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Forum DIET & CARE My bun wont eat hay! Help!

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    • Bev
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        My bun Missy is having the issue of not eating hay or barely touching it I really cut back the pellets because the vet said she should be getting no more than 1/2 cup of pellets per day but she weighs 14.4 pounds and the doctor said that she should be 11 pounds she is a Flemish Giant. Because of her not really eating hay the vet gave us the critical care stuff didn’t want me to do as much as if it were a sick rabbit but she won’t even touch that I can’t get her to eat that either so the only thing she will eat because she’s used to it if it’s given to her is treats and definitely her pellets I don’t know what to do I’ve tried different brands of hay and types of hay. I have no idea what to do help!


      • vanessa
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          One of my bunnies hasn’t eaten hay since June last year. I’ve tried his favorite type of hay (Orchard), different brands, different presentations, it’s not happening. He is underweight, so I give him unlimited pellets. I also changed his pellets to the most grass-based I coudl find. No meal, byproducts – the first 2 or 3 ingredients must be grass. I like Sherwood forest for this, but there are other types. His pal is a fat bunny who eats a lot of hay, and takes advantage of his unlimited pellets… Because he doesnt’ eat hay, his 6-month teeth filing has been bumped up to every 3 months, and I’ll see if that is sufficient. How long as Missy ot been eating hay? With cutting back the pellets, you still want her body to be processing food. Rabbits need to be eating constantly. I would add low calorie greens like Romaine lettuce and celery. My bunnies like critical care when I use it in bunny cookies. Otherwise, the only way I can make them eat it is by syinge feeding. So I make critical care cookies with banana,cilantro, and carrots.
          I have not been able to convince Lancelot to eat hay in 8 months now. I did panick at first, but by switching his pelets to a more grass-based, adding the critical care cookies, and benebac to his water, (he finishes his waterbowl overnight), and filing his teeth every 3 months – he has not had any issues.


        • Azerane
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            Getting a rabbit to eat hay can be tricky. Trying different varieties, brands, mixing them together, offering them in different ways can all help a rabbit to show interest in eating hay. Try stuffing hay into toilet paper tubes, in hiding boxes, keep it in a hay rack above her litter tray, or at one end of her litter tray that she doesn’t soil. Make sure to top it up frequently, at least once a day. Even if she hasn’t eaten any. Rabbits are notorious for not showing an interest in “old” hay in their cage, but will quickly and eagerly stuff their faces with “fresh” hay that you’ve just added. You can also try sprinkling some dried herbs or dandelion leaves etc in amongst the hay to make her more interested in foraging through it.

            Critical care can be syringe fed if need be as well, at the very least it will help get more fibre into her without having to feed more pellets. My boy Apollo weighs 3kg (about half as much as your girl) and I only feed him 2 tablespoons of pellets a day. He doesn’t need any more, and he maintains his weight very well. It’s tough just going by your little avatar image of her, but I would agree with the vet that it looks like she could lose a little and 1/2 cup pellets for a rabbit her weight will be plenty.

            What type of hay are you currently feeding and how do you offer it to her?


          • sarahthegemini
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              How are you serving hay? The reason I ask is my bunnies didn’t like hay racks and much prefer eating from litter boxes!

              Have you tried mixing different foods in with the hay? Herbs, pellets, a few treats? What about hay cookies? They won’t help with keeping the teeth down but it might spark an interest in regular hay?


            • BunnyFriends
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                I’ve had a bunny who never ate hay before but loves it now. Some tips-

                · Try hay in different locations and different way. Hay in the litterbox, a rack, a cardboard tube with hay in it, etc.

                · Different types of hay! Orchard grass, meadow, and timothy are all excellent. And try different brands and cuts. There’s a hay for everybun.

                · Make sure hay is out 24/7, and do not feed any pellets until the hay is eaten. Be careful with this tip, though, and only do so if the rabbit isn’t underweight and is very food motivated. It worked with Licorice, but I would never try it with Winter, who has weight problems. Of course, if the rabbit absolutely will not eat it, stop. No point starving them, but it works for others.

