Rabbit Keeps Stretching Their Back Legs Out?
It’s normal to sometimes be concerned about your little bunny. If your rabbit is lying down and suddenly stretching out their back legs, you’ll obviously wonder if they are ok. The good news is that in most cases, you have nothing to worry about. This type of behaviour is quite common for rabbits, especially when they’re relaxing.
It’s normal for a rabbit to take frequent breaks throughout the day, especially when the weather is hot. Although if your rabbit is spending more time in this position while showing less activity than normal, then they may be suffering from an underlying health condition.
The trick to figuring out if your rabbit’s behavior is normal or not is by looking for any change in their behavior. For example, if they’re normally active in the morning when you get up, but today you’ve found them lying down with their legs stretched out and they don’t seem to want to move, then that could be a symptom of a more serious illness. On the other hand, it’s not at all unusual for a rabbit to change their natural behaviour every now and again.
It’s Usually A Sign Of A Comfortable Rabbit
The good news is that most of the time when a rabbit is laying down with their back legs stretched out, is actually a sign of relaxed body language. It simply means that your rabbit feels safe and comfortable in their environment.
Time Of Day And Rabbit Activity Levels
Rabbits aren’t nocturnal, rather, they are crepuscular animals. This means that they’re most active during the mornings and the evenings. So, it’s pretty normal to see rabbits sleep through the middle of the day and the middle of the night. However, when it comes to around dawn and dusk, they tend to be more active and take shorter naps.
Health Related Reasons
Most of the time, a rabbit who lays around a lot with their legs stretched back is nothing to be concerned about. However, there can be some occasions when a rabbit is lethargic and should see a veterinarian. Generally, you’ll see a sign of illness when you see a sudden change in their behavior. Some clues that you may notice include if they’re suddenly sitting in a strange place or position (having their legs stretched back), or they won’t get up and play even when you offer their favorite treat or toy.
Sudden health conditions: There’re some health conditions that can come on suddenly, needing immediate medical attention (such as GI Stasis). It could be possible that your rabbit may have suddenly lost their appetite, and they’ll be sitting in a strange hunched position or pressing their belly against the ground. Has your rabbit been eating well? A rabbit that has not been eating or pooping for 10 hours would be considered an emergency and you should see a veterinarian immediately.
Underlying health conditions: Sometimes a rabbit can develop underlying health conditions that will slowly affect the rabbit so they are not as active as they used to be. If you believe this to be the case, then it’s a good idea to get your rabbit checked out if they have an unexplained lack of energy.
Rabbits Are Less Active When It’s Hotter
Rabbits also don’t like higher temperatures. The ideal temperature for rabbits is around the 50ºF – 70ºF range. If it gets higher than that, a rabbit will be noticeably less active. During more extreme weather periods, you may even find that their activity periods are shifting more into the middle of the night when the weather is a little cooler.
As rabbits tend to have dense coats, high temperatures that are too hot can actually be dangerous for them. Rabbits kept in temperatures that are over 80º or in direct sunlight have an increased risk of suffering from heatstroke. So, it’s always best to make sure your rabbit has cool places to shelter during the day.
Boredom In Rabbits
If your rabbit is lying around, especially with their legs stretched back all the time and it doesn’t seem to be because of the reasons mentioned above, it’s possible that they are bored. A rabbit that doesn’t get enough to play with, places to explore, or attention might end up lying around more throughout the day because they have nothing else to do. In this case, you want to make some changes to your rabbit’s environment so that they’ll have more to do and will stay interested in daily life.
How To Improve Your Rabbit’s Environment:
Allow your rabbit more space. A rabbit requires a large amount of living and exercise space to maintain their happiness. Why not get a pet exercise pen instead of a traditional rabbit cage? It’s also best to regularly let your rabbit out for exercise for multiple hours a day, especially in the mornings and evenings.
Occasionally rearrange the rabbit’s furniture or habitat accessories. Even small changes to their environment can create exploration opportunities for a rabbit. It could suddenly renew their interest in their surrounding environment.
Add different kinds of toys. Many rabbits can be pretty picky about their toys, so trying out a variety of different kinds will help figure out what your rabbit likes best.
Give your rabbit more attention or perhaps get them a new friend. As rabbits are social creatures, they require a lot of attention to stay happy. Make sure to spend some time with your rabbit on a daily basis. If you haven’t got the time, then it might be time to consider bonding them with a second rabbit.
What Are Normal Levels Of Activity For Rabbits?
While rabbits are generally very playful pets, they’re not going to be active all the time. It’s normal for rabbits to sometimes take extended naps. A pet rabbit will often sleep for 11-12 hours every day, although they don’t get their sleep in one single portion of time. Rather, they’ll take long and short naps all through the day and night interspersed with periods of activity.
Even when rabbits are awake, they’re not always active during this time. Rabbits like to lie down and relax, and do nothing more than observe their environment from a comfortable perch. As long as your rabbit is occasionally getting up to eat, play, and socialize with you (or other another rabbit friend), laying down and sleeping a lot is very normal.
There’re many factors that determine how active your rabbit will be. These include the time of day, temperature, and age of the rabbit can all have pretty drastic effects on their overall activity levels. It’s important to take all of these into consideration before worrying that your rabbit is laying down with their legs stretched back too much.
It’s also pretty normal for a rabbit to have some days where they’re a lot less active and prefer to find somewhere to lay around. As long as your rabbit is still eating, using its litter box, and showing some level of activity. They could just be having a one off-day, therefore it is nothing to worry about. However, if you’ve noticed that your rabbit has a permanent decrease in energy that’s not explained by age or temperature, you may want to look into changing your rabbit’s environment or seeking medical advice.
