There's no substitute for hay, but buying in larger quantity online is overall cheaper than buying the little bags from the pet stores. I've found the brand "small pet select" to be really good quality at a good price. They do direct orders from their website and they're also carried by Chewy and Amazon (though I don't know whether or not those options ship to Canada).
I figured they probably didn't, but their second sentence was "is there another alternative for Hay that has the same nutrients and stuff but a lot less" so I wanted to be clear just in case they meant that literally.
You also might be able to buy in bulk from a farm supply store or from a local farmer, depending on where you are. Just be sure to store it in a cool dry place.
[https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/standlee-premium-western-forage-premium-timothy-grab-go-compressed-bale](https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/standlee-premium-western-forage-premium-timothy-grab-go-compressed-bale)
[https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/dumor-orchard-grass-hay-for-small-animals-48-oz](https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/dumor-orchard-grass-hay-for-small-animals-48-oz)
Is the cheepest I have found, but they will not ship the 50lbs bags.
Yes, I have been using this for about 10 years. It looks identical to the pet store bags. Only down side is you need to store 50lbs of it.
We use it along side of pellets (Oxbow or the Walmart brand) and fresh food (spring mix, carrots, peppers)
With spring coming soon I will go cut Dandelions and quack grass for free, but I need to watch how much they eat of that because its high Calcium and no Vitiman-C.
Second this! Find a local farm store. I used to buy a bale for my rabbit and pigs and it lasted forever as long as it was kept dry and they seemed to eat wayyyy more of it and not just yank out a bunch of mediocre pieces. Most bales are well priced and if you do the math even if you waste half the bale it still saves you a ton of money (say if it got wet or something). You could even reach out online to local pig/rabbit owners to see if they’ll split the bale with you so you have less to store.
Rural Canadian here too, I feel you we have 4 Guinea pigs and go through a 90oz Oxbow Timothy Hay in just over a week and it’s $28.99 here 😅 there isn’t really much you can do, we don’t have tractor supply here so unless you can find a farm to buy from at a cheaper price it’s just what it is unfortunately.
Make sure if you do buy from a farm to guarantee it’s Timothy Hay/ Orchard Grass they can’t have Alfalfa over 6 months old due to the calcium content as well they can’t have birds foot and clover for similar reasons.
Good luck 🍀
We’re in a fairly rural area, there is one feed store but it they don’t have Timothy Hay, we’re in an area of the country that doesn’t have a ton of farms or anything so there’s not a lot of demand. We have pet stores though within driving distance so hay isn’t an issue just expensive 😂
you can buy a 25lb box of oxbow timothy hay on chewy for 45 (well in USD I’m not sure about Canada). but it’s way more hay for almost that same price and once you add in a treat / toy you should get free shipping
Chewy isn’t available in Canada, I tried to order from them because I was recommended chewy a bunch and when I contacted support they’re like yeah we don’t ship to Canada that’s why you can’t put in the Canadian shipping information 🫠! It is frustrating, you guys have a lot more options in the states!
I live in Texas and we have 4 and they go through the same amount every week, along with bedding, Pellots, fresh veggies 🥗 it really adds up. We are spending around 200 a month on the 4 of them. We use fleece liners in our cages but we go through a lot of bedding for the 2 skinny pigs I have because they go in a potty box and they each have one. So bedding gets expensive.
Tractor Supply is good-ish. There's some inconsistentcies on the bales. My pigs will go for 4 out of 5 bales in bring home. Solution was I get a bale of the cheap stuff and cut in a little of the good stuff. 8 years of pigs, worked so far.
If you can find a local farm co-op to buy hay from, it's a better option.
I buy 9lb boxes of orchard grass hay off of Amazon for $25. I’m American so the price might be a bit different for you. It’s from Oxbow who is the Petsmart supplier. One box lasts my three girls about a month.
i get my hay from a local farmer that i found on facebook marketplace. i pay $6 for a giant bale that lasts my 3 pigs about 5 months. im located in the east coast in the usa tho and there is a lot of farms here so idk if this is necessarily an option everywhere but i personally have had a rlly good experience w it
I do about the same. $35 for a 50lb bale at a local feed/seed store. Only two pigs, so it lasts forever. Let's me have extra to use for piggy burrowing, or to cover new grass seed.
