Help in choosing Timothy Hay Brand

[Habib]

Hi
I have been feeding my ladies with 'Oxbow Western Timothy Hay'. Not sure if they are 1st or 2nd cut. This is my first bag and it was fresh with nice smell and almost finishing. Noticed that while there were stems and hay on top part, r=the middle part has nmore fine leaves. Also, Oxbow is ex on the pocket and am thinking of changing. Has anyone tried 'Momi 2nd cut Timothy Hay'? its slightly cheaper for bigger amount. But only not sure what kind of Hay will Momi have. Any feeback will be appreciated. Tnks

 

[Blue eyes]

Are you able to get bulk hay where you live? Here we can purchase from a feed store (farm supply store) or even from a farm. It is not bagged and branded, but fresh. Of course you'll need to have the ability to store it. But if it is as cheap as it is here, even if you can't store it all, it is still so cheap that it would be worth it even if half had to be thrown away.

I buy my hay by the bale, but some places offer half bales. The whole bale looks like this:

 

[Habib]

Nope. I stay in Singapore and have to get from pet stores.

 

[Blue eyes]

Have you seen this?
https://shopee.sg/-9-kg-Cheap!-Repacked-Timothy-Orchard-Grass-500g-i.8167351.47395762

 

[Habib]

Have you seen this?
https://shopee.sg/-9-kg-Cheap!-Repacked-Timothy-Orchard-Grass-500g-i.8167351.47395762

Seems long ago. Also review not positive..
The choices I have is between Oxbow and Momi. Price wise Oxbow is few dollars more built quantity wise Momi gives est add 400grams

 

[somebunnylovesme]

Oxbow Timothy hay seems to be more a 1 st cutting. The tops are fuller and the stems are stalkery.
With first cuttings of hay what I've notice, bunnies eat the parts that they want and then push it into unwanted parts into an area and eat it later.

With second cuttings the hay strands are thinner, tops are usually smaller and is softer. With 2nd cuttings of hay bunnies love it and there isn't anything left over.

I give my rabbit a mix of both hays. I found with just having 2 nd cuttings of hay wasn't enough fiber for my bun.

 

[Blue eyes]

Seems long ago. Also review not positive..

I don't know anything about company so can't vouch for them. Just seemed like a cheaper alternative possibly. There is only 1 review, so I don't put much stock in just a single review.

Here's another possible source:
http://www.equinesanctuary.com.sg/

 

[Sharda Hartley]

Momi from what I can see online is a Singapore based company, and you might have trouble getting reviews from other countries. I'm in Canada and I haven't seen it here anyway. Its probably cheaper for you because theres no international shipping. I say try it. Let your bunny be the judge. If they don't like it switch back. Its still timothy hay. I can't see it being bad for your bunny.

 

[Habib]

Momi from what I can see online is a Singapore based company, and you might have trouble getting reviews from other countries. I'm in Canada and I haven't seen it here anyway. Its probably cheaper for you because theres no international shipping. I say try it. Let your bunny be the judge. If they don't like it switch back. Its still timothy hay. I can't see it being bad for your bunny.

The online searches mostly come back as Timothy 1st cut has more stems and gd for rabbit teeth. The 2nd cut mostly leaves and slightly higher in protein..etc

Now thinking of getting oxbow Timothy 1st cut and Oxbow orchird grass to try.alternate feeding..

 

[Jenny Durling]

I believe it's good to have a couple of types and switch rotate them. Our Farm Supply store has a bunch of different varieties. I buy Timothy by the bale and toss in different types I get in smaller bags here and there. They also get alot of fresh herbs, leafy greens and even weeks from the garden!

 

[somebunnylovesme]

The online searches mostly come back as Timothy 1st cut has more stems and gd for rabbit teeth. The 2nd cut mostly leaves and slightly higher in protein..etc

Now thinking of getting oxbow Timothy 1st cut and Oxbow orchird grass to try.alternate feeding..

Are you able to purchase a big box of oxbow hay. The come in 50 pound boxes. It maybe cheaper buying it that way

 

[Kristen13]

Are you able to get bulk hay where you live? Here we can purchase from a feed store (farm supply store) or even from a farm. It is not bagged and branded, but fresh. Of course you'll need to have the ability to store it. But if it is as cheap as it is here, even if you can't store it all, it is still so cheap that it would be worth it even if half had to be thrown away.

I buy my hay by the bale, but some places offer half bales. The whole bale looks like this:
View attachment 40328

I have 3 rabbits and I buy smaller bags at a time because I'm worried about the hay going bad before I get to it. It happened before when I bought a large amount, we didnt get half way through and they just stopped eating it. Its expensive to do these smaller bags, I want to go back to buying in bulk. Can you tell me how you keep your hay?

 

[Blue eyes]

I have 3 rabbits and I buy smaller bags at a time because I'm worried about the hay going bad before I get to it. It happened before when I bought a large amount, we didnt get half way through and they just stopped eating it. Its expensive to do these smaller bags, I want to go back to buying in bulk. Can you tell me how you keep your hay?

Proper storage is important, but the freshness of the bale at purchase is also important. I've never had a bale go bad before I've used it up. I've had it last about 8-9 months before it was all gone.

I'm in Arizona, which is very dry. Not sure what state you live in. For places with higher humidity, you'll need to be sure to have plenty of air. Keep it out of the sun too.

I keep my main bale on a pallet in the yard with a tarp over top. From that I fill a large plastic tote that I keep on my back porch. From that I fill a kitchen trash can filled with hay which I store in my laundry room. It is this hay that I use for daily fills in the rabbit cage. (I know, it sounds crazy but works for me.)

Any place that isn't super dry like we are, it is necessary to drill air holes in the plastic totes.

Maybe someone else who buys in bulk but lives in a humid area can chime in on what they do for storage.

Tarp pulled back. Tiny corner of bale fills large tote:



Large tote fills kitchen trashcan several times:

 

[A & B]

I buy my hay by the bale and store it all inside. I keep it in a giant Chewy.com box (which is where I order my hay from). Most of my hay is kept in that box, but the stuff that doesn't fit is kept in a tote under the box. I keep the box partly open and the lid off the tote to let in air, keeping it fresh.

 

[Sharda Hartley]

I have 3 rabbits and I buy smaller bags at a time because I'm worried about the hay going bad before I get to it. It happened before when I bought a large amount, we didnt get half way through and they just stopped eating it. Its expensive to do these smaller bags, I want to go back to buying in bulk. Can you tell me how you keep your hay?

Hay only goes bad if it gets wet. If you store your hay somewhere dry I promise you will never have that problem again. I did buy some hay once that had moisture already trapped in the bale. If you stored your hay correctly and it still went off, then you might have been unlucky like I was.

 

[Kristen13]

I live in Pennsylvania, I keep the hay in totes without a lid and usually have it in the hallway or my closet so it gets air and not much light. So I'm storing it correctly. Maybe it was just the hay itself then? It's hard for me to find good quality so I'm usually going to other stores and getting different brands because it just doesn't look or smell right. I've also gotten hay just for them to refuse to eat it from the start, so it gets mixed with their litter or given away. I just found out my local rabbit rescue sometimes sells hay so I think I'll look into buying from them.

 

[Habib]

I live in Singapore and basically our supply is pet shops..unless we know someone in those horse riding clubs, then maybe can purchase through them. Think after this western Timothy and orchird grass from Oxbow finishes, I switch to Momi. Coz I too realized they always eat the stems last and only if hungry and I don't top up fresh hay..feel bad but stems are good for them. An hear them grinding their teeth when eating..