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if i use hay as a top layer of bedding, what kind of hay do i use? the hay that i feed her?
seriously, anyone????????????
There should be a bottom layer of woodchips and then hay. Yes the hay you feed her. Rabbits will both eat and nest in the same hay.
No you shouldn’t put the same kind of hay in the bedding as she eats because she eats it and makes herself cold i mean seriously and hay is uncomfortable to rabbits your best choice is to put the hay rack in hay racks for her to eat and give her straw as bedding as it is softer and more comfortable and she will not eat it if she is fed rabbit food regularly
thats why there needs to be plenty of hay put in every day. A rabbit will not eat all the hay aslong as there is other food available in the hutch. If they bed in straw which has sharp edges it can damage their eyes. And also some straw carries mites.
I have never heard of using a top layer of hay… but yes I would believe that you would need to use Timothy Hay.
BethanySnowPatrol,
Sorry I haven’t been checking the boards lately or I’d have responded sooner.
First of all, how is your little one doing? I saw the message about the sludge in her litter box. That could be because of too much calcium in her diet. Rabbits do not need much calcium, and if you’re giving her alfalfa hay, plus dandelions, kale or collards, AND pellets that could be the problem.
As I’m sure you’ve read in many of my posts, I do not feed my rabbits pellets at all at the recommendation of my vet, who specializes in rabbits and is University of Penn trained. Pellets are for rabbits who are trying to be brought up to market weight to be sold for food. They are not good for their digestive system, nor their teeth.
Please do not listen to anyone telling you to cut out fresh veggies. They obviously do not know what they are doing with rabbits. Please start her on a diet of ONLY fresh veggies. My 4 rabbits eat nothing but, and they have absolutely NO digestive problems. Veggies are not treats, and should be the secondary form of food, next to timothy hay.
Onto to the hay issue. DO NOT USE WOODCHIPS EVER. Many woodchips are pine or cedar, which can irritate their nasal passages and cause respiratory problems. Do not use straw, as it is depleted in nutrients and not good for a rabbit’s digestive system. And whoever said that hay is uncomfortable under a rabbit’s feet, they’re wrong. It protects them from getting sorehocks and provides a comfortable place to nap. I will often find my rabbits snoozing in the hay buckets, and they have an entire house to run around in with comfy blankets all over the floors.
As I’m sure you’ve also seen in many of my posts, I use a large concrete mixing tub (bought at Home Depot or Lowe’s) with a base of Carefresh (Yesterday’s News is also good), topped by ample amounts of timothy hay. You can also put in some hay like bermuda or orchard grass as a treat. Try to get your hay in bales at a farm or feed mill. Any place that has hay for horses will usually have straight timothy. It is much purer than that dyed crap Kay-tee puts out. Oxbow is the ONLY bagged type I recommend.
Rabbits will both eat & excrete in the same tub, at the same time. That is why it is important to use a huge amount of hay. They should have 24/7 access to it and it should be the main part of their diet. You can and should use the same type of hay she eats.
I hope this helps. Good luck!
BunnyMomTimothy Hay is best for feeding and bedding, as it is lower in calcium than alfalfa hay. I don’t know what kind of cage you have, but we went to Home Depot and built our cage inexpensively. We bought a kitchen counter top that is rectangular, and white wire closet shelving. Then we nailed it together. It gives them more room to move, and it’s EASY to wipe clean! We put little blankets in their cage and wash them weekly, along with their litter box, food and water. It works out great!
BunnyMom, thank you for the useful information and yes, shes doing good ive always used timothy hay and i did feed her pellets with an alfalfa base but i switched it to a timothy base which pretty much cleared up the sludge. The only dilemma i have now is whether or not to spay her. Thanks for the info again!
Hi SnowPatrol,
Glad to hear all is well & happy holidays!
YES! YES! YES! Spaying should be a no-brainer, especially for female rabbits. It will prevent false pregnancies and more importantly, reproductive cancers. These cancers are almost a certainty in unspayed female rabbits after just a few years. See the link below from the House Rabbit Society on the benefits of spaying/neutering.
Best regards,
BunnyMom
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