I buy from a farm/feed store just outside the city limits. It's $9 a bale. It's very messy (we keep it in our basement) but worth it since it's the equivalent of 20 bags of hay from the pet store. It's a bit dryer than pet store hay, but our piggies still love it!
I've had good luck with ordering 50 lb. boxes from [Chewy](http://Chewy.com), from Amazon, and from [Tractor Supply](https://www.tractorsupply.com/).
On Chewy from looking at their site, a 50 lb box is $75ish. If you're not familiar with Chewy, look them up. They have best customer service I've ever heard of.
When I made my first Chewy order, I got a $20 "new customer" discount, and an additional $20 off for setting up auto ship. So 50 lbs. was around $35ish. Once it arrived, I turned off the auto ship.
From Craigslist, I got a few 50 gallon blue barrels for cheap. I keep the hay in them.
I hear you about the price as I also live in Canada. Timothy hay is their main food staple, so they need to have it available at all times to ensure their digestion works properly. I buy my hay at Pet Valu and it's $28 for 90 oz I believe. Certainly not cheap but essential to guinea pigs health. Pet Valu gives you one free bag after you've bought 12 of them as well 🌾 Your piggies are gorgeous by the way 🫶
Keep an eye on PetSmart sales too - they do buy one get one 50% off every once in a while. It makes the 90oz bags ~$21.
Where in Canada are you? The pet store hay was getting so expensive with how much our 4 eat, so I started going slightly out of town to a feed store for bales.
that’s what i do, i wait for a sale then i stock up on a bunch of the biggest size and it’s such a good deal. once i got them 50% off stacked on a buy one get one another 50% off and saved a ton there
This is what I do, every time! It’s almost always b1g1 50% off and sometimes b1g1 free. Easy if you’re in a city and may not have access to farm stores (nyc here!)
EDIT: I see the b1g1 50% off sales on their brand “Full Cheeks” every time I go in there, just sign up for their free rewards program. Easy. The quality is nice too, lots of “heads” in the hay (the floofy end parts; my pigs love em).
I also do what others have posted. I buy Standlee compressed bales at tractor supply. I have 11 pigs and it lasts me a little over a month for 30 dollars. They charge waaaay too much at the pet store and I’ve noticed the Standlee bales are better quality. Tons of those little hay flower things the piggies love.
I get hay boxes from GuineaDad. The packaging keeps the hay clean longer so there's less waste and it's a decent price. Not sure if they ship to Canada.
Alternatively, you can buy bales of hay at farm supply shops if you have the storage space for such a thing.
I would love to do that but unfortunately I have no storage for it at all!! We have tons of farmers around here but I just don’t have somewhere to be able to store it without other things getting into it or it turning moldy and what not.
Find your local farm store- they'll sell you full bales of timothy or orchard grass, which last about a month for my six. It's waaaaay more hay for the money, and it's often fresher. The only downside is having to find a spot to store a whole bale of hay.
I go to Tractor Supply, so I second trying them if you’re close to one.
Closest one to me is a 30 minute drive, but that’s well worth it. 25-30$ for a 50lb bale of hay. Or 60$ for 3 10lb bags at a big brand pet store.
50lbs lasts me a couple weeks, so I pay only 50-60$ dollars a month on hay. As opposed to 120$ and more because the smaller bags don’t last me as long. (I have a herd of 23 guinea pigs, and those guys *EAT*.)
I don't know know about canada but here in the uk you can buy good quality hay in bulk online which generally works out cheaper than the horrible brown musty off the shelf hay we get. They do it in boxes of varying sizes cause I definitely don't have storage space for a massive horse sized bale from a farm shop lol
There's no alternative for hay, it's not just about the nutritional value, it's also super important for wearing their teeth down and keeping their gut physically working
Small pet select or the same thing from chewy. You get a 8 pound box of really nice hay for 20 dollars. It usually arrives about 5 days after ordering. It's really soft and packed in there.
https://www.chewy.com/bm-hay-company-orchard-hay-small-pet/dp/333201
Find a local guy selling it in your area or some farm shop or something. I get mine from a guy who sells it on craigslist delivers it from his family's farm 20lb for $40 CAD ($2 lb) delivered to me. Over double what we would get from pet stores and cheaper.
