Pickest chin ever?

[Crabe]

So I guess this is a vent, sort of. When I got Chinny he came with two 90oz bags of kaytee Timothy hay. He wasn't really eating any of it. Through this place I learned oxbow was a good hay, so that's what I bought. He ate it until he just out of nowhere stopped. So I got American pet diner and that's been wonderful until this last couple of bags. So my vent is why won't he eat is hay! I throw away sooooooo much hay. I give him orchard grass and 1st cut Timothy and 2nd cut Timothy and alfalfa he gets about twice a week. I order from drs. Foster and smith so I don't think it's bad hay. It looks and smells right. Ad he's totally a healthy happy little guy. does everyone else throw out a lot of hay too? I mean he literally picks up a piece smells it maybe take a bite throws on the ground. After he has a pile he pees on it's so there's no putting back in his bowl. Yea so just curious if everyone is going through the same with their chins?

 

[javachin]

This is very common chin behavior. I don't offer hay every day for this reason; it just will go to waste. You can rotate brands/types of hay to keep him interested and maybe give him hay every other day or so.

 

[meiying]

This is very common chin behavior. I don't offer hay every day for this reason; it just will go to waste.

Really?? Is it okay not to offer hay every day? One of my chins pees in his hay bow frequently, and i have to throw away whatever is left in the bowl, if fact he pees everywhere, :facepalm:

I wonder why they pee on their hay? They never ever pee on their pellets though, and my pellets bowl and my hay bowl are both ceremic from SuperPet Vege T bowls.

 

[Crabe]

Yea same here both ceramic bowls. He never pees in the pellets. I just bought 3 different hays of oxbow for this round so we'll see how it goes. Glad to know it's not just my Chinny. As I type this he is digging through his hay and discarding. So spoiled, so lucky I love him so much!

 

[meiying]

As I type this he is digging through his hay and discarding.

:hilarious:funny thing is, while i was reading your reply, i saw my chin stucking his head down the carrot bowl and eating and picking out the hay... how funny is that!

 

[javachin]

Its perfectly fine to not give them hay every single day. I find that doing this keeps them more interested and less likely to waste it. You can also rotate loose hay and hay cubes for a change. For those of us who raise chinchillas, providing hay every single day would be very difficult financially. Chins will pee wherever they like and unless you continually put the clean hay back in the holder, they'll just remove it and do whatever they want with it.

 

[kerri101]

:hilarious:funny thing is, while i was reading your reply, i saw my chin stucking his head down the carrot bowl and eating and picking out the hay... how funny is that!

Thats to funny chin must have known he was being talked about....

yeah chins will throw hay all around....but on a plus side its cheap and gives them something to do pull the hay , and throw it around and forage for the good pieces mine is soooo picky!!!

 

[meiying]

yeah chins will throw hay all around....but on a plus side its cheap and gives them something to do pull the hay

Yea, just 1 of my 2 chins pees on the hay, sometimes I wonder what the other chin thinks when he reaches down trying to eat hay, but all he can find is pee-soaked hay.... :vomit:

I should try roate different types of hay and grass too, also maybe not giving hay to them everyday, thanks for the suggestion!

 

[Crabe]

Yea totally. I was under the impression I had to give hay everyday. I think I will try hay cubes as well. That's a great idea. Thanks. And it's like they always know when they're being talked about right? Has anyone used those hay wheels? I wonder if that would help having less hay waste?

 

[Mt. Zion Chins]

I give hey every day - yes they waste some but I want them to have their hay. I use a ceramic hooded dish that attaches to the side of the cage for those to stand in the hay and pee in it. The 'hood' prevents that. You can get them in the parrot section of Petsmart or in the Foster and Smith pet catalog (under the bird section)

 

[ticklechin]

Chins waste hay, its just the way it is! Hay is important for the diet and regardless of waste should be free fed.

 

[ArmyWife]

I give hay everyday as well but try not to give an excessive amount. At the end of the day I always throw away the peed on hay and re-supply with fresh hay.

 

[SeeleyAnne]

My chins throw hay like crazy too. If I pick it up off the floor of the cage and put it back in the holder, they won't eat it. Maybe I should try giving it every other day instead of daily.

 

[meiying]

I give hey every day - yes they waste some but I want them to have their hay. I use a ceramic hooded dish that attaches to the side of the cage for those to stand in the hay and pee in it. The 'hood' prevents that. You can get them in the parrot section of Petsmart or in the Foster and Smith pet catalog (under the bird section)

Good advice! I should look for that ceramic hooded dish

 

[Godofgods]

My chins would freak out if they didn't have their hay each day. Each cage gets a handful twice a day. Yes they do waste a bit, but not much you can do about that. They need it for their health and their teeth, so i make sure its every day.

However they is a correlation between how much i give them at a time and how much they waste. So eventually you'll learn the best amount to give them at a time to avoid waste.