Allergic to hay, any way around this??

[TheSketchyBunnies]

Hello, I used to have two very cherished rabbits but unfortunately had to re-home them because of my allergies to the hay. They lived in my room for over a year & there was no possibility of having them outdoors at the time.

We are moving next month & I would love to have indoor rabbits again because I feel you can bond with them so much easier but I’m allergic to the hay so sadly they maybe have to be outdoor rabbits. We don’t have another room that they could stay in except for mine.

I was just wondering if anyone else struggles with allergies to hay & how they deal with it? I have taken allergy medicine before but it didn’t help much. I have heard of hay pellets which are made of %100 hay, is that form of hay better for allergies??

Thanks so much!

-Kaylor

 

[Blue eyes]

Have you tried different types of hay? It is quite common for some people to be allergic to one (or more) particular type of hay but still be fine with a different type.

timothy,
bermuda,
orchard grass,
brome grass,
meadow
...are all good grass hay options.

Other grass hay options are a bit starchy and lower in nutrients. They're grown for the grain which should be shaken off to avoid too much starch. These include rye, oat, barley, and wheat. However, oat or wheat hay which is harvested before it sets seed can be very good hay. (I believe Oxbow sells an oat hay which is harvested before it sets seed.)

So just listed here are a potential 7 to 9 different hay types to try.

 

[Dusty07]

Yeah I heard orchard grass was really good for people with allergies! Lorelei form Lennon The Bunny (YouTube channel) has a hay allergy and she uses orchard grass hay!

 

[Nancy McClelland]

Allergies too--switched from Timothy to Orchard Grass and it's problem solved for me. Had to use surgical gloves and a dust mask with Timothy--rabbits did not live in my room.

 

[Whiterabbitrage]

My boyfriend and I are severely allergic to hay. When we got our little rabbit, wow that first week of hay in the house was a nightmare! But it turns out that it’s the pollen from the hay that people are allergic to. And it’s that first cutting of hay that has the most pollen. We switched to third cutting and never had a problem. As said above, it’s Timothy hay that nearly everyone is allergic to. So you can switch types of hay you buy. Different hay has different nutrients and different textures so your rabbit may not like certain types. We got our hay from Small Pet Select online and they let you get a sampler box. They also have great info as to the pros and cons of the various types of hay.

 

[Kadams]

Hello, I used to have two very cherished rabbits but unfortunately had to re-home them because of my allergies to the hay. They lived in my room for over a year & there was no possibility of having them outdoors at the time.

We are moving next month & I would love to have indoor rabbits again because I feel you can bond with them so much easier but I’m allergic to the hay so sadly they maybe have to be outdoor rabbits. We don’t have another room that they could stay in except for mine.

I was just wondering if anyone else struggles with allergies to hay & how they deal with it? I have taken allergy medicine before but it didn’t help much. I have heard of hay pellets which are made of %100 hay, is that form of hay better for allergies??

Thanks so much!

-Kaylor

I am also super allergic to hay. I have found an allergy med regimen that helps but it causes me to have asthma attacks. I give my rabbits toys made of hay(balls, bowls, tunnels) to take some of the load away. But I share a small college apartment room with my rabbit so it’s hard to avoid it. My big thing is not breathing in fumes when putting the hay in her cage, keeping a window open while I do this, and using gloves to touch the hay so it does not touch/scratch my skin. You could also look into going to an allergist who can give shots for certain allergies.

 

[samoth]

I've had allergies my entire life (grass, pollen, fur, &c.), and orchard hay doesn't affect me at all.

 

[DonnaHarvey]

I’m not sure if this will help with severe allergies, but I use an air purifier right next to my rabbits’ space and that helps a lot with my mild allergies.