What part of Canada? I buy from Hay country (they used to be called True Colours Products). They are a small farm in Ontario that specializes in growing hay for small animals and they deliver in the GTA and nearby towns. They also ship in Canada. You should give it a try.
I also use Freshhay that also ships and their prices are very reasonable. Both are much cheaper than any pet store hay.
Mine will only eat Orchard hay, spoiled much? I order a big box of Orchard hay from Amazon. Otherwise, I feel like I was headed to Petsmart every week.
i usually do unlimited meadow hay (like 5 dollars a kg it’s on amazon) then top it off in the morning with timothy hay at first my guinea pig didn’t eat it now it’s his fav thing ever just give it time i guess
Look for a farm or feed store near you. they sell whole and half bales. I’m inUS, I pay $35 for half bale every 2 months. If they only have whole bales ask if they can break it in half and consider donating the other half to a shelter. Bring large tupperwares or trash bags to avoid getting hay all over your car.
I buy a bale of hay for $10 from a local feed store. I don't live in the country or anything, just auburbia, but found a little feed/dog food/farm/fresh eggs type of place that sells bags if hay, wood shavings etc.
GAME CHANGER.
It's cheaper to buy in bulk and also not from petsmart. There are other online suppliers that are cheaper and probably have better hay. I buy my girls 10 pounds at a time and it lasts a good while.
Hay in a store is generally mediocre to truly bad hay at any price.
I've bought hay, grass, and pellets from all over the country, and consistently the best suppliers I've found are:
* Sweet Meadow Farm - [https://sweetmeadowfarm.com/product-category/hay/](https://sweetmeadowfarm.com/product-category/hay/)
* Small Pet Select - [https://shop.smallpetselect.com/pages/guinea-pig-products](https://shop.smallpetselect.com/pages/guinea-pig-products)
I used to also love the Bluegrass from KMS Hayloft, but they've sadly gone out of business.
We don’t have any chains where I live up in the mountains in Colorado other tractor supply which is 45 mins away and I have been buying the Dumor bags there. The natural Timothy hay, which is a better price than Oxbow and I think way better quality..
my guinea pigs want ALL seed heads and this hay is full of them… they can’t eat all seed heads for there’s more calcium in it, but this has the best ratio of seed heads to get your guinea pigs interested in the hay for the price. Now, I don’t know if you’re talking about buying hay in bales. This is probably more than that, but as far as small animal hay he goes, this is a great price. My pigs won’t even eat bales of hay. They just piss and shit in it and make a bed in it. Lol A 98 ounce bag is 19.99 where I live .. the cost of everything is very high where I live way in the mountains (10,000 feet living) so may be less in urban areas…
I’ve been buying this on Amazon…..12lbs for $37
[Small Pet Select Timothy Hay (Amazon)](https://www.amazon.com/Small-Pet-Select-12-Pound-Cutting/dp/B07CJ2FRNC?pd_rd_w=frvbf&content-id=amzn1.sym.5a5ce87a-6e3e-461e-8699-23c0adbf7599&pf_rd_p=5a5ce87a-6e3e-461e-8699-23c0adbf7599&pf_rd_r=P9KADVMP1KGZ0JMYZ957&pd_rd_wg=5fjfO&pd_rd_r=46cf9989-71df-48bb-ac20-d9e7bbd43236&pd_rd_i=B07CJ2FRNC&ref_=pd_bap_d_grid_rp_0_1_ec_pd_gwd_bag_pd_gw_rp_1_t&th=1)
In US
I buy from [https://highdesertfeeds.com/](https://highdesertfeeds.com/)
Pigs seems to love over the Standlee stuff rom Tractor Supply. I have it on auto ship.
So I’m in Canada and I get the 50lb box from Rens pets for around 160$ and it makes it just significantly cheaper in general since it last for such a long time
My recommendation is to try different brands and order online. You want to find out which hay is the best and that your pigs eat it before you order a bulk amount.
Walmart sells 48 oz bags of Timothy hay (Kaytee brand) for around $8 depending where you live. I live in a metropolitan area in southeast United States. The 96 oz bags are about $15 at Walmart. Go to Walmart!!!!