                · Try a little hay topper. Sometimes it smells better and the rabbit eats it, other times they pick it out. I sometimes by hay with mango or carrot bits in it but I wouldn’t if I wasn’t sure my rabbits weren’t just picking them out and leaving the hay. (The mango and carrot bits aren’t a lot either, so it’s not too unhealthy.)

                · Toys involving hay often help.


              • Bev
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                  Missy has not been eating hay for probably a few months now but tonight I just made some bunny cookies with banana parsley Timothy Hay and I couldn’t find the critical care at that moment so the next batch I will put it in and try it and I put some pellets and therefore added taste and she is eating them so at least she’s taking her that way.


                • Bev
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                    I could try putting it into toilet paper rolls I tried to put it in the litter box which she used to eat it that way but she has been sticking her nose up at it I just got a smaller bag a new brand that has dried fruit so that maybe I was hoping that the scent of the dried fruit would tempt her she ate their dried fruit just fine would not touch the hay I did make bunny cookies tonight with banana fresh parsley fresh kale and some pellets and she was eating that so I made a little progress so far I forgot to add the critical care cuz I couldn’t find it so the next batch I make I’m going to try to put that in there and see if she will still eat it.


                  • Bev
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                      I have tried putting the hay in her food bowl on the carpet where she is in her litter box and she has stuck her nose up at all of it I did however make bunny cookies tonight as I was telling the others cuz I replied to them as well. The bunny cookies I made have been in a fresh kill some pellets and fresh parsley and she was eating that not all at one time but thankfully she was still eating it so it’s a start. I couldn’t find the critical care of first so the next that I make I will try to put that in there and see if she will eat it


                    • Bev
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                        I have tried different spots of putting the hay in her litter box in her food bowl on the carpet she still won’t eat it I feel like a bad rabbit mom if I didn’t give her pellets because sometimes if she eats it all the little bit that I give her she will act like a starved rabbit and digging when I put it the pellets in her Bowl. I just got a brand of hay yesterday that has mixed fruit in it she will only eat the dried fruit didn’t even touch the hay.


                      • Bev
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                          Sorry for all the posts didn’t know how to individually put my response under your comments.


                        • vanessa
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                            None of my rabbits were interested in hay stufed in toilet roll holders. I’ve read that bunnies tend to pick out the tasty bits in the fruity hay, but I am goign to give it a try myself. Critical care is quite palatable to bunnies. Not all will eat it as a pudding. It helps the consitency fo the hay cookies and tastes good.


                          • Bev
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                              Yeah I tried it as putting and she wouldn’t do it I tried it as dry and she wouldn’t do that either so I’m probably going to make some more bunny cookies maybe tomorrow but the ones that I did make today she’s actually eating pretty well. so at least she’s getting the hay which she will eat fresh kale on her own because she loves it. parsley lately she’s not been eating because I had gotten fresh but I will try.


                            • vanessa
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                                What else happened aroudn the time she stopped eating hay?


                              • Bev
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                                  Im not sure not anything out of the ordinary that i know of.


                                • vanessa
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                                    So last night I tried “timothy hay plus cranberries” – Guin, the fatty, gobbled it all up. Lancelot – the one who isn’t eating hay – sniffed at it, noticed it, and ignored it.


                                  • Bev
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                                      I keep trying everything that I know and the only thing that she will eat hay in is cookies I don’t know what else to do to get her to eat the hay. It’s kind of depressing because I don’t know what else to do. And I want her to be healthy.


                                    • Luna's Mom
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                                        Have you tried wheat grass? I have read that it can be just as good for them as hay. I could be wrong because I am new to bunny life but I have researched and researched and have 2 books that I bought and read. It’s suppose to be good for their teeth too!


