Suddenly Sleeping a Lot

[briemommy]

Just in case...

I've had Brie since about the 13th of October. I have never seen her sleep as much as she did today. I left her enclosure doors open and she still decided to sleep in. And that's after sleeping pretty heavily for a while in the shelf under the fish tank. I'm probably just doing my typical never-had-rabbits-before freak-out, but I've read about the way rabbits hide illnesses, and we've both been sick with the flu at home. I know she can't catch our flu, but are there any illnesses that causes rabbits to sleep more?

Or maybe after two weeks she's finally comfortable enough to take deep slumbers! I have never seen her nap more than five minutes, and I could always hear her as she scratched and ate until I fell asleep. Here's a little collage of her sleepy time today!

 

[miverson]

Rabbits are a weird sleeper. I forgot the official name but essentially they are active most during dawn and dusk. for my two buns dusk is more like 10pm - 12pm which they are hype as heck.

 

[Nancy McClelland]

Once they are comfortable and secure in their environment they start showing all the little quirks that endear them to us. Nikki, our avatar is a world class sleeper. She'll do the DBF right next to my gigantic shop-vac, out in the middle of the floor, and so many other times where you'd think, "no, she can't be sleeping" but she sure is. They can certainly be goofy.

 

[I_heart_Fraggles]

Adorable sleeping positions by the way.....:inlove:

 

[JBun]

As long as she seems to be eating and pooping normally, she's probably fine. She sure likes that shelf

 

[Imbrium]

it's also worth noting that rabbits can sleep with their eyes open (you can tell they're asleep if their nose stops twitching) so she could've been napping more than you realized.

I would think she's just settled in and is more comfortable sleeping soundly in her new environment - as miverson said, they're crepuscular and tend to spend much of the day/afternoon sleeping.

 

[mdith4him]

:yeahthat:

Those pictures are ADORABLE!!! I love the positions bunnies get in to sleep. Just another perk of bunny ownership!

 

[MiniLopHop]

Oh how cute!!!!! I love the bunny butt picture! :inlove:

 

[agnesthelion]

Cute pics!

Were those taken in the afternoon by any chance? My two are literally comatose in the afternoons bunny napping the day away.......

I agree that if eating and poop/pee is normal she is fine.

 

[whitelop]

My bun is also in a coma during the afternoon, even if her cage is open. Either she'll be snuggled in a blanket or in a box.

Think of it as a good thing that she's that comfortable now! Plus, she's adorable! And like everyone else said, as long as poop and pee is normal, she's probably fine.

 

[missyscove]

She's gorgeous! As others have said, rabbits are crepuscular which means they're most active at dawn and dusk. I'm guessing she's just becoming comfortable enough to sleep in front of you.

 

[Apebull]

I agree with everyone else. And if she's sleeping all stretched out like that then she's comfortable. I love the one with her butt hanging out.

 

[briemommy]

Yay! Thanks everyone. All these replies sure put my mind at ease. You'd think a gal with three dogs who'd had guinea pigs and hamsters would feel more like she knew what she was doing, but rabbits... they're COMPLETELY different behavior wise! Boyfriend gets all "you're making a fuss out of nothing" whenever I worry, but he's no experienced rabbit owner!

I had no idea they could sleep with their eyes open. Thanks for the tip, Jennifer! That would explain the time I saw her sitting upstairs in a catloaf position just... staring at the wall. I was all like, "I'm a terrible mother, she's depressed!"

Lisa, yes, it was definitely during the afternoon. We were watching the Giants parade on TV at the time. I kept stopping to take pictures of her. Heh heh. I can't stop taking pictures of her.

Y'all are really helpful. I'm already beginning to recognize some names!

 

[Imbrium]

briemommy wrote:

I had no idea they could sleep with their eyes open. Thanks for the tip, Jennifer! That would explain the time I saw her sitting upstairs in a catloaf position just... staring at the wall. I was all like, "I'm a terrible mother, she's depressed!"

hehe, yup... they evolved that ability to make it harder for predators to sneak up on them while they're sleeping. my Nala will sleep with her eyes open fairly often... Gazzles prefers to do dead bunny flops.

oh, and speaking of dead bunny flops and your bunny getting more comfy in your home... try not to freak out if you start seeing sights like these:




took me a couple months to stop feeling compelled to go over and check to make sure she was still breathing when she was flopped out, lol.

 

[Bonbon]

Can rabbits that just live in your back yard , we don’t have a cage, get along with rat snakes or will the snake hurt the rabbit? Also should we put some hay out for her?

 

[A & B]

Bonbon-- In case you didn't notice, this thread is over 6 years old and only a few of the above posters are still active. Next time, try posting your own thread. If you don't know how to do that, here are instructions. (Click on green)

To answer your question: They should never be left unattended in a backyard when they are not in some sort of pen/hutch/cage. Snakes may very well harm a rabbit if the rabbit is small enough. Even the sight of a snake, however, could terrify a rabbit. Birds also pose a threat as they can pick a rabbit up and take them who knows where. A rabbit should always have hay, it makes up 70-80% of the diet.

 

[My Bunny Drake]

I can totally understand how you’re feeling. My bun cradles up in his litter box, and he looks dead. Luckily his ears perk up when I walk near his cage. Bunnies have second eyelids that are invisible for when they sleep to look out for predators. My bun is the same so I wouldn’t worry. (Don’t worry he is not overheating he just likes sunbathing, it was maybe 60 degrees that day?)

 

[Hermelin]

Can rabbits that just live in your back yard , we don’t have a cage, get along with rat snakes or will the snake hurt the rabbit? Also should we put some hay out for her?

The snakes can hurt/ kill them even though they are not venomous. So I wouldn’t have the bunnies running around lose or even outside without supervision if they are tamed bunnies.

 

[My Bunny Drake]

You need to have a cage bonbon. Get them on eBay for cheaper or Walmart for fast delivery.

 

[Nancy McClelland]

Or make your own.