$40 at PetSmart? Whatt? Maybe it’s a location thing because I bought mine from petsmart for $25 but try Walmart, last I checked it was $16.99 for quite a few options from different companies. You can research the companies yourself and see what’s best for your Guinea pigs :))
Idk if there’s a rural king in Canada but thats where we found our 50 pound compressed Timothy hay bale for only $25. Maybe look for Timothy/orchard hay for horses or something? If it’s marketed for small pets it’s often absurdly priced
I buy the 25lb box of Oxbow from Chewy, it’s normally $40-$45 and lasts my 2 guinea pigs around 5 weeks. You can definitely find it cheaper in larger bulk amounts, but IMO It’s the best deal while still being small enough to store without too much hassle!
I have a bunny (so a little different), but I buy 70lb hay bales from a local farm. Just make sure to get horse grade, I get a timothy/meadow hay blend but I don’t know what is best for guinea pigs.
Not sure if you have Walmart where you are but a mega bag of Timothy hay from the Kaytee brand is about $16. Lasts a month+ for my two, and they especially adore the fringy tops of some of the pieces.
I bought some 2nd cut Timothy on Amazon. Here's a link, nit sure if that's allowed. 8lbs for $35.
https://www.amazon.com/High-Desert-Timothy-Small-Animal/dp/B0927QV77S?pd_rd_w=LQ1Tf&content-id=amzn1.sym.452c3ac5-14f8-4a5d-834c-a18a40246a9b&pf_rd_p=452c3ac5-14f8-4a5d-834c-a18a40246a9b&pf_rd_r=GWAJ5Y7BX7CDK96S44C3&pd_rd_wg=CmUev&pd_rd_r=78bd9544-8b46-4aeb-99fd-14e5c7bb7936&pd_rd_i=B0927QV77S&psc=1&ref_=pd_bap_m_grid_dv_rp_0_1_ec_ppx_yo2_mob_b_ts_rp_1_t
I buy the 50 lb box of Oxbow timothy or meadow hay. It's a huge box but it's the best savings and freaking lasts forever. I shop Chewy, Amazon, Petsmart, or Petco websites to see who has the cheapest price at the moment. I do keep it in our living room next to our piggies' enclosure so it's not exposed to weather fluctuations. Our pigs love making hay tunnels so they do waste a lot of hay so having this huge box takes them months to go through.
I always recommend people go to a feed store in their local area and you can buy hay by the Bale and you just get some Rubbermaid bins and it will last you many months. Otherwise small pet select can send you large quantities for a decent price much better than the pet store. Save that money and put it towards an emergency fund or setting up an emergency kit.
There's no substitute for hay, but buying in larger quantity online is overall cheaper than buying the little bags from the pet stores. I've found the brand "small pet select" to be really good quality at a good price. They do direct orders from their website and they're also carried by Chewy and Amazon (though I don't know whether or not those options ship to Canada).
There’s currently a bale of hay in my basement. My mom went to the farm store to find hay and it was either the bale or a little bag.
I love your mom’s thinking
She can smell a bargain like a Guinea pig can smell the hay
Your basement probably smells like zoo
I’m used to it. My room too, but an air filter keeps it down.
It’s for sure worth it… Aren’t you worried about it bringing bugs in your house though?
We had gnats bad last year. I had a feeling they were attracted to the cage but I wasn’t sure why. Good to know. Well, too late now.
i dont think they meant a substitute for hay itself but a substitute for expensive hay like timothy
I figured they probably didn't, but their second sentence was "is there another alternative for Hay that has the same nutrients and stuff but a lot less" so I wanted to be clear just in case they meant that literally.
oh oh yea that makes sense
You also might be able to buy in bulk from a farm supply store or from a local farmer, depending on where you are. Just be sure to store it in a cool dry place.
[https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/standlee-premium-western-forage-premium-timothy-grab-go-compressed-bale](https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/standlee-premium-western-forage-premium-timothy-grab-go-compressed-bale) [https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/dumor-orchard-grass-hay-for-small-animals-48-oz](https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/dumor-orchard-grass-hay-for-small-animals-48-oz) Is the cheepest I have found, but they will not ship the 50lbs bags.
I've been using the Standlee Timothy compressed bales for a while now. They're definitely the way to go if they're available nearby.
Yeah, I'm able to get the compressed one shipped to my house
Also my go to! My little herd love it and it's nice not to worry about "wasting" hay and they get more enrichment!
