Switching rabbit hay brands safely

Finding mold in a hay batch is genuinely alarming — hay is the cornerstone of a rabbit's diet, making up around 80% of what they should eat daily, so quality and storage really matter. I'm glad you're switching rather than hoping it was a one-off. Before I point you to the right option, a couple of quick questions: is your Palomino eating any other hay right now, or has their supply been interrupted? And do you know roughly how much hay they were getting through per week?

Two days is worth knowing — her gut will be a little out of balance, so you'll want to reintroduce hay steadily rather than dumping a big pile in front of her all at once. Also, it's worth pulling back on the pellets as soon as hay is back in rotation; too many pellets without hay roughage can cause digestive slowdown in rabbits, and at four years old that's something to stay on top of. Half a kilo a week is a solid amount — she's eating well. What brand were you using before, and do you know how it was stored at your end?

Yes, the garage is almost certainly part of it. Temperature swings and humidity are exactly what cause mold in hay, even in a sealed bag. Supermarket hay also tends to sit in warehouses longer before it reaches shelves, so it's already older when you buy it. For a four-year-old rabbit like yours, I'd recommend Burgess Excel Timothy Hay. It's consistently cut fresh, has a good dust-extracted process, and comes in a range of bag sizes — the 1kg bag is ideal to start with so you can check she takes to it before buying in bulk. Store it somewhere dry and well-ventilated indoors, ideally in a breathable cotton sack rather than the plastic bag it comes in. That alone will prevent almost all mold issues going forward.

Given she's had a two-day gap, I'd actually just introduce the new hay straight — there's no previous batch to mix it with, which in this case works in your favour. Offer a generous handful several times today to get her gut moving again. The only thing to watch is whether she's eating it enthusiastically within the first 24 hours; if she turns her nose up, it's usually texture or smell she's adjusting to, and that typically resolves within a day or two as long as she doesn't have other options filling her up. Keep pellets to a tablespoon or so per kilogram of her body weight until hay intake is fully back to normal.

Great choice. Once she's back on track, it's also worth checking her litter tray output over the next 48 hours — normal round droppings in good volume are your confirmation that her digestion has settled. If droppings stay sparse or very small after 48 hours back on hay, that's worth a call to your vet. But most rabbits bounce back quickly once the hay is flowing again. Hope she's back to her usual self very soon.