Rabbit not eating hay! Help!

[Tilleigh]

My 13 month old mini lop, Rowan, has been eating very little to no hay for the past while. He was a big hay eater when I first got him but now he prefers his vegetables and pellets much more. I’ve even tried switching brands but he will only eat a small amount of hay (which is Timothy) when I sit down and feed it to him myself. I don’t know what to do! I’m afraid he will become sick if he does not start eating more. Is there a supplement I can give him instead? Has anyone else encountered this situation?

Thanks,

Tilleigh

[xnovalentine]

I’m sure a more experienced bunny person will be able to give you some more insight — but with my personal experience my bunny doesn’t like to eat hay. So I’ve reduced the amount of pellets and greens i give her and that seems to help a bit with eating hay. Also, Lullabelle is very picky about what hay she eats and only eats Orchard Grass. Maybe switching hays?

[BinkyBunny]

My first instinct is to tell you to check his incisors and jaw to to see if he has any teeth problems. Even if you’ve never noticed teeth problems before, it’s a good idea to check their alignment, as sometimes it gets worse with age, or it’s just minor enough that you will only see problems in time.

Rabbits can use their lips to shove back pellets to their molars, and greens are sometimes softer and easier to cut than hay.

Also, I don’t know about Canada, but I know this year’s U.S. crops of Timothy have been a little more brown. So you might want to try and just see if he’s not fond of the latest stock of Timothy. Try Orchard, Fescue, Brome, etc – mix ’em up even and see if that will entice him.

I would stay away from supplements, because many of them are too high in minerals and vitamins, and can cause a digestive issue over time.

You also said when you first got him he was a big hay eater, has his diet changed over time, I mean are you feeding him any differently?   What does his diet consist of right now?

[Deleted User]

My first thought was, he has teeth problems. But with my guy, I have to go through all these gyrations to get him to eat hay. I have reduced the amount of pellets. I have bought 3 types of hay…oat straw, which he will not touch unless I put it in his basket and take the whole thing into the living room. Then he chows down. The timothy and bunny blend go in his hay rack, and he will only eat it if I keep him in his cage at night. Or his new thing, he jumps in the hay box and goes to town eating like no tomorrow. (((SIGH)))) Whatever it takes.

[MooBunnay]

Hello Tilleigh! Welcome to Binky Bunny

If it is not teeth problems, it could also be that he is filling up on vegetables and pellets and that is why he is not interested in the hay – about how much vegetables and pellets do you give him each day?

[Toki+Pumpkin+Elmo]

I had the same problem. It seems to get better little by little now. I’ve cut down the pellets. I also give veggies two times a day instead of one. Still the same amount but cut into two meals. My buns seem to snack on hay more since they get hungry sooner than they’re used to.

[Beka27]

i do what sep1118 does splitting the veggies into breakfast and dinner.  Meadow gets a nice breakfast salad with a papaya tablet (but no pellets) in the morning.  she gets a second salad in the evening around dinner time (6pm or so) with her daily ration of pellets.  she always has hay.  there are days where she will just pick at the hay, and other days when she goes to town.  have you mentioned your concerns to a vet? 

another suggestion… try making the hay more fun.  some people put hay in the litterbox b/c they like to eat and do their business at the same time (this also helps with littertraining if you’ve not gotten that far yet).  or you could put the hay in a paper lunch bag and close the top and let him chew it and dig it apart.  hide a healthy treat in there to make it more enticing if you want.

[Tilleigh]

Thanks to everyone for their comments. It has been very helpful!
I have left a message with Rowan’s vet so she should be getting back to me soon. Hopefully it’s not a problem with his teeth, which I don’t think it is because he has no trouble eating anything else…pellets, vegetables, rasins, cornflakes (the last two are treats), and he’s been chewing on cardboard boxes as usual. I think he may just be tired of the Timothy hay. I’m going to try and switch hays but it’s difficult because there is little selection where I live. (In Newfoundland bunnies are not really popular house pets).
If it is his teeth, has anyone encountered this problem and what is the treatment?
Any more comments or suggestions are greatly appreciated!

[Scarlet_Rose]

Hi and welcome to Binky Bunny! If it isn’t teeth or anything else, your bun could be trying to train you to only give him the things that he wants as well.  I think it’s a great idea to have the vet check him over for any physical reasons why he may not be eating as much hay.  Also, depending on the cutting (time of year it was harvested) it may not be as tasty as what he was used to.  This is a pretty good article on If Your Bunny Won’t Eat Hay.

[(dig)x(me)x(now)]

This won’t help you, but I want to say that Rowan is beautiful! I love harlequin bunnies!

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