Sleeping With A Rabbit (Safe Or Just Strange?)

Rabbits are an easy pet to fall in love with and owners often want to spend as much time as we can with our fluffy friends. Rabbit owners may even be tempted to take their rabbit into bed with them and snuggle down for the night. But is this a wise thing to do?

While not impossible, It is unlikely that a rabbit will sleep in bed with you. Their sleeping patterns are very different from a humans and they are active during the hours that we usually sleep. A rabbit may however take a short nap with you if you have built up a very good bond.

Having kept house rabbits myself, I would often hear them running and playing during times when (had they not woke me through thumping or crashing into things) I should have been asleep!

Can I Have a Rabbit In Bed With Me?

So while it might be a nice idea in theory, in reality having a rabbit in your bed for anything longer than a cuddle, is nigh on impossible, and even if they were prepared to bed down at the same time as you for several hours, this would not be a good idea. Let’s explore this in a little more detail.

The short answer to this question is that yes, anything is possible, however, the chance that the rabbit will actually sleep next to you for a significant amount of time is very slim.

Rabbit owners with free roam rabbits may have noticed the pet hop onto a bed for a lie down. This is fine, provided that you do not mind having an animal on your bed. Remember that rabbits do not have the kind of control that other pets have and may soil the bed unintentionally.

No harm will come to the rabbit from sleeping on a bed, rabbits do form very close bonds with their owners and if it’s your bed, the rabbit may even feel a little extra security as it will recognize your scent.

Aside from taking short naps several times a day, rabbits are crepuscular animals. This means that they are neither nocturnal nor diurnal but instead are most active at dawn and dusk. They take a bulk of their sleep during daylight hours and this means that they may be pretty energetic when it’s your turn to hit the hay.

If you were somehow able to co-sleep together with a rabbit during the night for several hours it would be risky. Sleeping in bed with another human, such as a spouse can cause minor disruption if one person is particularly fidgety. Put a bunny in bed with a human and there is a chance the animal could get injured or worse.

As you move around in the night, you could accidentally roll onto the rabbit who wouldn’t necessarily know anything about it until it was too late. This is something that new parents are advised when they have a baby and the same rules should be applied to small pets.

Specifically, rabbits have a very delicate skeleton and are prone to injury, particularly back injury.

Do Rabbits Like To Sleep In a Bed?

Rabbits love the feel of soft textures, some owners may even provide fleece blankets to their rabbits to provide them with a little extra comfort particularly during winter. House rabbits will almost certainly love to jump and flop on their owner’s beds which is a comfortable place where the bunny likely feels very safe.

As we have mentioned rabbits quickly form a tight bond with their owners and being in your space will be very comforting for your pet rabbit.

Do Rabbits Need Blankets?

One of the most common questions that new rabbit owners ask us is whether a rabbit needs to have any additional blankets or covers for sleeping. In reality, a rabbit doesn’t need anything like this but they certainly may find it comforting, particularly if it has your scent on it.

Rabbits have thick fur which gets even thicker during the winter months and as such, they are well-equipped for life in the wild. This means that they are also ready for cold winter nights when kept in captivity.

Many people keep their rabbits in an enclosure or hutch outside, especially at night. This is fine and some of the bedding materials at this link will be sufficient for your pet. However, you should always remember to keep the hutch out of any draughts and preferably in a sheltered area.

Offering blankets isn’t necessary and your rabbit will be warm enough without one. That being said, if you want to provide a blanket for your bunny, this certainly will add some extra warmth provided it is washed regularly should the rabbit decide to use it as a toilet rather than a sleeping spot.

Choosing the right type of blanket is very important. We’ve found fleece to be the best choice as the short fibers are the least likely to cause a problem if ingested, however, having used several fleece blankets with our own rabbits, we’ve never found this to be a problem.

Of course, some rabbit owners prefer to use traditional rabbit bedding in the enclosure and only give their pet a blanket when they can be supervised while using it.

Why Does My Rabbit Sleep Under My Bed?

Rabbits that are allowed inside the house can often be found hiding under a bed, behind a couch, or in some other nook and cranny (ours used to sleep underneath the TV cabinet behind a selection of DVDs!). While this can be frustrating, rabbits occasionally like privacy and these places provide them somewhere they feel safe and secure.

This is because rabbits are prey animals who, in the wild, need to find places to hide and this instinct doesn’t just disappear in domesticated rabbits.

Rabbits are also keen explorers and will enjoy exploring the hidden recesses of a house. Dark areas such as behind the couch instinctively remind the rabbit of a burrow, even if (as a domesticated pet) it has never been in one.

How Do I Get My Rabbit To Sleep At Night?

Rabbits will probably be active while you are asleep and although you won’t want to discourage your pet from doing what comes naturally, there may be times when you might appreciate a few extra hours without a rabbit zipping around under your bed.

Of course, the best way to get a rabbit to rest is to (like children) provide them with several hours of exercise during daylight hours. A large run or a secure garden is perfect.

However, (unlike children) rabbits seem to have an endless supply of energy and will probably still likely play for an hour or two while you are fast asleep – but that’s part of the fun of owning a rabbit, right!?

Wrap Up

While it may be a nice thought to imagine sleeping side by side with your pet, it’s also not practical for a couple of reasons. Firstly is the difference in sleep patterns. You just won’t be able to force a rabbit out of natural routine, it’s ingrained into them through thousands of years of evolution.

Secondly is the risk of injury sleeping in the same bed would pose to the rabbit (if you were to get anything longer than a couple of minutes before the rabbit has decided to go and its own thing).

Our advice is to simply get as much interaction as possible with your rabbit during the daytime and put them safely in their own bed, in their enclosure when it is time for you to sleep.