Suddenly not interested in hay?

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This topic has 8sd replies, 4 voices, and was last updated 2 years, 1 month ago by DanaNM.

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- 10/11/2022 at 7:10 AM
  bumpybunny
  Participant
  155 posts
  My rabbit usually goes crazy for her hay and everytime I give her a handful she eats it all in one sitting. But for the last 2 days she hasn’t seemed to want much. She’s acting completely normal otherwise. She’s eating all her veggies and pellets.
  
  I had a problem with this a few weeks ago, so I reduced her pellets from 2 to 1 tablespoon a day and that helped a lot. She was eating a LOT of hay everyday. Every night I give her a pile at least half the size of her body and in the morning its all gone but not anymore. Last night she ate probably half of what I gave her. She sniffs it, eats a little, then turns her nose up at it. For some reason, once the bag gets down to about 1/3 left, she refuses to eat it. I thought that maybe this was the problem so today I went and bought a new bag and she’s doing the same thing to this one too.
  
  She gets 1.5 cups of veggies and 1 tablespoon pellets a day. She’s still pooping normally and it looks the same too.
  
  I’m wondering if she could be mad? The other day I was really busy and she didnt get much playtime and ended up throwing a huge fit. That’s the night when she started eating less hay.
  
  I know rabbits can get dental problems and stop eating hay but the thing is, if I stuff a paper towel roll full of hay she’s eating every bit of it and I can get a good handful in there. If I give it to her just in a pile she wants nothing to do with it. Could this be normal for rabbits to go through short periods of not wanting hay? Could it be the season change? When the seasons change she can get pretty grumpy.
- 10/11/2022 at 4:48 PM
  auntie
  Participant
  95 posts
  I have 2 males and they do the same thing. I made hideous for them out of Boxes I put their uneaten hay from their hay tray into the boxes and they love it! They sleep on it and eat it.
  
  I was told to sprinkle dried herbs on their hay I have not done that yet.
  I also use 2 different kinds of hay mixed together. A 9 lb box lasted for over 2 months before I tried different things.
  
  im finding that my boys are very picky and OCD
- 10/12/2022 at 5:14 AM
  bumpybunny
  Participant
  155 posts
  I’ll try that thanks!! Thankfully shes back to eating more hay 🙂
  
  She is super picky and wastes a bunch of hay so I put it all into an empty botanical hay bag thinking maybe when she sees me take it out of that bag she’ll think it’s new and eat it 😂 I haven’t tried it yet but I highly doubt she’ll fall for it lol.
  
  Once in a while I sprinkle some forage on her hay but I havent tried it with herbs yet. What 2 kinds of hay do you use? Right now I just use timothy.
  - 10/14/2022 at 5:18 PM
    auntie
    Participant
    95 posts
    I use Timothy hay. They like the sweet meadow the best
    
    I’m glad they are back to eating hay 😊
- 10/12/2022 at 4:48 PM
  LBJ10
  Moderator
  17026 posts
  Bunnies are weird. Sometimes just a new batch of hay if “off” and they don’t want it. You could try mixing things up a bit with orchard or oat hay.
  - 10/15/2022 at 3:11 PM
    bumpybunny
    Participant
    155 posts
    I’m definitely going to get her some other types of hay to try. It seems like I have this problem with oxbow a lot. One bag she loves, the next she wont eat unless I gradually switch it over. I would switch hay brands but oxbow is the only thing available where I live. I may try small pet select when this bag is gone.
- 10/13/2022 at 7:49 AM
  DanaNM
  Moderator
  9054 posts
  Glad she’s back to eating more! Agree it could have been a weird batch or even some gas. If the pickiness persists I might suspect a dental problem is starting to bother her. Food selectivity is a common first symptom.
  
  . . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.
  - 10/15/2022 at 3:16 PM
    bumpybunny
    Participant
    155 posts
    Yep she’s already back to going crazy for it everytime she gets more lol. I’m thinking it was because of the new bag. I’ve had this problem a lot with oxbow so I’m thinking about trying some other brands out.
- 10/18/2022 at 8:12 AM
  DanaNM
  Moderator
  9054 posts
  My buns have always been very picky about “pet store” hay. Once I started getting hay by the bale from feed shops they tuck in with gusto!
  
  . . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.
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