What size do you buy your hay in?

[BinkyBunny]

 I know many can get big bales of local hay, but this question is for those of you that  go to the stores or order online, what size of hay do you normally  buy (or prefer to buy if you could)?  We are looking into offering Oxbow Orchard and Timothy not only in regular sizes, but in the large 25lb and even 50lb.  That will take up quite a bit of space, but we can also get pre-orders and pick up hay weekly to send out.   But before we purchase any of  these larger sizes, we are wanting to get a feel for how many people would buy them. 

[LBJ10]

I get the oxbow hay in the little bags (not sure what size that is) because that is what I have punch cards for.

[lashkay]

The largest I’ve bought online so far, is 19 lbs – it’s a lot, but not as bulky as 25 lbs! It’s still lasting me… It’s the third cut (for picky picky eaters) timothy hay from Kleenmama’s Hayloft! Sorry, but Dustor and Petie were being super picky and this seems to be one they go for. I still will buy other things from the BB Store, don’t worry!

[mia]

I can’t say what I plan on doing for hay yet but if shipping isn’t much of a difference and I had to order online, I’d get the 25lb. 50 is too much IMO.

Now, since I’m in the Bay Area, if I could pick up stuff, I’d stop over when I’m in the area =).

[Cheddar33]

I get a bale of hay LOL. Then my bf breaks it up and we hide it in bags and containers (not sealed) all over the apartment. You’d swear we had a horse or something.

[Monkeybun]

I usually get 10lb bags of hay for $10 here, but I need 3 or 4 a month now with 4 buns.

25lbs of BB orchard sounds divine… Monkey and Smudge would be in heaven. 50lbs would be too much to store in my apartment

[Joyfull_music]

Only one bun, so I get the smaller bags.

[BearMom]

Now that I have my baby flemish in addition to my hungry mini-lop I’m going for the 50lbs.

[Tate]

I would LOVE to get 25 lbs of orchard grass. My boys go through a ridiculous amount of hay… In May alone, I’ve gone through 3 BB bales and 2 packages of Kaytee orchard grass. Ouch!

[Helenor]

I tend to buy the 25 lb ones but I will be switching to the 50 lb ones as soon as I finish my current box of hay.

[blackfang]

I tend to buy 50 lbs of oxbow orchard hay. It last pretty much for 6 months to a year for two bunnies.

I’m surprised when I read people’s comments about 25 lbs or less. It is waste of money, in my opinion.
I don’t have much space in my apartment, but i found the way to store my 50 lbs of hay without having a problem.

[brittbritt]

I buy my timothy hay from KleenMama’s hayloft. The shipping is outrageous but when you calculate it by the pound it comes out cheaper than buying the little bags at the pet stores. Plus my guinea pigs and Gabby love it. I buy 25 pounds at a time. I keep the box by my guinea pig’s cage and keep the box top open so it doesn’t get moldy.

[Monkeybun]

Taurus, when you have 4 bunnies, in 3 separate enclosures, it tens to take up alot of space. I am limited, and don’t mind spending more to have it shipped more often.

[Tate]

Side note: how long does hay stay fresh?

[blackfang]

If any one of you think shipping rate is too expensive.. Look again. Dr. smith and foster website offer NO SHIPPING COST if you pay over 50 dollars. No matter how heavy boxes.. still free shipping.

Yes, I’m aware few people actually have no space for 50 lbs of hay like you monkey, but I know for sure that alot of people do have enough space but kept saying that they don’t have enough space.

hay normally stay fresh last a year from my experience.

[Lani]

I just buy the smaller bags of Oxbow hay at our vet. In the future, I may consider purchasing larger quantities online but it’s not an option as storage would be difficult

[MimzMum]

Well BB, you’ve seen how I order from the site store! 0_o I honestly would jump at a chance to get more than the mini-bales at least during the winter. Summer here is another issue, sometimes hay is found fresh here and some years it is not worth buying. I can’t store the cumbersome wired bales they sell at AK feed stores, even if I tore it up and stuffed it in Rubbermaid tubs.
I’m wondering if you could get our mature oat in large sizes? And Oxbow…so strange I was just going to ask if there was a larger size bag of the meadow hay, which Mimzy is powering through lately.

