Hay

[cattlequeen]

I feed my rabbits an unlimited supply of hay. Timothy hay is what I use. Some other people have told me they use grass hay and alfalfa hay. What kind of hay do you chose to feed and why?

 

[ksalvagno]

When I had rabbits, I fed them orchard grass hay. It was what I was feeding my alpacas so I wasn't buying different types of hay.

 

[cattlequeen]

Thanks for you input ksalvagno! I haven't heard of orchard hay around where I live, but I haven't looked too hard for different kinds of hays.

 

[KittyKatMe]

Mine get a mix of Timothy, Orchard, Oat, and Meadow grass hays. But any of these alone works just fine. Alfalfa is too high in protein and calcium, and should not be given. I am glad to see someone on the forum that feeds unlimited hay. Keep up the great work!

 

[mickey328]

What a bummer. Here in Colorado, alfalfa is the most easily obtained because it grows so abundantly. I was planning to use it when we get our meat rabbits We're still in the planning stages...DH is sketching ideas for cages. Once those are done, we'll go looking for rabbits. Seems most folk around here breed for pets or show, so it might be a tad more difficult to find good meaties.

 

[brentr]

Alfalfa is too high in protein and calcium, and should not be given. I am glad to see someone on the forum that feeds unlimited hay. Keep up the great work!

Would you mind sharing your source for this? It is a little surprising to me since many of the pellet feeds use alfalfa meal as the primary ingredient. Alfalfa meal is just ground alfalfa. I've seen a lot of rabbits fed alfalfa over the years (fresh and baled) with no negative consequences. I'd be interested to read up more about it.

 

[KittyKatMe]

If you feed alfalfa pellets, you must feed grass hays. But, sources such as Oxbow actually make timothy based pellets, which then it would be fine to feed alfalfa. My sources are mostly from talking to breeders and judges, so I cant post a link.

 

[Petty]

Feeding a mix of hay with different protein content is far better than just feeding one type.

 

[stonygarden]

I feed a handful of timothy hay to each rabbit at feeding time. I have 2 rabbits that never finish it. Others gobble it up before they start on their pellets.

 

[Petty]

I plan feeding mine grass, fruits and mixed concentrates. That way, they get a balanced diet and grow faster.