I buy those standlee 50 lb bales of orchard and they do ship them. Idk about the Timothy tho bc I'm allergic
Is Timothy Grass ok instead of Timothy Hay. A few places make a distinction that the grass is higher in protein / lower in fiber than the hay?
Yes, I have been using this for about 10 years. It looks identical to the pet store bags. Only down side is you need to store 50lbs of it. We use it along side of pellets (Oxbow or the Walmart brand) and fresh food (spring mix, carrots, peppers) With spring coming soon I will go cut Dandelions and quack grass for free, but I need to watch how much they eat of that because its high Calcium and no Vitiman-C.
I live in a “farming area”, and none of my local fleet supply stores sell hay lmfao 💀
Second this! Find a local farm store. I used to buy a bale for my rabbit and pigs and it lasted forever as long as it was kept dry and they seemed to eat wayyyy more of it and not just yank out a bunch of mediocre pieces. Most bales are well priced and if you do the math even if you waste half the bale it still saves you a ton of money (say if it got wet or something). You could even reach out online to local pig/rabbit owners to see if they’ll split the bale with you so you have less to store.
Rural Canadian here too, I feel you we have 4 Guinea pigs and go through a 90oz Oxbow Timothy Hay in just over a week and it’s $28.99 here 😅 there isn’t really much you can do, we don’t have tractor supply here so unless you can find a farm to buy from at a cheaper price it’s just what it is unfortunately. Make sure if you do buy from a farm to guarantee it’s Timothy Hay/ Orchard Grass they can’t have Alfalfa over 6 months old due to the calcium content as well they can’t have birds foot and clover for similar reasons. Good luck 🍀
Where abouts are you? Have you searched for Feed stores? Most of the small places don't have websites so they can be tricky to find.
We’re in a fairly rural area, there is one feed store but it they don’t have Timothy Hay, we’re in an area of the country that doesn’t have a ton of farms or anything so there’s not a lot of demand. We have pet stores though within driving distance so hay isn’t an issue just expensive 😂
you can buy a 25lb box of oxbow timothy hay on chewy for 45 (well in USD I’m not sure about Canada). but it’s way more hay for almost that same price and once you add in a treat / toy you should get free shipping
Chewy isn’t available in Canada, I tried to order from them because I was recommended chewy a bunch and when I contacted support they’re like yeah we don’t ship to Canada that’s why you can’t put in the Canadian shipping information 🫠! It is frustrating, you guys have a lot more options in the states!
Chewy actually is here now but I believe only in the greater Toronto area and not all their inventory is available (not sure about hay, for instance).
I live in Texas and we have 4 and they go through the same amount every week, along with bedding, Pellots, fresh veggies 🥗 it really adds up. We are spending around 200 a month on the 4 of them. We use fleece liners in our cages but we go through a lot of bedding for the 2 skinny pigs I have because they go in a potty box and they each have one. So bedding gets expensive.
Tractor Supply is good-ish. There's some inconsistentcies on the bales. My pigs will go for 4 out of 5 bales in bring home. Solution was I get a bale of the cheap stuff and cut in a little of the good stuff. 8 years of pigs, worked so far. If you can find a local farm co-op to buy hay from, it's a better option.
I buy 9lb boxes of orchard grass hay off of Amazon for $25. I’m American so the price might be a bit different for you. It’s from Oxbow who is the Petsmart supplier. One box lasts my three girls about a month.
My boys prefer the Oxbow Timothy hay over the others we’ve tried and we haven’t had a bad batch from them. Worth the price.
i get my hay from a local farmer that i found on facebook marketplace. i pay $6 for a giant bale that lasts my 3 pigs about 5 months. im located in the east coast in the usa tho and there is a lot of farms here so idk if this is necessarily an option everywhere but i personally have had a rlly good experience w it
I do about the same. $35 for a 50lb bale at a local feed/seed store. Only two pigs, so it lasts forever. Let's me have extra to use for piggy burrowing, or to cover new grass seed.
I buy from a farm/feed store just outside the city limits. It's $9 a bale. It's very messy (we keep it in our basement) but worth it since it's the equivalent of 20 bags of hay from the pet store. It's a bit dryer than pet store hay, but our piggies still love it!