[BinkyBunny]

Oye, that Dr. Foster’s and Smith. The bane of my existence! (I promise I won’t get on my soap box again.)

The good news is that on a large heavier item like a 25 lb or more of hay, we’ll be able to compete with Dr. Foster’s and Smith because we can raise up the price enough to match their price to offer better shipping or lower the hay price down to a normal price and include shipping in. There is enough margin to allow that so you can get a good deal either way.

I am not sure if I will be able to offer the BB hays though at the 25lbers. We are still workin’ on that as our source is rather small. It’s a pesticide free locally grown and it doesn’t have the larger distribution capability as of yet. The larger amounts would be Oxbow brand.

[Monkeybun]

Dang… My buns don’t go for the Oxbow stuff They like the stuff you get in the mini bales.

[BinkyBunny]

I’m sorry Monkey! We keep trying. If our local resources continue to grow, (If we can compete on some equal playing ground with bigger stores–and we’re working on that!) then we might be able to get larger options. I have been pressing that more and more, so we’ll see what the future brings. :0)

[MimzMum]

I don’t think BB is suggesting eliminating the mini bales…at least I hope not! But just offering those of us with bunnies like Hoover vacuums a way to keep the tanks topped easier and cheaper.
Geez, I can’t remember how many mini bales I’ve gone thru just this year alone! 0_o

[lashkay]

BB. any chance you could sell Kleenmama’s Hayloft timothy 3rd cut for picky eaters in the 25 lb or 50 lb amounts? It’s GOOD STUFF!
Brittbritt would buy it if it were available in the BB store, too, and once they turned on to it, droves of others as well, I’m sure! Have you looked into it?

[Helenor]

Posted By BB on 05/19/2011 08:47 PM

Oye, that Dr. Foster’s and Smith. The bane of my existence! (I promise I won’t get on my soap box again.)

The good news is that on a large heavier item like a 25 lb or more of hay, we’ll be able to compete with Dr. Foster’s and Smith because we can raise up the price enough to match their price to offer better shipping or lower the hay price down to a normal price and include shipping in. There is enough margin to allow that so you can get a good deal either way.

I am not sure if I will be able to offer the BB hays though at the 25lbers. We are still workin’ on that as our source is rather small. It’s a pesticide free locally grown and it doesn’t have the larger distribution capability as of yet. The larger amounts would be Oxbow brand.

If that’s the case, I’ll probably start buying my hay from the BB store. I’m willing to pay a bit more to buy hay from here, but not a ton more (I still am a student and don’t make much )

[Monkeybun]

Posted By BB on 05/19/2011 09:49 PM
I’m sorry Monkey! We keep trying. If our local resources continue to grow, (If we can compete on some equal playing ground with bigger stores–and we’re working on that!) then we might be able to get larger options. I have been pressing that more and more, so we’ll see what the future brings. :0)

 

tell them a very scary black bunny, who happens to be Queen of the universe, demands it

[BinkyBunny]

I will Monkey! I will!…and they had better listen!

[LoveChaCha]

I usually buy 10 lbs at a time. I bought a 25 lb bale of the Organic Orchard Grass from the BB store. Chacha enjoys the RA mix, and she no longer snubs the American Pet Diner Orchard. I bought a small bale of Timothy Gold, and she not only loves it, but mommy’s allergies is not triggered. I notice that both hays from APD have little to no dust at all…

if the Oxbow Orchard is not dusty, and very soft, I would get Chacha some

[LittlePuffyTail]

I buy the 25lb Oxbow. The pet store gets them in just for me (makes me feel a wee bit special  ). When I pick it up, they order another one. It’s not much of a better deal than the small bags but I find the Orchard Grass quality is WAY better in the large bags because it’s the long strands of hay and less crumbs and dust. Plus before I was always running to the pet store. The big bag lasts me about 3 weeks.