                                      • Azerane
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                                          Compressed hay blocks are better than no hay all. Lots of fibre, just lacking the long strands that require a lot of grinding. Keep at it, it may take time, even if you have to crumble a hay block over the top of hay to get the smell infused. Or even try storing a handful of hay inside her pellet container for a day or two to get it smelling like the pellets and then try feeding that hay.


                                        • vanessa
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                                            I like that idea Azerane. I’l have to try it myself.


                                          • vanessa
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                                              Bev have you tried those compressed hay blocks? I gave them a try. This morning I saw Lancelot nibbling on one, and his pee from overnight was the same green color as the hay blocks. I dont’ know if it is because he peed ontop of hay crumbles that guin left, (she is a hay eating monster), but since I saw him nibbling the block this moring, I like to think that he ate some of the hay block, which woudl be awesome. Like Azarene implied – it’s not enough to keep the teeth in good shape, but it’s enough for the belly, which is a start. I am also trying the hay-plus. Guin loed the hay/cranberries, and Lancelot was picking the carrots out of his hay/carrot mix. This morning all of the hay/carrot mix was gone. I don’t know which of the two ate it though… I use th esubscription feature on Amazon for things like this – 5 products per delivery = 15% discount.


                                            • princessbookworm
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                                                On Amazon, there a “variety pack” of Kaytee Timothy Hay plus with five different varieties (marigold, cranberry, carrot, mango, and mint). I give it to my Jake as a treat mixed in with his Small Pet Select hay but he’s the type of bun that will eat anything. Maybe you could buy the variety pack and see if your bun likes any of those? It’s mostly timothy hay. And the timothy hay cubes often have a little alfalfa in them I think so maybe those would be a bit more interesting to your bun!


                                              • vanessa
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                                                  Bev, how is your bunny doing? I found that Lancelot wouldn’t eat the kaytee hay with the tasty bits (carrot mango marigold cranberries etc), but he is eating compressed hay. Both the Timothy, and the Timothy/Alfalpha compressed hay. So I’m happy about that.


                                                • Bev
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                                                    Hey Vanessa! She is still being stubborn as usual! Thanks for asking! Although I had taking an empty glove box and stuffed it with hay so she has been eating the cardboard off of the box as well as eating the hate in it. I have still been making bunny cookies which she has been gobbling them down and only giving her pellets at night around one quarter cup. I just ordered fresh hay from smart pet selects and the reviews we’re really good considering that even the pickiest of bunnies apparently we’re eating it so I’m going to try. The bunny cookies I have been making have been just hay and some of the critical care stuff when I had it as well as bananas to mix it together and then baked it. I do notice that she does nipple off of the Timothy Hay cubes that I give her I also give her some kale and herbs throughout the day as well to offset only getting pellets at night so she is getting some hay but obviously not as much as I like I have tried the different brands of hay that included the fruit beds but she ended up picking them out LOL.


                                                  • vanessa
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                                                      If only our bunnies could speak English! I have found that between the timothy cubes, and the hay cookies, at least Lancelot’s incisors are doing good, and the molars closest to the front of his mouth are good. He seems to chew on one side of his mouth, so one side was better than the other side when I took him to the vet on Thursday. Based on the growing rate of his teeth, and his lop face, no hay = 4 teeth filings a year, hay eating used to be 2 teeth filings a year, and since he is now eating timothy cubes and hay cookies, I can do 3 times a year. Not that all bunnies teeth grow at the same rate, and yours isn’t a lop, but I would still take her to the vet after a once it has been 3 or 4 months since she stopped eating hay, to get her teeth looked at. While I always read that timothy cubes aren’t good enough for the teeth, I suspect that the hay cookies are small enough that Lancelot gets them in the back of his mouth and does use his molars. And come to think of it – I do have images of him in my head chewing hay tablets with one side of his head lower than the other – as if he is definitely chewing more on one side of his face. Makes me wonder if there is something going on with that other side of his teeth that can’t be seen by a visual inspection.

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                                                  Forum DIET & CARE My bun wont eat hay! Help!