Types of Hay

[Snowballbun]

Hello all,
I have a 4month old bun, and I had to switch from alfalfa to timothy hay because of a lot of calcium in her urine. I want to try other hays in addition to Timothy, so I was wondering if anyone knew which would be good for her. Perhaps some have less /more calcium or protein? She is also on all timothy pellets now.

I wanted to try orchard grass hay for my bun, but other possible ones are brome, botanical, or oat hay? Any advice or experience? Thank you

 

[Myia09]

I feed all types, brome, botanical, whatever it comes in (I unfortunatly have to buy pet store brands).
It gives variety for thier teeth and tastebuds!
My rabbits personally love orchard grass, and aren't fond of brome, but I also find it just depends on the rabbit.

 

[Pet_Bunny]

Check the Oxbow website. They have all sorts of hay.

If Snowball is 4 months old, she can still eat alfalfa as she is still growing. Do you feed other types of food that might cause the calcium build up?

 

[Snowballbun]

See that's what I was thinking that she is pretty young to be switching. But the vet also said she should cut back her pellets to 1/8 a cup a day. However, this is a vet that treats rabbits (she has also fixed them) but she does not specialize. She says she knows a lot about diet....But I am currently seeing another vet because of her other health issues.
The vet said to feed less pellets, switch hay, and more veggies. She did eat a lot of the hay and I am not sure if her previous pellets were alfalfa or timothy, but she did not get a ton of vegetables before...now I have been giving her more romaine or leaf lettuce and parsley.

When the vet was examining her, she excreted thicker urine...the vet looked under the microscope and saw a lot of calcium. However, I believe buns are supposed to excrete calcium. Do you think I should give her mixed alfalfa and Timothy? I don't feel that I should really cut back on her pellets as now she eats her veggies and hay more anyways.

What kinds of things would add to extra calcium in her diet?
Do you think she is getting the calcium she needs with the veggies or should I add some alfalfa hay?

 

[Snowballbun]

Oh, also, the new vet I'm seeing x-rayed her for bladder sludge to make sure and she did not have any. She is currently being treated for syphilis now.