[Beka27]

I get the 50lb boxes.

My concern initially was also the cost of shipping on such a large item. I think if you could figure a way to get shipping down low enough where it could compete with those *other* sites, you would be able to sell them.

[Kate Monster]

I get the mini bales of mature and young oat hay here, which isn’t on the menu, but hey if I ordered one of the others my feelings on the matter would the same. The lord and lady of the house will eat nothing else (and my allergies nearly kill me with many others) so I would be thrilled if it came in larger quantities. The delivery guy wouldn’t though, lol. I order a lot of stuff. He was really grumpy when my litter arrived last week. I don’t think I could store 50 lbs, I have a pretty small apartment and anything that doesn’t fit in my hay storage container would probably inspire a bunny treasure hunt that would end in a haysplosion of as yet unseen proportions. But, while I would enjoy the cheapness, I don’t mind the mini bales, they’re easy to handle, especially as I’ll be living alone soon and the bigger ones are a bit awkward to carry, and it’s not like I don’t have other things to order when I start to run out of hay. In fact, Spencer is already demanding a new unpeeled willow toy, he already ate his cube.

[ScooterandAnnette]

We get small square bales from local farmers, they weigh about 65lbs and typically cost about $5 each. Last summer we bought 2 of them, we just ran out last month. We store them in big plastic containers in the garage.
– Annette

[Elrohwen]

I buy the 50lb size. I’m going to try getting local hay from farmers when we’re in a more rural area, but I do like the peace of mind that comes from buying Oxbow.

[LizzyBunny]

 I get my timo hay from the Vancouver Rabbit Rescue. I think it’s around 10 lb but I’m not too sure -.- Anywho I pay 5 bucks for it and its a huge bag! Here is a pic I got off of their website. As you can see its pretty big compared to a pet store bag  

 

[RabbitPam]

I love love love your mini bales (I get the Mature Oat). I don’t know how much they weigh, though. They last long enough that I don’t run out with only one bunny more then every couple of months, and they are very convenient to have in her room – no storage issue. So, even though I was in a pet shop that didn’t mark up the Oxbow a HUGE amount like other big box stores I could name, I couldn’t bring myself to giving it to her instead of waiting for my BB order to arrive instead. The reaction of my bunnies to your bales vs. anything else is really amazing. Spockie was a picky hay eater, but Sammy eats it even with pellets and fresh greens sitting there too.

One teensy weensy thought: I have a box that the mini bale fits into when I close the lid, until I cut the strings. Then it expands like popcorn! Any chance of packaging it wider and not as tall? I have no idea how you get all that hay squished into that little paper wrapper, but it’s like a clown car. It just keeps on coming.
So don’t you dare stop making mini bales. Great for those of us without a garage.

[kralspace]

I buy coastal hay for the litter boxes from the local farmers, but I get 25 lb boxes of Oxbow orchard hay from one of the rescues in Dallas. One will last me about 4 months. The local stores won’t order anything but the smaller bags of hay and 4 years ago, it was so much cheaper to drive to Dallas than pay shipping, which was as much or more than the hay at the time.

If gas is around $4 a gallon and I average 10 gals a trip (plus all the fast food stops…lol), it’s an expensive trip. I would be interested in what you find out on the costs, if was close, I’d rather preorder from you and support the site.

I just picked up a 50lb box at the piggie hoedown earlier this month but will probably have to get some more in the fall.

[Juli]

i buy about 10 – 25 pounds of oxbow or a small pakage of Kaytee Timothy Hay.

[Juli]

i usaually get 10 – 25 pounds of Oxbow Hay.

[BinkyBunny]

Rabbitpam— oh no, the minibales are here to stay! I love your comparison of the mini-bales to a clown car! Haha!

I am just asking about what size people would buy of Oxbow so I would know what to purchase more of first. It is expensive to buy sizes that large for resale, so I am just trying to plan it out.

[Author]

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