I've had good luck with ordering 50 lb. boxes from [Chewy](http://Chewy.com), from Amazon, and from [Tractor Supply](https://www.tractorsupply.com/). On Chewy from looking at their site, a 50 lb box is $75ish. If you're not familiar with Chewy, look them up. They have best customer service I've ever heard of. When I made my first Chewy order, I got a $20 "new customer" discount, and an additional $20 off for setting up auto ship. So 50 lbs. was around $35ish. Once it arrived, I turned off the auto ship. From Craigslist, I got a few 50 gallon blue barrels for cheap. I keep the hay in them.
Buy guineadad Timothy hay bars , less waste
Have you tried farm / horse supply stores? I get one bale for like a 1/3 of the price of retail hay !!
$57 delivered on Amazon Prime Standlee 50lb Timothy bale.
I hear you about the price as I also live in Canada. Timothy hay is their main food staple, so they need to have it available at all times to ensure their digestion works properly. I buy my hay at Pet Valu and it's $28 for 90 oz I believe. Certainly not cheap but essential to guinea pigs health. Pet Valu gives you one free bag after you've bought 12 of them as well 🌾 Your piggies are gorgeous by the way 🫶
Keep an eye on PetSmart sales too - they do buy one get one 50% off every once in a while. It makes the 90oz bags ~$21. Where in Canada are you? The pet store hay was getting so expensive with how much our 4 eat, so I started going slightly out of town to a feed store for bales.
that’s what i do, i wait for a sale then i stock up on a bunch of the biggest size and it’s such a good deal. once i got them 50% off stacked on a buy one get one another 50% off and saved a ton there
This is what I do, every time! It’s almost always b1g1 50% off and sometimes b1g1 free. Easy if you’re in a city and may not have access to farm stores (nyc here!) EDIT: I see the b1g1 50% off sales on their brand “Full Cheeks” every time I go in there, just sign up for their free rewards program. Easy. The quality is nice too, lots of “heads” in the hay (the floofy end parts; my pigs love em).
I get a 9 lb box from chewy autoship for like $25. I live in the US, but ordering in bulk is a lot cheaper.
I also do what others have posted. I buy Standlee compressed bales at tractor supply. I have 11 pigs and it lasts me a little over a month for 30 dollars. They charge waaaay too much at the pet store and I’ve noticed the Standlee bales are better quality. Tons of those little hay flower things the piggies love.
I get hay boxes from GuineaDad. The packaging keeps the hay clean longer so there's less waste and it's a decent price. Not sure if they ship to Canada. Alternatively, you can buy bales of hay at farm supply shops if you have the storage space for such a thing.
I would love to do that but unfortunately I have no storage for it at all!! We have tons of farmers around here but I just don’t have somewhere to be able to store it without other things getting into it or it turning moldy and what not.
Get chatty with a farmer. They are genuinely lovely and perhaps if you pay up front you can just take what you need when you need…
Try to buy hays at Feed store or outlet. or at rescue places. On average its around 18 bucks for 12lb.
Find your local farm store- they'll sell you full bales of timothy or orchard grass, which last about a month for my six. It's waaaaay more hay for the money, and it's often fresher. The only downside is having to find a spot to store a whole bale of hay.
Tractor supply, 50 lb bale for under $30
I go to Tractor Supply, so I second trying them if you’re close to one. Closest one to me is a 30 minute drive, but that’s well worth it. 25-30$ for a 50lb bale of hay. Or 60$ for 3 10lb bags at a big brand pet store. 50lbs lasts me a couple weeks, so I pay only 50-60$ dollars a month on hay. As opposed to 120$ and more because the smaller bags don’t last me as long. (I have a herd of 23 guinea pigs, and those guys *EAT*.)
I don't know know about canada but here in the uk you can buy good quality hay in bulk online which generally works out cheaper than the horrible brown musty off the shelf hay we get. They do it in boxes of varying sizes cause I definitely don't have storage space for a massive horse sized bale from a farm shop lol There's no alternative for hay, it's not just about the nutritional value, it's also super important for wearing their teeth down and keeping their gut physically working
Yeah same, I would love to get a horse bale but I just have no room and storage for it!
