Allergic to Timothy hay, even feed pellets.

[Francis'mom]

Hi,

After 2 years of suffering, I found out through tests that I was really allergic to Timothy grass/hay. I changed my rabbits hay to orchard and the attacks seemed to calm down. Recently, they have been coming back after feeding him. I suspect I am also allergic to his Timothy hay contained feed pellets. Any alternatives to the feed? Thanks!

[Love4Bunny]

I’ve recently contemplated Sherwood Forest pellets, which have a line of alfalfa based pellets. Not sure if I’m gonna change over, but that may work for you. There is one product that has Timothy hay, so you’ll have to doublecheck.

[Azerane]

Which country do you live in?

[Mimsy]

oxbow organic has grass hay. Perhaps you could try it and see how that goes.

If worse comes to worse you could go mostly pellet free. Giving some of the young alfalfa based pellets as a treat only. If you do I would use varied hays and a lot of different leafy greens to make sure you get all the needed vitamins. Maybe adding a vitamin rich treat even.

[Francis'mom]

Hi- I live in the United States.

[Francis'mom]

Thanks! OK– I will research them and check it out. I was always told not to feed my rabbits alfalfa hay, are the pellets ok to feed them?

[Francis'mom]

Hi– I am now feeding him Oxbow orchard hay. That is working out great, and he likes it.

 Really? go pellet free? Have you had experience with this? Francis is ALWAYS hungry and he has ample amount of hay all the time. The Vet told me I needed to cut back on my pellets to 1/4 a cup and cut back on fruits and veggies, which I did. He is just always hungry now. 

[Love4Bunny]

Posted By Francis’mom on 2/15/2016 1:50 PM
Thanks! OK– I will research them and check it out. I was always told not to feed my rabbits alfalfa hay, are the pellets ok to feed them?

You know, that is my dilemma. I have also heard that alfalfa hay is for younger rabbits, but I know the company has a blend of Timothy & Alfalfa, so that would be the option. That’s what I would choose if I went with them. People give good feedback, so that’s why I’m thinking about it, even with the alfalfa. I just ordered a new bag of my usual pellets to buy me some decision time.

On a separate note, per rabbit, I feed 1/4 cup of pellets daily over 2 feedings, 1 tbsp of fruit per 5lbs (basically, a small amount), and a couple of large handfuls of different greens per rabbit almost everyday.

[BinkyBunny]

My bunny, Aria has the same issue. I had to stop the Timothy hay and change it Orchard grass. That really helped get down the fur loss and skin flakes. She was almost bare on her ears, back of neck and top of head by the time I figured it all out. She had been to the vet twice to check for mites, fungi etc. nothing. She can’t have Timothy Hay or Timothy pellets, or any Timothy based treats — which also means the Oxbow Supplements. This is the first time I have ever had a bunny with an allergy (skin reaction) to eating Timothy. With my vet’s advice, she suggested the following diet, and it has worked well.

1. Unlimited Orchard Hay

2. Large variety and amount of greens to provide the vitamins she needs – I also include a few baby carrots since her diet for the same reason.

3. A small handful of Alfalfa Hay (as a way to replace pellets) – It’s about 1/2 cup Alfalfa hay max — alfalfa hay (not pellets) is made up of lot of small leaves and so that is actually a lot. If I see her gaining too much wait, I cut back on that.

I triple the recommended amount of greens for her. (greens are mostly water based so they have to eat a lot to get the nutrition and calories).

Minimum 2 cups of chopped leafy greens per 6 lbs is the HRS recommendation. Since Aria is just under 5 lbs. then the estimated recommended amount would have been about 1 1/2 cup to I give her. So I give her about 4.5 – 5 cups — but it is divided — half in morning/half night.

How much you give also depends on the size and activity level of your bunny. Younger or senior bunnies may need more. Aria is a senior but she is also rather active for her age. She binkies and explores everyday.

These are the greens I give:

Parsley
Cilantro
Dill
Mint
Romaine
Dandelion Greens
Kale 3-4 times a week (smaller portion — one or 1/2 leaf depending how big the leaf is)

2-3 baby carrots

Here is a full list of greens/leafy veggies so you can add/or alternate – 

I am lucky that the location I am in, we have lots of those fresh greens and herbs available throughout the year. I know it may not be like that everywhere.

This has really helped with the allergy — all of the fur around her ears and head has grown back. However, either she can still get an allergic reaction to some of the other grass hay OR she is ALSO allergic to a cream — where her skin is flaky/fur loss now is indicative of where I pet her or nuzzle her. I think it is my retin-a cream. (it’s similar the hay allergy, but less severe). I had stopped using it originally thinking that was it, but then realized it was they hay. So then when I started back again, I noticed then just right where I pet my face and kiss her and rub her with my hand is where she was getting some mild flaking. So now I am more careful to wash my hands thoroughly (I did before, but not enough possibly) and also am careful not to kiss or nuzzle her even hours after I put the retin-a on my face. Prior, I waited only an hour thinking that would have given plenty of time to dry. Not long enough I guess.

I don’t know for sure if that is what is causing the latest minor reaction, but I do feel like it is a soap (even though I use organic stuff) or cream that is contributing to this latest reaction. Just watching it.  She is very girly girl bunny as is — one with sensitive skin! LOL

[tobyluv]

Posted By Francis’mom on 2/15/2016 1:54 PM

Hi– I am now feeding him Oxbow orchard hay. That is working out great, and he likes it.

 Really? go pellet free? Have you had experience with this? Francis is ALWAYS hungry and he has ample amount of hay all the time. The Vet told me I needed to cut back on my pellets to 1/4 a cup and cut back on fruits and veggies, which I did. He is just always hungry now. 

You didn’t say how much your bunny weighs. An average size adult rabbit (5-7 pounds) should get around 1/4 cup of pellets a day.  Smaller or larger rabbits would of course get less or more. I can see why your vet said to cut back on fruit, since it is known that rabbits don’t handle sugary foods too well, but I’m not sure why he would say to cut back on veggies.  Is he having messy poop?  Most people feed their rabbits a minimum of 2 cups of veggies/greens a day, with some giving a lot more than that.

Some rabbits can live on a pellet free diet, or just get a spoonful of pellets a day, but if they get no pellets, it is recommended that they get a big variety of greens and veggies every day to provide their vitamins – like 15 different veggies, and that would be rather hard to accomplish.

I use the Oxbow Essentials Adult pellets, but also mix in a little of the Oxbow Organic pellets.  The main ingredient of Oxbow Organic is organic grass hays, but Timothy is a grass hay, so that could very well be in there.  I don’t know if the company could tell you the complete breakdown of the hay in the pellets or not. I don’t know if there is a pellet made from only orchard grass.  The only ones I have ever seen are either timothy or alfalfa or a combination of the two.

The Oxbow Natural Science Adult Rabbit Food does have orchard grass listed as the second ingredient, but timothy grass is listed as the first ingredient.

Here is a link to a list of several rabbit pellet brands, and their ingredients, but none of them just list orchard grass.

http://wabbitwiki.com/wiki/Rabbit_Pellets_Comparison_Chart

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