though it's flaw is that it is filled with random weeds, twigs, pebbles and there are often dirty handfuls (it's not hand-sorted by the company). I spend one hour every day sorting his hay to ensure its safety (it's a real pain). In January of this year, when his GI problems surfaced, it was because I could not find fresh hay anywhere, and he was too picky to eat the pale green stuff sold in pet stores during the winter. Last summer when I adopted him, these smaller bags of Oxbow hay were fresh enough that he was eating a good amount, but not as much as he's eating now of this super-fresh stuff. For whatever reason, the smaller hand-sorted bags of hay continue to be old and pale and therefore not palatable to him.
I worry a lot about when the fresh oxbow hay supply will run out.
I read everywhere that the best fresh hay is purchased at feed stores, but I haven't had any luck finding a good one so far in this area, even though there seems to be horse farms everywhere. Does anyone have a place they know of/go to in this area? I have one friend who can provide me with "first-cut" horse timothy hay, but it's incredibly fibrous and huge and has mildew spots (I think) and I don't feel comfortable giving it to my bunny. She said I would probably prefer second and third cut hay, if I could find it anywhere. Please help???
PS- Yes, the vet and I agree that he's just incredibly picky- we checked thoroughly for any other health concerns. Our one suspicion is that he's susceptible to bloat, but a steady fresh hay supply can only help that. His diet is mostly hay with 1 and 1/2 tbsp of timothy pellet for 5.5 pounds of bunny. He eats mind-boggling amounts of hay.
I live in the GTA region in Canada (Burlington) and I'm looking for other people who live in the same area to see if you can help me solve this puzzle.
TL;DR: Do you know of any feed stores/farms in this area that sell fresh rabbit-quality hay (my guy only eats Orchard grass, but I would be happy to try timothy if it's fresh enough!)????
A few months ago, I was able to make a major turn around in my rabbit's health by providing the freshest hay I can find. He went from eating very little hay, to eating more hay than I could ever imagine.
Right now, I'm buying 9 pound bags of Oxbow orchard grass from a somewhat unreliable source. It is the freshest hay I've ever found, though it's flaw is that it is filled with random weeds, twigs, pebbles and there are often dirty handfuls (it's not hand-sorted by the company). I spend one hour every day sorting his hay to ensure its safety (it's a real pain). In January of this year, when his GI problems surfaced, it was because I could not find fresh hay anywhere, and he was too picky to eat the pale green stuff sold in pet stores during the winter. Last summer when I adopted him, these smaller bags of Oxbow hay were fresh enough that he was eating a good amount, but not as much as he's eating now of this super-fresh stuff. For whatever reason, the smaller hand-sorted bags of hay continue to be old and pale and therefore not palatable to him.
I worry a lot about when the fresh oxbow hay supply will run out.
I read everywhere that the best fresh hay is purchased at feed stores, but I haven't had any luck finding a good one so far in this area, even though there seems to be horse farms everywhere. Does anyone have a place they know of/go to in this area? I have one friend who can provide me with "first-cut" horse timothy hay, but it's incredibly fibrous and huge and has mildew spots (I think) and I don't feel comfortable giving it to my bunny. She said I would probably prefer second and third cut hay, if I could find it anywhere. Please help???
PS- Yes, the vet and I agree that he's just incredibly picky- we checked thoroughly for any other health concerns. Our one suspicion is that he's susceptible to bloat, but a steady fresh hay supply can only help that. His diet is mostly hay with 1 and 1/2 tbsp of timothy pellet for 5.5 pounds of bunny. He eats mind-boggling amounts of hay.
