Hay For Rabbits - What Type Of Hay Is The Best For My Bunny?

You've probably read in lots of places that it is very important that rabbits get lots of hay, but did you know that not all types of hay are the same? The type of hay you feed your rabbit will have a big impact on healthy it is, as some hays are more nutritious than others, and certain types of hay contain ingredients that can make your rabbit fat and sick if they eat too much of it.

Let's learn about different types of hay so that your bunny can be the healthiest bunny it can be!

There are two main types of hay, Grass Hay, and Legume Hay, Grass hay is the best type of hay for your bunny because it contains lots of nutrients, but not a lot of energy. Bunnies can get fat very easily, and a fat bunny is a sick bunny, so owners have to make sure that the bunny is not getting too much 'bad food' in their diet. The funny thing is that 'bad food' for a bunny is actually quite healthy for humans, so it is easy to think that you are giving your bunny good food when in fact you are giving it the bunny equivalent of a McDonald's meal.

Bad bunny foods include things like seeds, dried fruits, oats, cereals, bread, and grains. There are so many good things to feed a bunny that you shouldn't ever need to feed it these things, and you should be careful if you feed bunny pellets to buy pellets that do not contain these ingredients. But on with the hay!

Grass hay includes hays like Timothy Hay, Meadow Hay, and Bermuda Grass. Timothy hay is usually quite easily bought in the USA, but make sure you find a good supplier who sells you fresh, clean hay.

Legume Hays include alfalfa hay, clover hay, beans, peas, and peanuts. Your rabbit will find these hays super yummy, but they are not very good for it because they contain so much energy. The average house rabbit will not be able to burn off all the energy they get from these hays, and they will get very fat indeed.

If you can, make sure that your bunny has access to all the grass hay it wants to eat. Eating grass hay isn't just good for the bunny's physical health, it also helps the rabbit's mental health by giving it something to do. Chewing is very soothing for rabbits, and most rabbits love nothing more than to sit and chew away at their hay. This chewing also helps grind down their teeth, which keep growing and growing, and can get painfully long if not ground down by lots of chewing.