Small Bugs in Hay

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This topic has 3sd replies, 3 voices, and was last updated 6 years, 6 months ago by Lindsayjgunn.

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- 09/28/2018 at 9:31 PM
  Lindsayjgunn
  Participant
  24 posts
  Hi Everyone, last month I noticed small but still viewable bugs in my Bunnies hay. The hay was being kept in a large cardboard box in my garage. It was humid this summer and I assumed they were some sort of grain beetle that hatched from the humid conditions, but am now wondering if they were mites. I threw it out and cleaned afterwards, but I am still having lingering anxiety that they were mites and could have made my bunny sick. Two days ago I noticed a very small bald spot on his foot and am wondering if it is correlated. I am attaching two pictures that I took from a video. The small dots in it are the bugs in question, Would you mind letting me know your thoughts? Thank you!
- 09/29/2018 at 8:33 AM
  Autumn's Dad
  Participant
  208 posts
  Rabbits are pretty resilient to accidently ingesting bugs, its only large quantities of them that could cause a problem, however I would think they’d stop eating bug covered food long before they ate enough that could harm them. Difficult to tell what they are but agree they are probably a weevil or mite of some kind. the small bald spot could be simply a callous but if it is red, inflamed or has cuts it may very well be sore hocks, a condition that will need treatment depending on how bad it is. if cuts appear you must take them to the vet immediately for the cuts can become infected.
- 09/29/2018 at 3:15 PM
  LBJ10
  Moderator
  17103 posts
  They look too big to be mites. Is there alfalfa in there? Could be weevils.
- 10/07/2018 at 12:45 PM
  Lindsayjgunn
  Participant
  24 posts
  Hi there thank you for getting back to me. There wasn’t any alfalfa and they were big enough to be seen by the naked eye (some were smaller though). After a lot of googling I think they could be book lice? Either way I threw it out.
  
  The vendor where we buy our hay from is about to close and am planning on stocking up (it’s the only hay mowgli will eat). Previously, the hay was stored in cardboard boxes with holes that were kept in the garage. I’m nervous to store it there now in case the garage was the bug source. Any suggestions on storage or methods to keep bugs out. Thank you!
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