Hay

Grass or hay contains a large amount of fibre which is vital for your rabbit’s digestive system whist also promoting good dental health. Rabbits teeth constantly grow and as such require large amounts to keep teeth trimmed. Not providing unlimited fresh hay or grass their teeth will over grow causing dental disorders, reduce eating and lead to deadly digestive issues.

Fresh hay or grass must be provided in unlimited quantities, available at all times and not be provided in compressed formats such as biscuits, pellets etc.

They will learn to love their hay and will be happier & healthier for it. Do not mistake straw for hay. Although rabbits may eat straw, it has no nutritional value. An average rabbit’s diet should consist of unlimited hay and grass, 1-2 cups safe veggies/greens, 1 egg cup quality, non-muesli pellets, tsp. of occasional fruit/treats.

Types of hay:

Timothy hay (Burgess UK brand provides this, which we have in stock), oat hay, teff hay  and orchard grass.

Caution:

Alfalfa (Lucerne) is not so much a hay but rather a legume, which contains a large amount of calcium, providing this to adult rabbits can lead to bladder stones, bladder sludge and other issues.

Alfalfa (Lucerne) can be provided in addition to hay to pregnant, nursing rabbits who need the calcium for development of their babies, or to baby rabbits younger than 6 months of age.

Allergies:

Please test that you don’t have allergies to hay before getting a rabbit, this is one of the main reasons that rabbits are dumped, rehomed or sent to shelters.

If you are unsure whether you have allergies to grass hay, buy a bag of grass hay (Timothy, teff and oat) and keep it open in your home to test for any reaction