Last Updated on March 3, 2023 by Marjon Ramos
Since the 1950s, scientists have already studied whether or not non-human mammals can dream.
While not conclusive, they did find some indirect evidence that almost all mammals do indeed dream.
What scientists found was a correlation between the REM sleep cycle and dreaming.
In the case of rabbits, they too have REM sleep, which is what scientists in the study linked to dreaming.
What rabbits dream about is impossible to know, but the more likely suspect is what they experience throughout the day.
Now that I’ve given you the gist of the article, read on as I explain in more detail why rabbits dream:
Table of Contents
Do rabbits dream when they sleep?
Yes, rabbits do dream while they are sleeping.
According to a study in the 1950s, scientists found that almost all mammals, including rabbits, have the capacity to dream because they are capable of REM sleep.
Another study in 2001 compared the brain patterns of rodents while awake and while asleep.
The scientist studied the brain pattern of rodents running through a maze.
They found that the same subjects have similar brain pattern while in REM sleep.
The scientist concludes that the rodents (which are closely related to rabbits) are dreaming about running through the maze.
How to know if your rabbit is dreaming?
There’s no definitive study to know for sure that your rabbit is dreaming. But, sudden twitching of the legs, ears, mouth, eyelids, or tail could indicate that your rabbit is in REM sleep.
As I stated earlier, there’s a study done on rats where the scientist compared the brain patterns of them awake while running in mazes to their brain patterns while in REM sleep.
So if your rabbit is running all day, and suddenly twitches their feet while sleeping, it could mean that they’re dreaming about running.
Here are some videos of rabbits possibly dreaming:
What do rabbits dream about?
While it’s impossible to know and ask rabbits what they dream about, several studies suggest that what animals dream are past behaviors.
Just like the rats running around in mazes all day have a dream about it, later on, your rabbits could be dreaming of you playing with them all day.
Another study done on birds concludes that birds dream of practicing their songs while sleeping.
As for your rabbits, another possibility is that they are practicing their ability to dig. Anything is possible!
Summary
While there are no studies about dreaming done directly on rabbits, since the 1950s, scientists have been studying mammals to determine whether or not they dream.
What they found is that mammals such as rabbits do have REM sleep, which has been linked to dreaming in humans.
There are also studies done on rats where scientists compare their brain patterns while running in a maze and while they’re sleeping.
What they found is that rats have a similar brain pattern while running in a maze and in REM sleep.
Scientists concludes that the rats are dreaming about running inside the maze.
Cite this article:
Related Articles
- What’s the Ideal Temperature For Rabbits?
- How To Tell If A Rabbit Is Sleeping?
- Do rabbits sleep? What You Need To Know.
- Where Do Rabbits Sleep?
- How Long Do Rabbits Sleep?
- Do Rabbits Sleep With Their Eyes Open?
- Why Is My Rabbit Shaking And Laying Down: 4 reasons (with proven solution)
- How To Tell If A Bunny Is Happy?
- Why Is Your Rabbit Suddenly Sleeping a Lot?
