Thistles and thorny leaves in Timothy hay?

We buy Kaytee brand Timothy hay for our piggies, and while it has less thistles than the other brands we have tried, it has lots of thorny little leaves that are impossible to completely separate from the hay! We've heard that it's best to buy hay from the store to avoid insect infestations, but are those sharp little leaves dangerous for our boys to eat?

Also, what do you find is the easiest way to keep the hay ready each day? Sunflower and Gumdrop eat so much of it, we find ourselves having to sort through it every day, picking out the thistles and putting a fresh batch in their cages. We are planning to get a large dog food container (think Rubbermaid) and keep large supplies of sorted hay on hand. Do any of you do this? And what is the easiest way to make sure you have removed all the thistles? We tend to put the hay into a large bowl to sort it, but it's often messy and I feel like I always miss a few thistles... Are there any brands that are completely thistle-free?

Thanks!
- Lisa & Kelley

In addition to Kaytee, I have purchased both Oxbow hay (www.oxbowhay.com) and Lowe's Dairy hay(guineapighay.tripod.com/). While there is the occasional broad leaf in these two I've never had a significant amount and never any thistle. I certainly don't have to sort it.

While Oxbow is a little more expensive than Kaytee, I've been pleased with the quality and freshness. The only thing I don't like is the cut. The piggies seem to like to romp about in a tangle of nice long hay and the Oxbow is cut short so doesn't really do much other than lay in a pile.

Lowe's Dairy is considerably more expensive and seems very fresh. It also has that longer cut that my piggers seem to like. But it is expensive (about $30, shipped, for 96 oz ... compared to about 50 lbs of Oxbow for the same price).

Brian

I use American Pet Diner 2nd cut and Oxbow Orchard Grass. Also I have a contact in Washington that has GREAT Orchard Grass. If you're interested in ordering from her I can have her email you.

I store most of my hay in a Rubbermaid bin. I works great so far for me. I have 10 guinea pigs currently at my house so the bin makes it easier to dish out the hay.

Also there really isn't much to worry about in the way of insect infestation if you are purchasing from a well known company.

www.oxbowhay.com
www.americanpetdiner.com (2nd cut is best!)

Let me know if you'd like to get into contact with the lady in Washington.

Hello--I just wanted to add my opinion on this topic. I have horses and buy our hay locally--I have not seen thistles in the timothy hay, but more in the clover hay. They have gotten so bad at times that it has lacerated my horses pallete to the point where they stop eating. Which is a very bad thing. I cannot imagine what it would do to a small piggys mouth. The best thing I would suggest and this is what I would do personally, is if you have alot of piggys, buy your hay in 20-30 lb bales. It is cheaper and easier to go through then those little bags.
I have yet to find any "waste" in any bagged hay--but you never know. I use Oxbow exclusively for my little critters.
Hope this helps.
Theresa

Thanks everybody, after this last bag of (sorted!) Kaytee, we'll be switching to Oxbow and we'll let you know how it works out.

- Lisa & Kelley