I don't even want to ask..,

[Xiaohuihui]

But is hay always necessary? My bun has no idea how to eat it. I throw it down, she goes crazy for a few seconds, I try desperately to help her eat the thinner, softer pieces, but it doesn't work and ends up lining her cage until I throw it away. As I am paying almost ten dollars for 18 oz of hay and still end up feeding fresh veggies at a cost of about 3 dollars a day, I just don't want to feed it anymore. I think I've ordered my last batch. Bunny is as happy and healthy as can be, despite never eating the hay. Has anyone else had this experience?

 

[Korr_and_Sophie]

There are some rabbits who won' eat hay. I find that they tend to come from places that don't give hay, so they weren't exposed to it too much when they were young. I do have one who won't eat hay, but does nibble on it from time to time.

I would recommend still offering hay, but maybe not as much. You can get wire balls that you can stuff with hay, or even just use a cardboard tube or box. This will keep the hay cleaner and you won't have to keep wasting hay.

Also try different types of hay if you can. While timothy is fairly common, it is not the only grass hay out there. Orchard grass is popular, but meadow hay, botanical (timothy with dried flowers), and brome hay are all suitable to feed. You can give alfalfa, but it is higher in protein and calcium, so not really good for adults, especially if they are on an alfalfa pellet.

 

[woahlookitsme]

agree with kate. Ours get a handful once or twice a week and thats pretty much it. Babies usually get it more often. Hay is good for digestion and helping things move through but some of our buns just wont eat too much of it either. They are perfectly normal.

I agree with trying different types. Sometimes the quality or even cutting can make a huge difference in your buns ability to accept it in their diet.

 

[LakeCondo]

Have you tried the 1" cubes of pressed hay? That might get her started. I think Kaytee makes them. Or soak some pellets in a little water, add a bit of ripe banana & cut-up hay. Combine, let dry a little, & she should eat it.

I would also grow some grass & feed it to her, either regular grass or wheat grass from wheat berries.

 

[OakRidgeRabbits]

Hay is not necessary. Many people feed pellet-only diets and the rabbits do just fine.

I do think it's beneficial to offer hay though. If your rabbit isn't a big fan of that, maybe she would be more interested in leafy greens or something of that nature? If not, that's okay, but it's worth trying a variety of hays or greens just incase.

 

[MikeScone]

My bun has no idea how to eat it. I throw it down, she goes crazy for a few seconds, I try desperately to help her eat the thinner, softer pieces, but it doesn't work and ends up lining her cage until I throw it away.

Not all hays are the same - not that I have tried any, but I assume they must taste different, just as two different vegetables taste different. I'm not sure what is available where you are, but have you tried a different type of hay? Rabbits have very distinct, and different, preferences in hay.

My Scone MacBunny would not touch timothy hay in any form, but he loved Orchard Grass and he'd eat Brome or Meadow Grass. If I gave him Oat Hay it was like you described - he'd go crazy for a few of the seed heads, then the rest was just flung around.

Natasha Rabbitova, on the other hand, likes timothy hay and is lukewarm on Orchard Grass. She loves Oat Hay, and eats all of it as if it were the greatest treat possible.

If you can get some other sort of hay to try, I would recommend doing so. If, in the end, the rabbit is healthy but just won't eat any sort of hay, then so be it.

 

[Ape337]

I agree with trying different types to see if your bun will choose one. It's ultimately up to you on how you feed. If your bunny is eating, pooing, drinking, and in good health/spirits then you're ok. If you were having problems with GI stasis I'd be suggesting unlimited hay. But the point is moot if you've got a non-hay eating bunny. Good luck

And I don't believe in absolutes (always/never). One of my bunnies taught me that one, lol.

 

[tonyshuman]

You can also try fresh hay (i.e. grass). I sometimes grow wheat berries into grass for my bunnies. The wheat berries or rye berries are in the bulk foods section. I put them on wet paper towel in plastic take-out containers and let grow for a couple of days. One way to try to get bunnies to eat hay, since it seems like she might like it but is just confused by it, is to take a piece and bop them (gently) on the face with it a few times. They will bite at it. It's also hard to eat hay off the floor, so a rack or ball like others have suggested might help. Finally you want to make sure her teeth are ok, since sometimes a bunny with tooth problems will try to eat something but won't be able to. Hay is good for boredom as well as its nutritive benefits, since they can eat as much as they want without gaining weight (except with alfalfa hay).

 

[roxyllsk]

I'd see if your bunny will eat a little alfalfa hay. It's like crack for bunnies, they just love it ! Sometimes if my bunnies are not liking a new hay, I'll mix a little alfalfa in so the get the idea.

Hay cubes are a good idea too. You can get the ones that are alfalfa/timothy or alfalfa/oat grass mix. It satisfies their need to chew on something too.

As long as your bunny gets a good selection of greens every day, I don't think it's such a big deal that they don't eat hay. My old bunny Bob wouldn't eat very much hay but would eat an entire head of romaine lettuce (he was a very huge english lop).

 

[majorv]

If you can't get your bun to eat any hay then I think it's important that they have pellets as part of their diet. That way they'll be getting some form of hay.

 

[luvthempigs]

I thought hay was necessary to help keep teeth worn down and to aide in digestion?

Ofcourse not much you can do if they refuse but I'm always a bit surprised to hear someone not feeding it :confused2:

 

[Nancy McClelland]

ours love orchard grass and we have it in a manger hanging from the side of the hutch.