Is timothy hay necessary?

[sgregory]

Mumbles never had a problem with eating hay. She loved timothy almost as much as she loved alfalfa.

Nori, however, won’t TOUCH timothy.  She loves alfalfa though. I left her in her cage last night with nothing but timothy and she still didnt touch it.. I know that when she gets older the alfalfa is no good for her. So my question is does timothy hay have to be a part of the diet or does any hay do the trick, like orchard grass?

[Furface]

I don’t think I’d say any hay is as good but orchard grass is good.

[bunnytowne]

You can try that or meadow or brome hay.     Mine won’t eat timothy anymore either.      I purchased a bulk order of mountain hay from Leith petworks after I learned they love it.    

I switch around thier hay to like 2-3 days mountain  1-2 days oat    back to mountain hay then meadow  and so forth.   I even throw in alfalfa now n then

Keeps variety going so they don’t get too bored with the same thing every day. 

Buns can be a pain in the rear sometimes finicky little buggers.  

[Sarita]

It does not have to be timothy hay but she does need a grass hay which alfalfa is not. Bunnytowne and Furface gave you some good alternatives. Also bluegrass hay.

[sgregory]

thanks for the help everyone. i’ll get her a little of each then, and probably just donate the timothy hay i have.. no use throwing it away!

[mrmac]

I wouldnt toss the timothy just yet, you could probably use that as an alternating option too. She may start to eat it after new things have been rotated in.

[Sarita]

Yes, do keep trying the timothy – she may eventually try it.

[QueSará]

I would agree with most posters here.  Timothy hay is probably the best (with orchard as a second)

Sometimes bunnies get bored, or they are hesitant to try new things.  I would mix half and half and try to get her to eat the timothy, mixed with orchard or meadow.

 

I would not feed alfalfa at all.  Alfalfa is very high in calcium and can cause a rabbit to produce excess cecotrophs, or produce sludge in the urine.  But if you choose to get her off alfalfa, do it slowly.  Mix in other grasses, and slowly take out the alfalfa.  Here is a great link of the different kinds of hay and their nutrition facts.  There’s a great table at the bottom:

http://www.rabbit.org/journal/3-3/fiber.html

Hope that helps!

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