Critical thinking: Hay Cubes

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Lucille

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I've seen alfalfa cubes before for sale, but recently I saw timothy cubes as well. I'd like to see a discussion about whether these cubes could replace loose hay.
I ask for critical thinking here. Too often in such discussions, you get those who write that anything new is inappropriate because it isn't the way it's always been done. People pull strong opinions out of their...apple blossoms, and then claim that anyone who doesn't think the way they do couldn't possibly love their pets. We can do without those internet queens here.
Then you get people who make totally unsupported claims, i.e. 'pigs like hay because it is long'. It's totally possible that pigs DO like hay because it is long, but back your claims up with non anthropormorphic (my cousin Joe likes his spaghetti long and not cut up) experiences.
I have no preconceived notions, and would like to hear your experiences and well thought out opinions.
 
My pigs hardly touch those, so for me they could never replace hay, since the right quantity of hay (albeit compressed) would never be eaten. I would also imagine it would work out very expensive. One of the vets I use has them instead of hay though, for the guinea pigs, rabbits etc that are kept in, to keep the environment as clean as possible.
 
I have tried them and mine play with them, but they LOVE burrowing in the hay and I don't want to take that away from them. They also have to work harder for the hay that is cubed, and I don't want to risk them not eating enough hay.

And the internet queens you are referring to are rare on this forum. I'm sorry if you've had bad experiences elsewhere.
 
Hay is valuable in one way because of thelong strands isn't it? That they have to chew and chew and chew to eat them and in the time grind their teeth down.

I give both just to be sure - I am certainly not against hay cubes / cakes but very into giving long strand good quality hay too.
 
Lisajazz said:
Hay is valuable in one way because of thelong strands isn't it? That they have to chew and chew and chew to eat them and in the time grind their teeth down.
Click to expand...

I guess it depends on whether they do the side to side chewing motion with the hay cubes, and I'm not sure of the answer to that. :{
 
I agree that hay cubes are nice toys and snacks for guinea pigs. However, hay is not only used for eating but also for bedding. Guinea pigs need long, hay for sleeping in.

Also, many hay cubes may have been forced into that shape. It would not be as natural as fresh hay.
 
I tried to use hay cakes for when we are away but my piggies did not really eat them so ended up buying loose hay as they were hardly touching the hay cake and asking for more nuggets and veg
 
Mine have had hay cakes as a 'treat' but they were not that taken with them, I think I agree with above, that piggies enjoy the foraging part of long hay as much as the eating of it.

I had similar concerns with just feeding Readigrass rather than hay, and whether the shorter strands would mean less wear on the teeth. I experimented with all the pigs here just on Readigrass, and they ate it happily enough but didn't get the stimulation they seem to get from rummaging through the hay.

Sophie
x
 
There are two "problems" with compressed hays (hay cookies/hay cubes) replacing loose hay.

Foraging is important to guinea pigs, it is natural behaviour and being allowed to root through a pile of hay can prevent problem behaviours. Even I underestimated the importance of it and since giving my own pigs lots of loose hay on the ground (as opposed to solely in hay racks), they have been significantly happier and eating a lot more hay. Lesson learnt there!

There is also the issue of the ways guinea pigs must chew the hay cubes compared to the way they chew loose hay. Normal side to side mastication is important to maintain good dental wear and this is not easily achieved when they must spend more time dragging tiny strands out of a hard cube, than when they can access as much hay as they need without effort.

I have also recently heard that it is not the "stalkiness" of the hay itself that helps dental wear, but the silica within the hay. I have not researched this properly but I heard it from a reliable source; I can post more as and when I learn more about it.

Overall I believe that long strand hay is much more suitable than the tiny strands that dried grass and compressed hays consist of. My belief is brought about from personal experience and what I have come across over the last few years.
 
Mine have hay cookies as a treat maybe one cookie between two once a week / once every two weeks. They don't seem to eat enough of it to replace hay as the serving on packet suggests half a cookie for one pig per day and a hay cookie between two lasts mine about 3 days and there is a lot of wasted little bits everywhere!
 
Mine too have had the hay cookies & don't really bother with them unless i crumble them then & only then will they have a nibble but not with the enthusiasm they have for the hay in their racks/all over their hutches :)
 
Mine used to get a hay cookie once a week when they were bedded on cheap hay and newspaper, I thought the Timothy hay cookies might make a nice change for them. Whilst they lived ripping them apart and Maisie was also partial to having a wee nap on them, they didn't seem to actually eat that much of it, they preferred to eat the cheap bedding hay. When I made the change to fleece I stopped buying them. Probably not very critical thinking from me at this late hour :{ but this is my hay cookie experience - a good toy but not great as a food source.
 
Elle I thought your answer was good and the others as well. Based on what I've read I do not think I will waste any time or money buying the cubes.
 
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