Hay and Grasses
Scroll down to see a list of regional hay suppliers.
The main component of every rabbit's diet should be fresh, long, fibrous grass or hay (dried grass). The high fibre content of these foods and their unique structure (see below) is the single most important thing you can do to maintain the good dental and intestinal health of your rabbit. Without fibre, the digestive system cannot move food through the gut and your rabbit's teeth, which grow continually, will not wear down and could grow painfully long.
Grass is a natural food for a rabbit to eat. The ideal set up would be a secure exercise pen with a mix of long, fibrous grasses that allowed your rabbit to graze freely, but that is not always practical. If your rabbit does not have free access to the right kind of grass, you can simulate natural grazing by growing grass from seed in a pot or tray. You can also cut long grass for your rabbit and scatter it around their pen. If you do this, use scissors not lawn mower clippings, the cutting action of the mower crushes the grass, which causes it to begin to fermenting, and could upset your rabbit's stomach. If you've a lot of grass, you could even have a go at making your own hay! (see link below)
A word of caution - Yes, grass will wear a rabbits teeth down as hay does and is a good food for your rabbit BUT too much - especially rich, lush, sweet, high protein grass in its springtime flush can also cause GI issues such as cecal disbiosis and hence, poopy butt. But wild rabbits live on grass I hear you say ... well yes ... BUT it’s not rich lawn grass. Their diet also consists of a massive range of other plants including herbage & tree bark etc and whilst grass is a big part of this diet, there are many species of grass that are grazed, not just one or two and they are in various stages of growth - from short to tall and dry. It’s not all short, rich, and well fed like our domestic lawn grasses can be.
Grass Hay - Because of the large quantity of grass a rabbit eats each day, it is rarely practical to provide enough fresh grass of the right type to meet all your rabbit's needs. The solution to this is to supplement or substitute grass with hay, which is readily available and easily stored. Hay is just grass that has been cut and left to dry out and although it varies slightly in its nutritive value, it has the same health and digestive benefits that fresh grass does.
In NZ there aren’t that many different hays to chose from; we are limited to Meadow, Timothy (often hard to source), Red Clover, Rye/Clover mix (not recommended for rabbits) and Lucerne/Alfalfa. Haylage is not suitable to feed to rabbits because it is fermented.
Meadow and Timothy will provide a suitable basis for your rabbit's daily diet, but you don't need to pick just one type. Red Clover can be gassy and is best kept to a minimum - maybe to mix through Meadow hay to make it more enticing and Lucerne/Alfalfa is great to mix with other hay to feed nursing Does, Kits and rabbits that need to gain weight. It's also much higher in calcium (1.5% compared to 0.5% in grass hay), so best avoid for any rabbit with a history of problems related to excess calcium e.g. bladder sludge.
Why Grass and Hay is so good for your rabbit’s teeth?
Look at those pointy bits!
What do you think? A cactus? A saw blade? Sharks teeth?
Nope, that’s a blade of grass magnified a few hundred times and those pointy bits are the reason grass (or hay) is an essential part of a rabbit’s diet.
Rabbit’s teeth grow continually throughout their life. To stop the teeth growing too long and causing problems they need to be worn down at the same rate they grow. That sounds fairly logical. But what seems to puzzle a lot of owners is: why does it have to be hay? Surely pellets are harder so would create more wear or even some nice crunchy carrots – wouldn’t they work?
Whilst other foods may contribute some degree of wear, as you can see from the picture, there is something very special about grass and this makes the number one thing for maintaining rabbit’s dental health.
Most people think of grass as soft and have probably enjoyed sitting on it at some point.
But grass is actually very similar to sand paper. Sandpaper isn’t hard, it’s flexible and you can tear it easily, but if you rub it against something it will wear away the surface. Like the sandpaper, the reason grass is good for wearing teeth is how rough the surface is, not how hard it is. Here is another close up of your rabbit’s dinner:
The reason that grass is rough is it doesn’t really want to get eaten. So to protect itself, it sucks up silica from the soil and uses it to build rough spiky structures called phytoliths.
If you don’t have a microscope to hand, you can feel them with your fingers. Run your fingers down a piece of grass they will catch on the surface – you can see why from the picture above. This is the same reason hay is so great at catching on your clothing and spreading itself around the house. And why it is so good at wearing down rabbit’s teeth!
Pellets are hard and carrots are crunchy, but neither are rough enough to act like sandpaper on rabbits teeth. For the same reason, grass is just as good as hay for wear, even though hay seems harder because it’s dry and crunchy.
Hands up all those about to go fondle their hay to see how rough it is… �
Source: Why Grass/Hay is good for Rabbit’s Teeth
Natural Nutrition I: The Importance of Fiber
This article has an in depth discussion about the importance of fibre in your rabbit’s diet.
Hay vs Straw
Hay is fed to rabbits as a substitute for fresh grass. It is grass that has been cut and left to dry. Good hay should be green and smell sweet, not be dusty or smell musty (excuse the pun). The greener hay is the closer it is nutritionally to grass. Old brown hay will have plenty of fibre but is not so good for providing all the other nutrients a rabbits needs. It’s also less tasty… not that I’ve personally tried it.
There are different types of grass such as Timothy, Meadow and Orchard. Sometimes grass is also grown with legumes like Alfalfa. This increases the protein level which makes it too fattening to feed as the main diet for the average adult rabbit, although it can be good for growing youngsters or putting weight on an older rabbit. Alfalfa is also higher in calcium, again good for growing youngsters but too much can be bad for adults.
Straw is the stalks from grain crops after the grain heads have been taken off. It’s yellow and the stalks are hollow like a drinking straw. Straw is great for insulating so it is used for bedding to keep rabbits warm on cold winter nights. Straw has a lower nutritional value than hay so it’s not suitable to feed as a replacement for grass. If you use it for bedding, add some hay on top for your rabbit to snack on. It’s perfectly safe if your rabbit does nibble the straw a bit too though.
Source - Hay vs Straw
Do Rabbits Need Straw or Hay?
The Science of Hay
This article explains about the process behind making hay and what to look for in a quality hay.
Types of Rabbit Hay & Grass
This article discusses different types of grass and hay products. Please note, many of the products mentioned are not available in NZ.
Hay Resistance - How to get your rabbit to eat more hay...
Considering at least 80% of a rabbit’s diet should be hay (or grass) there is a worrying number of rabbits owners that report their bunny eats little or no hay. The high fibre content of hay is essential for maintaining a healthy gut and teeth, as well as providing a boredom busting activity for your rabbit.
Many common and potentially serious health problems are caused or exacerbated by the lack it of, including:
* Gut Stasis
* Excess Cecotropes (sticky poop) which can lead to fly strike
* Overgrown teeth which can result in tooth abscesses and gut stasis
Here are 6 tips for turning your rabbit in to a hay eater.
1. Feed Tastier Hay
Hay is a bit like apples. It comes in lots of different varieties and flavours. Some people like crisp Granny Smiths others like sweet Cox’s, and cooking apples taste horrible (unless cooked). Likewise some rabbits can be quite fussy about the variety of hay they like.
When choosing hay avoid the finely chopped, brownish plastic packed varieties you find in a lot of pet shops. Look for green, long strands that smell nice and aren’t too dusty. Hay sold at feed shops and farms, for horses to eat, is usually good and a lot cheaper then pet shop bags
2. Put Hay Where Your Rabbit Sits
Rabbits prefer to munch hay while they are resting and while they are using their litter tray/toilet area. Putting the hay in these places will catch your rabbit at the time he’s most likely to eat it. If you don’t want to put hay in the litter tray then hang a hay rack above it.
3. Incorporate Hay into Toys
Most rabbits like to play and throw toys around. Incorporating hay in to play activities can encourage them to pull, bite and chew at the hay. A willow ball or cardboard tube filled with hay can be hung from the cage or thrown around by your rabbit.
4. Add Garnish
You can make hay more interesting to your rabbit by mixing in food they like best. This could include dry food, fresh vegetables or dried (bunny safe) herbs. Whilst searching through the hay for the good bits hopefully they’ll eat some hay too.
5. Feed Less Dry Food
Most rabbits have bad hay eating habits because they eat too much dry food. A healthy adult rabbit should only be fed a small quantity of dry food (50g per average size adult rabbit per day is plenty). Dry food tastes good but it doesn’t provide the fibre levels and chewing action needed to keep your rabbit healthy. Reducing the amount of dry food you rabbit gets should help encourage them to eat more hay.
6. Feed Fewer Greens
Feeding too many greens especially low fibre vegies can fill your rabbit up and make them less inclined to eat their hay. Limit their greens intake to around 10% of their diet or 1 packed cup per 2.5kg of body weight.
***A change in eating habits can indicate teeth problems and should be investigated by a vet. If your rabbit stops eating hay, starts dribbling, has longer than normal front teeth or chews differently to normal then a visit to your vet is needed***
Base material sourced from:
5 Ways to Get Your Rabbit to Eat More Hay
How to Make Your Own Hay
Making Your Own Hay
You can also make your own Dried Grass using a dehydrator - Speeding up the drying of cut grass reduces the loss of nutrients giving it a higher nutritional value than hay. The quick drying process tends to leave it greener looking and slightly higher protein (12-14%) than hay - more like fresh grass. That's not a problem, but if your rabbit is particularly sensitive to diet changes then introduce it gradually, and overweight rabbits might benefit from mixing standard hay with it. Most rabbits find it very tasty so it's a good choice if your rabbit's a reluctant hay eater. I dry my grass at 65c for 6-8 hours.
