Sleep through the night instead of eating hay?

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This topic has 7sd replies, 5 voices, and was last updated 4 years, 1 month ago by MMmm.

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- 12/17/2021 at 2:12 PM
  MMmm
  Participant
  55 posts
  Hi friends, I’m having issues again with my rescue bun who is 8 months old. Before, I’ve posted here in regards to his poor hay eating habit and subsequent poop concern. When I got him at 4 months old, he’d never been fed grass hay. Several weeks into having him, he was pretty good at eating orchard grass. However, recently I’ve noticed his hay stayed pretty much untouched when I checked on him in the morning. He would eat hay and poop normally in the day time all the way until 8 pm when I say good night to him. Last night I decided to check on him via camera throughout the night and confirmed that he didn’t eat hay the entire night and just stayed on top of his cottage. He would wake up in the morning when we are up (like 5:30. We are up very early). Seems to me he sleeps through the night and wakes up in the morning like a human? It’s odd to me
  
  So in short, little guy eats in the morning until 9:30 ish then he goes to nap. Wakes up around 2-3 pm and munch on hay on and off until 8pm ish. No hay eating through out the night until 5:30ish next morning. I’ve already made an appointment with my vet but would like to get some insight from you guys. Thank you.
- 12/18/2021 at 8:49 AM
  Bam
  Moderator
  17025 posts
  To an extent, rabbits as well as other pets adapt to our active hours. They are crepuscular, which means they are the most active at dawn and dusk. 5.30 is pretty much dawn. They will nap during the day – my bun is 7.5 months now and if I’m at home, I barely hear a sound from her during the day, unless I try to eat an apple, in which case she suddenly appears by my feet, almost like magic.
  
  My bun sleeps through the night. She sits in her litterbox and eats hay when I go to bed, (the best sound to fall asleep to!) but she doesn’t really consume any hay during the night, but she does start eating as soon as Im up and about.
  
  If your bun goes through a good amount of hay per 24 hours and if his poops are good and plentiful, I dont think you have anything to worry about. You can weigh him once per week and keep a weight diary so you see that he’s gaining like he should – at his age, he should still be gaining some weight, although nothing dramatic.
- 12/18/2021 at 8:53 AM
  LBJ10
  Moderator
  17213 posts
  Yeah, I don’t think it’s anything to worry about. If he’s eating a good amount of hay during his active times, then he should be fine. I know we think bunnies are just eating machines, but they don’t eat continuously. There are breaks in there. A lot of bunnies sleep at night, become active in the early morning hours, and then sleep again in the middle part of the day.
- 12/20/2021 at 6:07 PM
  MMmm
  Participant
  55 posts
  Thank you Bam and LBJ10. I feel better now but still keep his appointment just to be safe. My previous bun to me was more of a “normal” bunny who at least ate hay during the night. Glad to hear it’s not abnormal for him to sleep through the night. Thank you !
- 12/20/2021 at 7:31 PM
  DanaNM
  Moderator
  9064 posts
  I’ve heard that a good rule of thumb is a bun should spend about 4 hours per day eating hay. I think as he’s not going 12 hours each night without eating, I wouldn’t be too worried, but a check up at the vet is never a bad idea. My buns eat the most hay early in the morning, in the dawn hours, so it could just be that your getting up with him. 🙂
  
  I think it’s awesome that you’ve improved his hay eating so much as well. Not sure of your schedule of topping up his hay, but freshening it up right before bed-time might also encourage him to eat more overnight.
  
  . . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.
  - 12/21/2021 at 9:20 AM
    MMmm
    Participant
    55 posts
    I’ve always top up his hay throughout the day and completely changed his hay right before bed. He used to eat on and off at night but not anymore.
    by the way he’s currently boarding at my friends house. My friend reported the same thing: not really eating anything at night but pretty good in the day time.
- 12/22/2021 at 8:21 AM
  Buttercup Buns
  Participant
  24 posts
  As long as he eats hay in twelve hours, then I think it’s okay. Maybe you can encourage him to eat more of his hay by sprinking some herbs or pellets in his hay?
  - 12/22/2021 at 11:44 AM
    MMmm
    Participant
    55 posts
    Thank you.
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