Hay - opinions please!

[ladymary86]

Hi all

I know this has probably been asked a million times before, but bear with me!

I have seven potatoes who are my absolute world. And as they know this, are the worlds pickiest eaters.

I order roughly 20 to 30kg of hay per month, and I’m trying to find a new supplier in the UK.

I was using timothyhay.co.uk, they were fab, quality was great but I noticed my mum (who has COPD) starting to cough a bit when around the hay.

So, I’ve tried haybox.club. I ordered orchard hay which was great, but their hand packed Timothy blend was so/so on quality, some strands were long but it was a tad bitty and dusty. I then ordered the compressed bale of Timothy soft and lord it was damp and musty. I will not feed this to them, it’s not worth the risk. I’ve sent an email to them to advise and request a refund or credit note, but not heard back yet (early days tho, have to give them a chance ) depending on what they say I will order or not order with them again!

I’ve also tried pillowad meadow but the picky eaters won’t touch it, they just like to play in it which is fine but I really do need them to be eating the majority of it!

Has anyone ordered from anywhere else and got really nice hay? I’m thinking more orchard or meadow, Timothy seems to set my mums condition off :/ something with long strands and very green

Pic of one of the picky piggies for tax

Thanks!

 

[Suki&Indie]

Hi! Sorry for the late response (I’m a night owl)
I also have picky piggies and a mum with COPD! I’ve tried a loooot of hays too haha.

Personally I love littlehayco, you can get hay in quite big boxes for a reasonable price and they always have a discount code for around 15% off if you check their Instagram. My fave hays from them is the Cotswold sweet and silky soft (which is currently out of stock ) shipping can be expensive if you’re in Northern Ireland like me but if you’re mainland UK shipping is free if you spend over a certain amount. So far we’ve had no issue with dust aside from a little at the bottom of the box but we bin the box once we get to the dusty layer.

I’m actually currently using orchard hay from haybox to replace silky soft until it’s back in stock - so far haybox orchard hay has been consistently good but I had an issue when ordering the pellets and customer service never responded so I’m not their biggest fan.

Another great hay for picky piggies is Canadian Timothy hay, I got mine from Just4Rabbits (again free shipping when you spend a certain amount - even to Northern Ireland which I love.) It’s definitely more expensive than other hays but it’s soo green and smells amazing. Quite stalky but my picky piggies who usually prefer soft hay still LOVED it. Because it’s more stalky there’s basically no dust which is nice.
Only changed because one silly piggy kept shoving her whole head in the hay and ended up getting hay poke twice :/ so I’m sticking to softer hay for now to avoid future accidents!

Sorry for the wall of text! Hope this helps

 

[Piggies&buns]

I have five animals (three piggies and two rabbits) so I also get through a lot of hay.

I use a full size bale of meadow hay from a local farm which is fantastic hay and considerably cheaper than anywhere online - I pay £8 for a full bale lasting around 6-8 weeks.
If you have a farm near you then they are worth looking into

I also use happy hay co and buy a 15kg bale of orchard hay. That is lovely hay and very good delivery and customer service. All my animals have loved it

 

[Merab]

I used Hay & Straw Company in Yorkshire.
They have a variety of hays, all of which mine loved.
Delivery in the UK is both very fast and free

 

[Roselina]

I used to buy the silky soft hay from the little hay company until it went out of stock - finally found a long strand meadow hay at Pets at Home they’ll eat. Altho it’s expensive I only have 2 piggies - I refuse to ever use Haybox again after some very poor products and very poor customer service
Good luck ….if you have a farm nearby worth checking !

 

[poopie]

I use Natures own Devon Meadow Hay. It is organic, dust extracted and smells wonderful. It is also soft so I feel it helps to avoid nasty haypoke or cuts in the mouth. Most of all my piggies eat every bit, so a huge plus.

 

[ladymary86]

Thank you for the replies, it’s a big help!

Just wanted to update with HayBox reply, they’ve been really lovely and apologetic, seems I got a bad batch, they are refunding me in full can’t complain about that customer service!

 

[YvonneBlue]

I buy a bale of Timothy hay from a local (30 min. drive away) farm for £6.50. My piggies love it. I also buy hay from Nature's Own, it is always great quality.

 

[Lorcan]

I buy 10kg mini bales of timothy from Happy Hay, with an occasional box of orchard for a change. Cam wouldn't eat anything except their timothy but, even with him gone, Bann has a distinct preference for it too lol. Mourne also eats it quite happily.