Hay can be given to your pet in a variety of ways including in a hay rack attached to the side of the cage, in a box or basket within the cage or exercise area, or even placed in the litterbox. Rabbits often pass stool when they are eating and placing some hay in the litter box can help with litter box training.
We recommend using CareFresh (a rabbit-safe pet bedding that does not contain any pine or cedar products) and fresh hay to prepare your bunny's litter box. Spread one inch of clean CareFresh covering the bottom of the pan, then add a big handful of hay.
Prepare the litter box
Use 1" of litter covered with Timothy hay. Add in some of the rabbit's poops and urine-soaked paper or hay. Place the litter box wherever the bunny seems to prefer to use, which is often a corner.
You can use hay as bedding for your rabbit but this can be costly and less efficient for absorbency. But if you are out of your normal bedding and only have hay, then this isn't the worse thing to use.
Recommendations. Overall, we recommend that you don't use hay racks, and that eating scattered hay off the floor is best for rabbits. This encourages their natural feeding behaviour and aids digestion, whilst minimising any potential health risks.
Hay provides lots of long-strand fibre which keeps your rabbit's gut moving properly and teeth healthy. It's the closest thing to a natural diet. Rabbits would naturally graze upon it all day, so ensure yours have an unlimited supply.
Hay keeps the gut moving
Blockages can often be fatal. If a rabbit doesn't eat enough hay then this can slow down the rabbit's intestinal functions and cause serious problems eg. GI Stasis (see below).
It is nearly impossible for a rabbit to eat too much hay. However, if a rabbit has other foods that are easier to eat available, they will typically forgo the hay in favor of these other foods. So when a rabbit is given too many pellets or sugary treats, they will end up overeating them instead of munching on hay.
More often rabbits will be picky eaters about their hay and prefer to eat pellets. However, some of them can refuse to eat their pellets instead. Since rabbits can still be healthy even on a completely pellet-free diet, it's not always a bad thing if they simply don't like to eat pellets.
Rabbits eat grass (or hay)!
Rabbits should be fed in a way that is as close as possible to their natural diet: mostly grass or hay. In fact, rabbits could live on hay and water alone, but we recommend providing some fresh leafy vegetables and a small amount of commercial feed.
For rabbits, use litter made from aspen shavings or recycled paper. Pine and cedar shavings can be unhealthy for rabbits so they should be avoided.
Hay is dried grass and the most vital part of a rabbit's diet. Straw is dried stalks from grain crops and is much more suitable for bedding as it is warmer and less likely to be eaten. It's not a problem if rabbits eat straw but there are few nutrients and they must be given good quality hay to eat.
Occasionally giving it a white vinegar rinse will help keep calcium residues down and control the odor. Be sure to wash the bottom of the box as well. Be sure there is no urine *under* the box or around the boxes in areas that are not wiped up. These get to smelling foul very quickly.
Regardless of the amount of paper you use in the litter box, most of the time you will need to change the box every two days or so. Paper pulp pellets will need to be changed less often than newspaper. Recommended by many veterinarians, especially when learning how to litter train a rabbit.
Rabbits are very clean creatures. A smelly, soiled litter box could cause your rabbit to choose another place to do his business, sometimes just outside the box. Depending on the number of rabbits and litter boxes, clean litter boxes at least every other day. Once a week is NOT enough!
Rabbits need at least one bundle of good quality hay everyday, and it should be as big as they are!
Rabbits do not require routine bathing and in fact frequent washing, either with or without shampoo, strips the rabbit's fur of its natural oils, which helps to keep the rabbit's coat in good condition. Bathing is also extremely stressful for rabbits and has many potential and serious dangers.
This is because most rabbits prefer pellets to hay. Rabbit pellets are predominantly made of carbohydrates, and like most people, rabbits love their carbs and will choose them over fiber (hay).
Silverbeet
Like iceberg lettuce, silverbeet—sometimes referred to as chard—is another leafy green that your rabbit should avoid. According to a veterinary center in New Zealand, the vegetable can cause your bunny to suffer from colic and bloating and should be replaced with high-fiber fruits, veggies, and herbs.
Myth #3 - Rabbits eat lettuce
Reality: a rabbit's diet shouldn't be based on lettuce. Rabbits shouldn't eat some lettuces (such as iceberg), as they contain lactucarium, which can be harmful in large quantities.
Any leafy green that is safe for a human or a horse to eat is safe for a rabbit to consume. An approximate amount to feed would be around 1 cup of greens for 2 lbs of rabbit body weight once a day or divided into multiple feedings a day.
Hay can be given to your pet in a variety of ways including in a hay rack attached to the side of the cage, in a box or basket within the cage or exercise area, or even placed in the litterbox. Rabbits often pass stool when they are eating and placing some hay in the litter box can help with litter box training.
Rabbits Eat A Lot of Grass!
Grass is more nutritious than hay as hay is dried, causing some of the beneficial vitamins & minerals to fade over time. Just as their wild counterpart, a domestic rabbit will always opt to eat fresh grass over hay, and eat it with fervour too!