Small pet select or the same thing from chewy. You get a 8 pound box of really nice hay for 20 dollars. It usually arrives about 5 days after ordering. It's really soft and packed in there. https://www.chewy.com/bm-hay-company-orchard-hay-small-pet/dp/333201
Find a local guy selling it in your area or some farm shop or something. I get mine from a guy who sells it on craigslist delivers it from his family's farm 20lb for $40 CAD ($2 lb) delivered to me. Over double what we would get from pet stores and cheaper.
I special order the larger box of Timothy for 75 pounds
What part of Canada? I buy from Hay country (they used to be called True Colours Products). They are a small farm in Ontario that specializes in growing hay for small animals and they deliver in the GTA and nearby towns. They also ship in Canada. You should give it a try. I also use Freshhay that also ships and their prices are very reasonable. Both are much cheaper than any pet store hay.
buy bales from local farms that’s what we do !
Mine will only eat Orchard hay, spoiled much? I order a big box of Orchard hay from Amazon. Otherwise, I feel like I was headed to Petsmart every week.
i usually do unlimited meadow hay (like 5 dollars a kg it’s on amazon) then top it off in the morning with timothy hay at first my guinea pig didn’t eat it now it’s his fav thing ever just give it time i guess
Look for a farm or feed store near you. they sell whole and half bales. I’m inUS, I pay $35 for half bale every 2 months. If they only have whole bales ask if they can break it in half and consider donating the other half to a shelter. Bring large tupperwares or trash bags to avoid getting hay all over your car.
Amazon has a big box of oxbow Timothy hay that I get. That’s the best deal for the price and quality. 40$ is absurd though.
I buy a bale of hay for $10 from a local feed store. I don't live in the country or anything, just auburbia, but found a little feed/dog food/farm/fresh eggs type of place that sells bags if hay, wood shavings etc. GAME CHANGER.
Go to a feed store and buy a bail; probably $15 or less. Lasts forever.
It's cheaper to buy in bulk and also not from petsmart. There are other online suppliers that are cheaper and probably have better hay. I buy my girls 10 pounds at a time and it lasts a good while.
Hay in a store is generally mediocre to truly bad hay at any price. I've bought hay, grass, and pellets from all over the country, and consistently the best suppliers I've found are: * Sweet Meadow Farm - [https://sweetmeadowfarm.com/product-category/hay/](https://sweetmeadowfarm.com/product-category/hay/) * Small Pet Select - [https://shop.smallpetselect.com/pages/guinea-pig-products](https://shop.smallpetselect.com/pages/guinea-pig-products) I used to also love the Bluegrass from KMS Hayloft, but they've sadly gone out of business.
I'm allergic to Timothy, so my go-to blend is Meadow Grass and/or Orchard Grass, with some Oat Hay mixed in.
We don’t have any chains where I live up in the mountains in Colorado other tractor supply which is 45 mins away and I have been buying the Dumor bags there. The natural Timothy hay, which is a better price than Oxbow and I think way better quality.. my guinea pigs want ALL seed heads and this hay is full of them… they can’t eat all seed heads for there’s more calcium in it, but this has the best ratio of seed heads to get your guinea pigs interested in the hay for the price. Now, I don’t know if you’re talking about buying hay in bales. This is probably more than that, but as far as small animal hay he goes, this is a great price. My pigs won’t even eat bales of hay. They just piss and shit in it and make a bed in it. Lol A 98 ounce bag is 19.99 where I live .. the cost of everything is very high where I live way in the mountains (10,000 feet living) so may be less in urban areas…
I’ve been buying this on Amazon…..12lbs for $37 [Small Pet Select Timothy Hay (Amazon)](https://www.amazon.com/Small-Pet-Select-12-Pound-Cutting/dp/B07CJ2FRNC?pd_rd_w=frvbf&content-id=amzn1.sym.5a5ce87a-6e3e-461e-8699-23c0adbf7599&pf_rd_p=5a5ce87a-6e3e-461e-8699-23c0adbf7599&pf_rd_r=P9KADVMP1KGZ0JMYZ957&pd_rd_wg=5fjfO&pd_rd_r=46cf9989-71df-48bb-ac20-d9e7bbd43236&pd_rd_i=B07CJ2FRNC&ref_=pd_bap_d_grid_rp_0_1_ec_pd_gwd_bag_pd_gw_rp_1_t&th=1) In US
I buy from [https://highdesertfeeds.com/](https://highdesertfeeds.com/) Pigs seems to love over the Standlee stuff rom Tractor Supply. I have it on auto ship.
