Is this the right kind of hay?

[Cecil]

http://www.tractorsupply.com/content/storeevents/hay-bales

I've been looking at alternatives to buying from a pet store (I'm frugal haha, and sometimes wary of pet store products) and I know lots of people use tractor supply hay. Is the hay in the link above the right kind for rabbits? (It only says it's made of alfalfa, not timothy though) If so, is there any particular way you all store it? I was thinking just putting the whole thing in the garage (where it's mostly cool and dry) and putting a portion into a plastic container to keep inside.

 

[mochajoe]

If your rabbit is under the age of 7months or so than alfalfa hay is okay....otherwise the hay you feed needs to not have alfalfa in it....alfalfa is easily spotted as it is very leafy unlike other hays which are not. Unfortunately, you are in the midwest....hay in your area tends to contain more alfalfa in the first place....and then hay in general is harder to come by out there due to the drought last summer. I am with you on finding alternatives to pet store....at pet store prices if I bought a 'bale' of hay at their prices it would cost me about $115 for a bale of hay....I have two horse that share a bale of hay a day!!! INSANE!!! Whereas I have a farmer who I get my hay from and I pay $4-$5 a bale out of the field! I would ask around and see if you can connect with some horse people.....I know hay is harder to find but you may luck out and find someone to help you out! Good luck!

 

[Cecil]

Thank you!

 

[JBun]

If you can, you should get something that is at least part grass hay. Even baby rabbits don't need straight alfalfa, plus it can cause digestion problems sometimes. If the rabbit that you are getting isn't used to eating alfalfa hay then you will need to gradually introduce it into the diet, starting with small amounts and gradually increasing as long as there is no digestive upset.

They probably do have bales of grass hay. You don't need timothy. Any good quality grass hay is fine. As long as you are feeding an alfalfa based pellet to your baby bunny, then you don't really need to also be feeding alfalfa hay.

You want to store your hay so that it isn't exposed to sun, moisture, and rodents. If you are in a humid environment then you will probably also need to store it in a way that it gets some airflow.

 

[Cecil]

Thanks as well! The bunny in getting is actually 2 years old, so I shouldn't use alfalfa right? I'm using Timothy-based pellets too.
I'll look into the hay more and find the mixture used

 

[Kuro]

correct no alfalfa for a 2 year old bun.


any grass hay also long as its fresh greeen and smells good is fine for rabbits it doesn't have to be timothy...check farm shops or horse stables and see if the hay nice bales of grass hay for sale

 

[bad kelpie]

Tractor supply has timothy too. We have one here (called Del's, but same store). I just go in and ask for a bale, pay for it, and drive around to the side of the building where they load it for me. I buy the compressed bales, because I don't have a big enough vehicle for a big bale. The compressed bale is 60 lbs, but fits in a laundry basket, it's awesome.

 

[LakeCondo]

A plastic, lidded tub that you can punch air holes into makes a good storage place. The vent holes should be small enough that mice can't get in. To make sure the ventilation is throughout, turn what's left after each time you remove some to take inside.

 

[woahlookitsme]

I read the description and I think you have confused the wording. The site says

" In addition to nutritional alfalfa, supplement their diet with quality hay from Tractor Supply Co. and make it a one-stop shop."

The hay that is probably coming from them is timothy or a horse quality coastal. This is what we feed all of our rabbits and it is perfectly fine.

 

[Nancy McClelland]

:yeahthat: