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Post by surrpaws on Mar 2, 2018 17:11:14 GMT
Your rabbit/guinea pig should consist mainly of hay. I am sure alot of new rabbit/guinea pig owner would be confused as to what kind of hay to buy for your rabbit or how to store hay. We have compiled a list to clear the confusion. Type of hay Timothy – Most commonly fed to adult rabbit/guinea pig Meadow Hay – Can be mix with timothy hay for a range of flavour Orchard Grass – Can be mix with timothy hay for a range of flavour Alfalfa – Due to it high nutrition value, it is to be fed to young rabbit or underweight rabbit only Oat/Wheat/Barley – Can be fed to rabbit to provide roughage which reduces the danger of hairballs and other blockages Type of cut First Cutting – More roughage Second Cutting – Larger percentage of leaves to stems, has a finer and softer stem Third Cutting – Typically very soft hay that is primarily leaves with very few small stems How much to feed your rabbit/guinea pig? Birth to 3 weeks– mother’s milk 3 to 7 weeks– mother’s milk, alfalfa hay and pellets 7 weeks to 7 months– unlimited pellets, unlimited alfalfa hay 7 months to 1 year– introduce timothy hay, grass hay, oat hay, and other hays; decrease alfalfa 1 year to 5 years– Unlimited timothy, grass hay, oat hay 1/4 to 1/2 cup pellets per 6 lbs. body weight Over 6 year– Adult diet for rabbit with normal weight Alfalfa hay for underweight rabbit How to store hay Best stored at room temperature or cooler in a dry location out of sunlight Container that is not air tight works well.(Your hay needs to breathe, as it naturally has a moisture content that will cause growth of mould) Do not store your hay in sealed plastic bags. Source www.surrpaws.com |
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Post by Bean on Mar 3, 2018 8:18:13 GMT
It's good to keep remembering about the different kinds of hay, thanks for posting that.
I find it's a matter of hours or days before baby guinea pigs start nibbling at food, and get quite a lot of nutrition from it, way before they give up their mother's milk.
As male babies need to be separated from their mother before 7 weeks (before they become fertile), many babies won't be able to still have milk at that point anyway (and in my experience, the mum will start shooing them away from feeding at about 1 month!).
I wish pet shops here cottoned onto the hay not being stored in plastic bags. We buy ours in bales; lovely and fresh and sweet. A totally different ball game to the brown, musty stuff sold in bags in pet shops.
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Post by 3piggles on Mar 4, 2018 18:30:09 GMT
Very good listing of hay cuts and the meanings of the different types of hays. We generally tell guinea pig parents who are allergic to Timothy hay to try other types. Unlike rabbits, guinea pigs don't have strong enough digestive tract muscles to push their food through, so they need an endless supply going in one end, to get the food through and out the other end. While Timothy is the most efficient hay for guinea pigs, and can have a lot of nutritious benefits, it's not the only hay guinea pigs can eat. In general, buy a hay that's within your budget, that doesn't cause allergies, and that the pigs like. No alfalfa for guinea pigs, unless it's sick pig, or a nursing mom, and then only in small amounts. Guinea pigs react differently to the high energy alfalfa than rabbits do, sort of like a sugar high  I agree with Bean, don't forget that males need to be separated from the females by 4 weeks, and baby guinea pigs have often stopped nursing long before then. That's a great list, and since we have rabbit parents as well as guinea pig parents, it's great to have such well presented information on rabbit care |
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Post by truecolours on Apr 19, 2018 11:16:10 GMT
This is our #1 beef - hands down - with the hay that is sold in pet stores ... 
We grow hay and have done so for years, for our horses and now for the small animal market. Hay is typically baled at 18% moisture or less. You don't want it TOO dry when you bale or the good bits (like the seed heads on Timothy hay) will shatter and fall off and all you will be left with are stalks
But ... there is still moisture in dry, baled hay and since hay is an organic product, it will continue to emit gases over the next 3-6 months as it completes the "drying down" process and if you don't allow it to emit those gases and continue to dry down and fully cure, mold spores will form and will become airborne when you open the bale or open the bag in the case of plastic sealed store bought hay
When our hay gets baled, it is then "put up" in open, well ventilated areas, loosely stacked so air can get to all sides of the bales. That is how hay should be treated and stored. Those little teeny holes in the plastic bags of store bought hay doesn't cut it and doesn't allow it to continue to dry down and cure, especially when you pack 12 or 24 plastic bags tightly into a master carton and then store that master carton for xx weeks or months in a central warehouse, before it is sold to ABC Pet Store where it sits for another XX weeks or months in their back storage area before it gets put out on the store shelf for XX weeks or months before you come along and buy it to take home
Hay can have "field dust" on it. Those particles are heavy and will not poof up and hang in the air. They will fall down on the ground immediately. Mold spore dust is extremely light and will waft and hang in the air for 2-5-10 minutes or longer before settling back down again on window coverings, your pet's living quarters, furniture, carpeting, etc. It is nasty nasty stuff and is the #1 reason why people with allergies react to hay. Its generally not the hay itself but the mould spore dust and allergens in the package
Start looking for and asking for hay that is packaged in breathable, all natural packaging so that even if it is packaged right after baling, it has a chance to properly vent the gases it continues to emit as the curing process continues ...
Hope this helps ...
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Post by 3piggles on Apr 19, 2018 19:06:06 GMT
Another very informative post. I grew up in dairy farm country, so baling hay was a regular summer activity. I was too little to lift a bale, so I got to ride on the baler. Dirty job, but someone had to do it It is the best place to learn about hay, and I really wish there were tutorials for people who own hay eaters, so they knew not to buy hay in plastic bags. We also buy it by the bale, or if we buy it at the rescue, the bales are broken up and bagged right then, so we know the hay is fresh. My guinea pigs love fresh hay, and never reacted that way to the stuff I used to buy at Petco. |
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Post by bazookagoof on Apr 19, 2018 22:49:24 GMT
This thread has made me start wondering if I should stop re-sealing the bag of hay after each feeding session. I'm buying the Oxbow brand, and the guys love it, but it comes in a resealable bag and I always close it up after they get their fistfuls. I guess I'm thinking I don't want it to dry out further, but I have no issue keeping it open from now on.
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Post by Bean on Apr 20, 2018 15:13:30 GMT
Agreed! I buy mine in open bales from a farm and it's so sweet smelling and good quality. The stuff in pet shops smells awful and is so dusty. The colour is so different too. It's a shame they can't make more of an effort as it's not only healthier for the pigs, but they love the taste of great hay so much more.
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Post by 3piggles on Apr 20, 2018 19:49:24 GMT
The hay should be allowed to breathe, and if it has air circulating around it, will stay fresher. I think Oxbow and other places are trying to cater to people who don't want a lot of hay around their houses, so resealable bags are great. A covered trash can with some small air holes drilled in it would be even better.
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Post by bazookagoof on Apr 20, 2018 23:55:49 GMT
The hay should be allowed to breathe, and if it has air circulating around it, will stay fresher. I think Oxbow and other places are trying to cater to people who don't want a lot of hay around their houses, so resealable bags are great. A covered trash can with some small air holes drilled in it would be even better. I'll keep mine open from now on. Thanks for the advice. |
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Post by 3piggles on Apr 21, 2018 22:19:11 GMT
That's all you need to do |
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