There are many different types of hay that you can feed your chinchilla. Timothy, also and alfalfa can be consider as the best chinchilla hay and most popular types. They are also the source of fiber that good for herbivore’s digestive system.
In this post, we’ll help you understand the differences between these two hays, and then you can decide which is best for your chinchillas.
#1 Timothy hay for chinchillas
Timothy hay contains almost everything your chinchilla needs as it’s considered the gold standard of nutrition. It is a good source of fiber, what help the digestive tracts of chinchillas functioning properly. It is considered as the best chinchilla treat.
Many chinchilla owners use it as the core hay they feed to their pets. There are 1800-2070 calories, 8% protein, 0.38-0.5% calcium contained in one kg of timothy hay. Although the low protein and calcium content, timothy hay can still fill up your pets. You can also mix timothy hay with other types of hay and give your chinchillas to ensure a rounded diet.
#2 Alfalfa hay for chinchilla
Alfalfa hay offers the same fiber contents as high as that timothy hay offers, but with higher levels of energy, protein, and calcium. This is the problem to consider. Alfalfa hay has about 1.2% calcium, while Timothy hay only has 0.4%. The higher calcium levels in alfalfa hay can actually be dangerous for an adult chinchilla if they are overfed.
Alfalfa contains so much calcium that it can cause bladder stones and rapid decline in overall health too. It is better to offer a picky chinchilla. It is also great to give baby chinchillas to help them grow big and strong. Alfalfa is ideal for lactating chinchillas that need concentrated nutrition.
#3 The differences between timothy and alfalfa
There are some different points between these two types of hay. Alfalfa hay is super rich in nutrient since it is higher in protein, higher in calcium, higher in fat, higher in calories and more dense than timothy hay. It is contain large amount of calories this is why you should not be fed for chinchilla every meal.
Meanwhile timothy hay is more balanced nutrition. You can feed chinchilla with timothy to chinchillas without worrying about too many calories and they will gain too much weight.