Pellets & Hay

[beth82]

Hi everyone!

I have been reading this forum for some time now, and I finally have a question to post. I am finally getting my first rabbit, probably in the fall.

So, my question is about ordering pellets & hay online. From reading this forum & various other groups, I've seen that everyone seems to swear by a different brand of pellets, but many of them are only available in feed stores. I'm not able to get to the store often, so I prefer ordering things like that. So, what are the best brands that you can buy online?

The other thing is, buying hay. Again, what are your favorite places to order it? How much would you buy for starters (for one small rabbit)? And, since I'm completely to new to buying/storing/feeding hay, do you have any tips for me?

Thanks,
Elizabeth

 

[missyscove]

Here's a link to our library article on feeding your rabbit for some background information.

http://rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=12046&forum_id=17

Do you know what kind of rabbit you'll be getting, and how old it is? Younger, growing, rabbits, or rabbits used for production generally do better on an alfalfa pellet that gives them more energy. Rabbits at maintenance, like an adult pet rabbit, are typically better suited to a timothy based pellet.
Personally I feed oxbow Bunny Basics T to my two pet rabbits. I buy it from my local feed store, or occasionally off Drs Foster & Smith.

Hay I buy at the feed store. If you have a feed store near you (and chances are, you do) that's really your best bet. Young (under about 6 months) rabbits can have alfalfa hay, but older rabbits really don't need all that protein and do better with a grass hay. Most people feed Timothy, but orchard, oat, brome and other grass hays are nutritionally similar and what's really best is to feed a variety.
My mother refuses to see the benefits in buying a whole bale of hay, but our feed store sells 2 flakes of hay in a big trashbag for about $6 (versus abour $22 for a bale of Timothy hay here in LA). Compared to the tiny bag of Oxbow Timothy we used to get for $11, this is a great deal.
If you're comfortable buying a bale and have the space to store it, I'd do that. Otherwise, see if there is someone near you willing to split up a bale or if your feed store will sell their hay in smaller quantities. As a last resort, there are those little bags of pet store hay, but in my experience they're significantly more expensive and generally lower quality when compared to feed store hay.

 

[Maureen Las]

Oxbow products
You cannot order on-line but you can call them directly and order over the telephone.

http://www.oxbowanimalhealth.com/

Sweet Meadows

http://www.sweetmeadowfarm.com/products.html

you are going to spend a lot on shipping costs ordering on-line.

Are you sure that you would not prefer just buying from a local petstore for one rabbit?

You can freeze pellets so you could order a larger amount if you wished
Don't order a lot of anything the first time because you do not know if your rabbit will like it.

if you get a baby you will need both alfalfa pellets and both alfalfa and timothy hay If you get an adult you may prefer a timothy pellet and hay should be orchard grass, timothy or grass type hay .

hay must be stored in a cool place and never be in an air proof container; hay needs to breathe..otherwise it will get moldy
Many people on here get Oxbow pellets and many others get Sweet Meadows. Some folks order hay from Kleenmama's , howeverI don't think that they sell pellets.

Why don't you pick up some types of pellets and hay in a petstore first to try it before you order.
Sweet Meadow is not sold in stores , however, Oxbow is.
Pellets should only be fed sparingly to an adult rabbit. Hay is way more important. A young rabbit should be free-fed pellets until they are grown ( under a year ) and then given a limited amount daily.

http://www.rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=12046&forum_id=17

It is good that you are starting to learn ahead of time

 

[Amy27]

I use Oxbow Organic Rabbit pellets. For hay, I buy local timothy hay and also order it through kleenmama. Kleenmama is a lot more expensive so if I mix it up the kleenmamas last longer and saves me a ton of money. I also buy When I go to the pet store, I will also pick up different kinds of hay like sweet meadow or orchard for variety.

 

[beth82]

Thanks for the replies. I know I'll be spending more money on shipping by ordering these things, but that's what I have to do. And, I've read about how important hay & fresh greens are; I plan to provide as much variety of hay types as I can, and give veggies, herbs & edible weeds from our garden.

I will be getting a baby rabbit, most likely; I haven't chosen a breeder yet, or even decided on a definite breed. I have narrowed it down to a few choices, though. (I've looked into rescues, but the two rabbit rescues in my area won't adopt to homes with dogs, which we have.)

Also, I found this source of hay, which I haven't seen mentioned anywhere:
http://www.sierravalleyhay.com/index.html
Has anyone here bought from them? It's a bit less expensive to ship to where I live, compared to Sweet Meadow hay & Kleenmama's.

 

[Amy27]

I have never heard of that place to buy hay. I would post another thread and in the title put the name of that vendor, Sierra Valley Hay. That may pull someone in who uses it but hasn't read this thread.

It sounds like you are going to provide your bun with a large variety of different things to eat and that is great. I think a variety in a diet is so good. Just make sure you introduce them correctly for a baby rabbit.

Can't wait till you get your bunny and we can see pictures.

 

[beth82]

Thanks! I'll do that.