Best Petco/Petsmart Hay

[Phoenix]

HAY HAY! haha I think I’m a punny bunny!

Not really though.

I’m going to be a new rabbit owner (and have been doing decent research), but keep finding sort of mixed suggestions or reviews, if you will, about hay.

I’m without a vehicle, so going to some local farm or place in another town/city is not an option for me. I can only order online or go within my town within reason.

That being said, what is the best hay to get at either of these stores? I know there is a larger selection online, and someone mentioned American Pet Diner – which Petco has online.

Also, for one bunny (younger but not a bab), how much hay do they eat in a day, and how much should I buy? I don’t own a house or rent an apartment, I’m in a decent sized but not large room in a basement of someone elses house, so I don’t have a ton of room to store large bails of hay. At most, when I get my hands on one, I plan on storing whatever in a bin/tote with a lid.

How much should I buy to last me a decent amount of time, and when do I know it’s going bad?

[Wick & Fable]

Oxbow brand hay is typically the preferred. At both Petco and PetSmart you’ll find Kaytee brand and Oxbow. Oxbow will be the more expensive but generally it’s a higher quality.

Hay does not go bad unless it’s stored with moisture. It’s dried grass, so as long as it’s kept somewhere dark with air circulation and no contact with moisture (low humidity), then it can last forever practically. You’ll know it’s bad if there’s mold.

You’ll see two bag sizes if your store is like a general Petco/PetSmart. You’ll see small bags on a variety of oxbow hays, like a small bag of meadow hay, orchard hay, and oat hay. Then they have the very large bags on Timothy hay. Timothy is generally the go-to type, thus buying the large bag is good so you don’t need to go buy another bag for at least two weeks. I personally buy the oxbow hay stacks, and one pack lasts me one week with one bunny. Hay is the main part of their diet by far, so you’ll go at the minimum once a month unless you buy in major bulk.

There is a catch to buying in bulk, especially with a new rabbit. Some rabbits hate Timothy, and have a different taste preference. They’d rather have orchard or oat. To start, I would recommend buying the smaller bags until you figure out your rabbit’s preference.

If your rabbit is between 8 weeks old and 6 months old, you’ll need to start with alfalfa hay because younger rabbits need the dense nutrients and calcium in it to grow. If it’s closer to 6mo, you don’t need to buy a lot because the rabbit will transition over to Timothy/oat/orchard soon. Adult rabbits should not have alfalfa hay.

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.

[kurottabun]

Welcome to Binkybunny! It’s good that you’re doing decent research. I’m not in the US so I’ll leave it to someone else to answer on where to get hay.

How much hay they eat depends on their size/breed and also personality. Some buns are great hay eaters while others eat just enough. The general rule of thumb is that a bunny should eat hay equivalent to their own size each day (roughly). Regardless, they should always have access to unlimited hay.

I buy mine in 1kg bags because that’s the most I can get in the pet store (timothy hay is imported so we don’t have bales here). It lasts me just about a month and I have a tiny full grown Netherland Dwarf that weighs about 700g currently. It’s gone bad if you see fungus or such growing on them, but generally hay lasts a long time if stored in the proper conditions (cool, dark and dry place). It also needs to breathe so avoid shutting it tight in a bin.

My hay seems to have a stale smell after half a month (could be the fact that it’s imported so the freshness was lost in the process), so personally I try to buy a new bag monthly to keep the freshness up.

Also, there’s a lot of great info for new bunny owners under the “BUNNY INFO” section, so do check it out

[YandereCapybara]

We buy our hay from True Colours.
The hay is cheap, fresh and the bunnies love it way more than Oxbow, and it’s in much larger quantities too.

[graysonbun]

you’ve received great advice!! i just wanted to chime in and say that both of my bunnies love American Pet Diner Timothy hay, i’ve always had great luck with it. I think the biggest amount they sell is a 5 lb box, but i’m not sure if they sell that size at petco or petsmart.

[tobyluv]

My rabbits get a variety of hay. They get Oxbow timothy, orchard grass and organic meadow hay, but their favorite is probably the American Pet Diner Timothy Gold, a second cutting of timothy, which is softer. They also get APD Mountain Grass, which is their version of orchard grass. I get my hay from drsfostersmith.com. They have good prices, have frequent sales, and the shipping is free with a $19 or more order. Sometimes they offer free shipping no matter what size order. Once you buy from them, you’ll get on their email list and will be notified about total free shipping or when there is a percentage off on items. I normally buy the 24 oz bags of APD Timothy Gold, since I keep a variety of bags at home, but they do sell the 5 lb. box too. They also have the 5 lb. boxes of APD Timothy High Fiber. For some reason, they recently stopped carrying the 24 oz bag of the high fiber version.

[Muj Mom N Bun]

I too have no car and live in a smaller sized apartment… although it’s not too bad…. but here’s what I have found for my full sized girl. She is full grown and weighs abt 6 lbs. I find that she eats about 5 lbs of hay in a month. I am lucky she is a very good hay eater but she is picky abt her hay… so I would say when you get your bun, try to not buy any new brand in too large a bag or box because you may find she/he may simply not like certain ones, even if they are the same type of hay, just different brands. Before becoming a bunny mom I truly would have thought grass is grass, and second cut Timothy hay from such and such company was exactly the same as second cut Timothy hay from another, but my bunny showed me different. Once you find a hay your rabbit will eat, if it’s from Petco/Petsmart then maybe you will be able to find it from sites like Chewy.com. This ships rt to your door and they cost significantly less than in the pet store… This can be a great life saver during the winter (if you are in colder parts of the country).

As for brands, in Petsmart/Petco, I would more so recommend Oxbow brand as it seems to be the better quality. Other brands you may see are Kaytee, Carefresh, Vitacraft… and once in a while, you may actually find Rabbit Hole Hay…it was only found once in my region…think it was luck only. Definitely read your labels carefully because some Hays from some companies are mixed with other stuff like clover and what not. Other hay options are like drfoster… smallpetselect…rabbitholehay and there are a few more that I am learning about from reading the forums…these online options are to me, gems because there is nothing better than having some truck drive up and leave your hay at your door when you don’t have a car!

[Muj Mom N Bun]

And.. I forgot to mention, since you’re in a smaller area, it may be worth trying out the Oxbow hay stacks because they are compressed and take up far less space! Now that my BunBun has decided she will eat this one, I will be keeping a box of these on the side as backup hay for when certain companies take too long to ship my hay out to me…

[bonnie_bunny]

Mostly just a reiteration but definitely buy multiple kinds. My bunny did not get enough hay when she was in the shelter and refused to eat it the first few weeks I had her. I tried oxbow Timothy, orchard, mixes of the two, a Timothy brand from Walmart, and Oxbow oat hay. I’ve since switched to farm hay because I live in a rural area and the farm is a five minute drive so my parents help me out (I’m a college student), but her favorites became the Oxbow Timothy/Orchaed blend which comes in a 90 Oz bag for about $20 and Oat hay which she gets as a treat because it’s so high in protein and only comes in the smaller pack for about $4. If and when you can, I would highly suggest switching to local farms if there’s anyone reliable around. Instead of 90 Oz for $20 I got 12 POUNDS for $5 and Bonnie LOVES it. It’s way more cost effective and I have a tote bin it stays in, alternating the cover on and off. After a month it’s still fresh and she still goes crazy whenever I open the lid.

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