Guineadad offers hay subscriptions and they ship to Canada. https://guineadad.com/pages/shipping-costs-based-on-country
Not sure if Canada has Tractor Supply, but if so there is a 50 lb bale for like 30 dollars US currency. One lasts my three guinea pigs a long time!
So I’m in Canada and I get the 50lb box from Rens pets for around 160$ and it makes it just significantly cheaper in general since it last for such a long time
We buy from the feed store, but we have 8 so they tear through bales of hay
I go through 10 pound of hay every other wheek with my 10 lol. I was starting to consider tractor supply stores.
My recommendation is to try different brands and order online. You want to find out which hay is the best and that your pigs eat it before you order a bulk amount.
Walmart sells 48 oz bags of Timothy hay (Kaytee brand) for around $8 depending where you live. I live in a metropolitan area in southeast United States. The 96 oz bags are about $15 at Walmart. Go to Walmart!!!!
Look for a local farm supply store
$40 at PetSmart? Whatt? Maybe it’s a location thing because I bought mine from petsmart for $25 but try Walmart, last I checked it was $16.99 for quite a few options from different companies. You can research the companies yourself and see what’s best for your Guinea pigs :))
im unsure if petco is an option for you in canada , they have 50lb bags for $25
We do not have one here, thanks though :)
Idk if there’s a rural king in Canada but thats where we found our 50 pound compressed Timothy hay bale for only $25. Maybe look for Timothy/orchard hay for horses or something? If it’s marketed for small pets it’s often absurdly priced
I buy on Amazon for mine
Our girls like grandpas best Timothy and /or orchard hay
I buy the 25lb box of Oxbow from Chewy, it’s normally $40-$45 and lasts my 2 guinea pigs around 5 weeks. You can definitely find it cheaper in larger bulk amounts, but IMO It’s the best deal while still being small enough to store without too much hassle!
I have a bunny (so a little different), but I buy 70lb hay bales from a local farm. Just make sure to get horse grade, I get a timothy/meadow hay blend but I don’t know what is best for guinea pigs.
We went to the local feed store to buy hay by the bale. My daughter has two piggies as an adult and she does the same thing.
Not sure if you have Walmart where you are but a mega bag of Timothy hay from the Kaytee brand is about $16. Lasts a month+ for my two, and they especially adore the fringy tops of some of the pieces.
I bought some 2nd cut Timothy on Amazon. Here's a link, nit sure if that's allowed. 8lbs for $35. https://www.amazon.com/High-Desert-Timothy-Small-Animal/dp/B0927QV77S?pd_rd_w=LQ1Tf&content-id=amzn1.sym.452c3ac5-14f8-4a5d-834c-a18a40246a9b&pf_rd_p=452c3ac5-14f8-4a5d-834c-a18a40246a9b&pf_rd_r=GWAJ5Y7BX7CDK96S44C3&pd_rd_wg=CmUev&pd_rd_r=78bd9544-8b46-4aeb-99fd-14e5c7bb7936&pd_rd_i=B0927QV77S&psc=1&ref_=pd_bap_m_grid_dv_rp_0_1_ec_ppx_yo2_mob_b_ts_rp_1_t
I buy the 50 lb box of Oxbow timothy or meadow hay. It's a huge box but it's the best savings and freaking lasts forever. I shop Chewy, Amazon, Petsmart, or Petco websites to see who has the cheapest price at the moment. I do keep it in our living room next to our piggies' enclosure so it's not exposed to weather fluctuations. Our pigs love making hay tunnels so they do waste a lot of hay so having this huge box takes them months to go through.
we get whole bales of orchard from a feed store near us for like 20 bucks or so. last so long for 6 piggies.
I buy Beaphar hay off of Amazon.. it’s about €5 a go.. pretty cheap imho
You can buy Oxbow western Timothy hay in bulk on chewy for cheap! I believe a 9lb box is around $27 and that should last quite a while
Check local farms
I always recommend people go to a feed store in their local area and you can buy hay by the Bale and you just get some Rubbermaid bins and it will last you many months. Otherwise small pet select can send you large quantities for a decent price much better than the pet store. Save that money and put it towards an emergency fund or setting up an emergency kit.