Hay For Angora

On the recent Yahoo "AngoraRabbitList" there were quite a bit of discussion about different kinds of hay. Betty says, "I happened to have picked up some sample hay from a vendor during the WCC weekend in Reno and I also have some hay from my local store; I took some photos for comparison."

This is from a sample bag of oat hay from a vendor during the WCC weekend in Reno. It's very nice. The listed price on the vendor website including shipping is 10 pounds for $25.95 and 20 pounds for $31.95 if shipped to western states; add $8 each if shipped to eastern states.

This is my favorite hay: wheat hay. It is purchased from my local store (see photos yesterday). One bale that is around 100 pounds, give and take 10 pounds up and down, is between $10 to $15 depending on the season. Shipping is not available, of course.

Both oat hay and wheat hay are nice, they provide lots of roughage for rabbits, the difference is how the seeds are formed. The top shows the oat florets/seeds and the bottom wheat.

When an English Angora is in show coat, the dried oat florets cause a lot of problems. They are easily broken from the main stem and they could stick to the wool; also they could work their way to the skin. It takes a lot of time and effort to get the oat florets off a show coat. Though wheat florets could also cause some issues for an English Angora show coat, they are smoother and not easily broken from the main stem. Therefore it takes less effort to get it out of a show coat.

The top grass hay is from a sample bag of hay that has a price tag of 10 pounds for $25.95 or 20 pounds for $31.95 while the bottom grass hay is from my local feed store, a bale for $10-15. Can you tell the difference?

Alfalfa hay from my local store. Rabbits tend to like it a lot. I use it as a treat than putting it into the regular feeding. It is advantageous to have some good alfalfa hay in hand; when a rabbit loses appetite for pellets, alfalfa hay is a good substitute.