What hay is this?? Help please.

[justlookingforhelp]

The farmer said it was horse hay, but the rabbits wont eat it.
The texture is brittle and is not flexible. The head is a little spicky. It is also made of 2 layers.here are the pictures:

http://imgur.com/9AjXt0v
Thank you for your reply. Also if anyone could tell me how to identify the right hay, it would be very much appreciated.

[Azerane]

I’m not sure what it is but I know that it’s not orchard, Timothy, oat, or wheat.

It could be Bermuda grass. The seed heads splay out but the cutting may have happened before that growth stage. Bermuda grass is suitable for buns, any grass hay is fine so long as they eat it

The easiest way to identify grasses / hay is with the seed heads. Look up the types that are available in your area and then familiarise yourself with the seed heads on Google images Orchard, Timothy, oat and wheat all have pretty distinct seed heads. 

[justlookingforhelp]

Thank you. The one thing though. I am not sure if this is grass hay. It does not feel like grass(you know? The one used in parks.) It feels more like straw. What does timothy feel like.

[Azerane]

I use oat hay and it is quite straw like, it has tough stems and less leaf but it’s green which makes it hay. Straw is when the grass is left to seed and die then cut. It is definitely a grass hay. Textures of course differ between different grass hays but they should always be green. The only other type of hay I’m aware of is legume hays which include alfalfa and clover have a very different stem/ growth pattern and seed. 

Timothy can vary as it comes in first, second and third cut. One is quite soft and leafy, another quite course and stemmy and the second cut is in between. Timothy isn’t grown in Australia so I’m not familiar with it aside from what I’ve read about it.

[Bam]

I don’t recognize the grass. Azerane mentions a few common grasses, other common horse hay grasses are fescue (lat. festuca) (several different varieties) and rye grass (lat. lolium, also several kinds and not to be confused with the cereal rye (Secale cereale), and brome (lat.bromus).

Sometimes it’s not the plant the bunny object to, but the cut or even the quality of the hay. Hay is very variable and time of harvest + how it’s been dried and stored matters a lot. Hay harvested early in the season (before it goes to seed) has more protein. Hay harvested in the fall tends to be leafier. And buns can be very particular. Their sense of smell is immensely better than ours, so to us, the hay can smell just lovely, but buns will still not eat it.

[justlookingforhelp]

Thank you very much. This is very helpful.

[justlookingforhelp]

Thanks bam. I think this is more about the type of hay, than the quality. Because1. It is not moldy at all but rather quite fresh. And, 2. Up until yesterday they were always fed either pellets only diet or occasionally, berseem. Berseem is very similar to alfalfa but wont cause any gas. High in protein and medium fiber. So maybe I just have to get them used to it. I am just worried that this not the hay they are supposed to be eating. They already are very underweight and so I have to be careful.

[Azerane]

Any quality grass hay is fine to feed, the main concern really is that they need to eat hay, it can be tough to get them to adjust when they’re not used to eating hay. A softer hay may ease the transition, a soft Timothy cut or I believe orchard grass is quite soft too.

[justlookingforhelp]

I will attempt to get my hands on those. I was worried that the hay I have is like alfalfa or something that may cause gas or is not nutritious

[LBJ10]

The seed head reminds me of what indian grass looks like after all of the seeds are gone.

[Author]

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