Why does my rabbit shake at night?

[AmberandHolland]

My almost 8 month old rabbit seems to shake at night randomly. He will out of no where stand on all fours, stiffen, and his upper body will start to tremble. I can hear the shakes from the cage. It's almost like a fast thumping sound. He doesn't make any noise of pain when these occur. They last a few seconds and then he lays back and relaxes like nothing happened. I only notice it maybe once or twice a day. Has anyone else ever seen their rabbit do this? He is eating great, drinks well, loves to play and explore. I just don't understand these random shake attacks. Should I be worried?

 

[JBun]

Does this happen every night and always around the same time? Does it correspond with anything else, like loud sounds, dinner, anything else that you could tie it to? It almosts sounds something like a seizure.

 

[AmberandHolland]

It does seem to happen at night and I would say probably around the same time. If it's a seizure is there anything the vet or I could do?

 

[Ape337]

Could he be doing a nice, big, fat stretch? My bunnies stick their butts way up in the air when they stretch, reach their front legs way out in front, and yawn widely. It's hilarious. Just a thought :biggrin:

 

[AmberandHolland]

He could be, but when he shakes he is always standing on his four legs and his body starts to tremble. Usually when Holland stretches he extends his whole body out or stands up on his two back legs and looks around.

 

[Ape337]

I was just curious because my dog used to do the exact same thing when he would get up from lounging. It looked like he was extending his legs as far as he could downward while his back extended upward and his body shook, but then he would look soooo relaxed when he was done.

 

[JBun]

And it's not just the hiccups where it looks like they are having a convulsion or something? So if you do think it's a seizure, I would see what your vet thinks. If it is seizures and with it being a nightly occurance, you may need him on some sort of med.