Growing Wheatgrass
Head to Growing Wheatgrass Trays for a tutorial and visit WW’s shop to buy Wheatgrass seed.
A Guide to Buying Hay
There a two main ways to buy hay, either as bales from a farm, stables or feed store, or packaged for the retail market - like the branded bags you see in pet shops. If you have room to store it or many rabbits to feed, buying hay by the bale is generally much cheaper and can be just as good quality as expensive branded hay. If you buy packaged hay, you are paying for the brand, the packaging, the transportation and the retailers markup however, it may be more convenient to find and good brands have quality control that help ensure consistency. In either case, you need to check the quality of the hay you buy. Once you start shopping for hay, you will see there is a lot of variation in colour and texture. Both the appearance and nutritional value of hay varies depending on the type of grass it is cut from, when it was cut, and how long it has been stored. This means there can be variation between batches as well as types. You may need to shop around to find good hay as some bales may be old or poor quality and likewise some pre-packaged pet shop hay can be quite dusty, brown and generally unappetising.
Good hay should be green, smell sweet not mouldy, and not contain a lot of dust or be damp. The greener hay is, the closer it is nutritionally to grass. Hay on the browner end of the scale will contain plenty of fibre but will have less nutrients.
***All hay needs to be stored for 90-100 days after harvest to reduce the risk of the spread of RCD - Calici virus’ to your rabbit**
New Zealand Wide Hay & Chaff Suppliers
One Stop Bunny Shop - A comprehensive range of small animal foods including premium quality hay, WW recommended pellets, treats, hay feeders, tunnels, and more! Ships NZ wide.
Animates - Meadow Hay, Timothy Hay, Lucerne Hay
Petstock - Meadow Hay, Timothy Hay, Lucerne Hay
Pet.Kiwi - Meadow Hay, Lucerne Hay and Timothy Hay
Pet.co.nz - Lucerne Hay, Meadow Hay, Timothy Hay
Whiterocks Feed - Timothy & Lucerne Chaff. Plain Timothy and Lucerne Pellets. High quality NZ manufactured complete Rabbit & Guinea Pig Pellets. Ship NZ wide.
Highfields Equestrian - Various hays incl compressed Timothy, Meadow & Lucerne. Timothy, Meadow & Lucerne Chaff. Ship NZ wide
Appletons - Meadow and Lucerne hay. Ship NZ wide
Rabbit Box - Meadow, Timothy, Lucerne Hay & Chaff. Ship NZ wide
The Chaff Chaps - Timothy, Lucerne and Meadow Hay. Timothy, Lucerne, Meadow and Orchard/Cocksfoot Chaff. Timothy Pellets. Ship NZ Wide.
Whangarei
* Farm Source - Meadow Hay
Auckland
* One Stop Bunny Shop - A comprehensive range of small animal foods including premium quality hay, WW recommended pellets, treats, hay feeders, tunnels, and more! Ships NZ wide.
* Falloons -18 Kahikatea Flat Road, Dairy Flat
* HR Fiskens & Sons in 295 Tuakau Road, Pukekohe
* RD1 Albany - 12 Oteha Valley Road Extension
* Kumeu Horselands - 3/236 Great South Road, Kumeu, Auckland
* Lifestyle Animal and Pet supplies - 1/570 Swanson Rd, Ranui
Hamilton
* Animal Feed Barn - Meadow Hay. Various hays and Chaff’s available.
* Cambridge Grains - Meadow Hay, Lucerne Hay, Chaff
* Straw Warehouse (Cambridge) - Various hays and Chaff’s available.
Bay of Plenty
* Farmlands - 20 Taurikura Drive, Tauriko, Tauranga. You need to ask for the hay, it is not stored in the shop.
Manawatu
Whanganui
* Wanganui Equine Farming and Hunting
* Wanganui Farm Supplies - may have names of farmers to buy from.
Hawkes Bay
Wellington
* Living Rural - 15 Paekakariki Hill Rd, Pauatahanui.
* Sharpes Feed Barn - Lower Hutt
* Simply Rural - 2/2 Jupiter Grove, Trentham, Upper Hutt.
* Hay wanted & for sale NZ
Canterbury / Christchurch
* Dawes Grain & Stockfeeds 593 Halswell Jct Rd, Hornby, Christchurch 8042
* Burwood Produce 172 Mairehau Rd, Marshland, Christchurch 8083
* Hay Wanted/For Sale Canterbury
* Quigley Contracting - Bryant Street Yard. Compressed bales hay.