Crepuscular?

[Tinto]

I am sorry for posting several separate threads, but the topics are different so I though it would be better not to mix them up.

My doubt or question is: What is the daily schedule of your bunny, guys? I was told they are crepuscular, that means they should be most active at dawn/dusk, but what about the night? I wonder what time this crepuscular active time starts and ends. My bunny's routine is something like this:

around 6 a.m. - starts making noise
around 8:30 when I leave the apartment he lies down and relaxes
around 6-7 p.m. when I come back he wakes up and eats, then again sits or lies (half awake half asleep)
around 9-10 p.m. he runs around me, eats and poops etc.
I turn off the lights at around 10:30-11 p.m. to let him now the dusk is over and we both will have to sleep soon, but still it takes him some time to settle down
We had even some nights when he was running in the playing pet at 2-3 a.m.!!! You can imagine me at work (I am teaching at a college and we had an exam session) the next day...

Does "crepuscular" mean different times for every rabbit? Sometimes I really hurry up to come home earlier to spend with Tinto as much time as necessary, but in the end he doesn't care much about me until 9 p.m. or later, so maybe I don't need to be back so early, do I?

 

[JBun]

Every rabbits schedule is going to vary slightly, and will also depend on how they adapt to their owners schedule. But generally rabbits are most active in the early morning and late evening. You just have to find the norm for your particular rabbit.

 

[Popsicles]

Agreed it completely depends on your own routine - rabbits are very good at adapting to a routine and actually prefer to have a set time for things like breakfast and bedtime. Following my own routine my bunny is usually up at about 7:30am and we go to bed at about 1am, she used to keep me up being noisy during the night but now she knows her routine she is pretty silent until she wakes me up for breakfast at 7:45 in case I forget!!

 

[Blue eyes]

All my rabbits have been a little different on their schedules. Many of mine seemed to be most active between 10 and 11 pm when we are up watching TV or just relaxing. They like to come out and participate with us during that hour. But sometimes, Mocha will wait until midnight to hop about -- just when I'm trying to get him to bed (his cage is closed up only at night).

 

[Tinto]

Actually, there is another idea I wanted to discuss... When I leave the house, isn't it good to leave the lights on? Otherwise it gets dark around 5 p.m. during this season and when I come home I have to shock the bun with turning on the lights. Maybe it would be better to leave something turned on, so that he has the sensation that it's still daytime and not yet night. What do you guys think about that?

 

[Bailey ❤️]

Actually, there is another idea I wanted to discuss... When I leave the house, isn't it good to leave the lights on? Otherwise it gets dark around 5 p.m. during this season and when I come home I have to shock the bun with turning on the lights. Maybe it would be better to leave something turned on, so that he has the sensation that it's still daytime and not yet night. What do you guys think about that?

I do something similar. Our bun, Hazel is up in the morning around 7am when I let her out to play while I and clean her bunny condo. My daughter also takes her out for a short run along our sidewalk so that when she returns, her condo is all clean, hay and water restocked, and condo kept open throughout the day so she can roam in her tunnel or spin in her playpen all day to her heart’s content (but most of the time she just flops in one spot under her condo for hours on end). Late afternoon or early evening she gets her greens, more hay and a measure of Timothy pellets for the night, and she’s back in her little condo with door latched no later than 7pm. We keep lights on for her til about 9:30-10pm.

I remember how early the sun goes down in Japan in this season. I think a soft light for Tinto would be good. That way, you don’t accidentally stumble upon him as you open the door and come in after work and/or social hour. Buns do see best in dim light so a soft light would be good til it’s bedtime. Maybe you could get a sensor light, one that only turns on when it’s dark? They make those for night lights in all different styles and sizes. My daughter has one for her room and it works out great!

 

[samoth]

Rabbits can differ in their schedules, but I think they do adapt somewhat to their environment as well (that is, us humans and our schedule).

My guys are up before me (before 5:30am) and remain somewhat active until around 11am-noon, around which time they start to huker down for an afternoon nap. There's almost no activity in the afternoon.

When I get home around 6pm, they seek me out for a treat out of habbit, but they remain somewhat subdued until 8-9pm when they start getting active and anticipating/looking for dinner.

My guys remain active until I start getting ready for bed around 10-10:30pm. They recognize the sound of me brushing my teeth and know what it means when the I turn all the lights out.

I don't hear my guys at all during the afternoon or at night, with the exception of occasional munching of hay. However, they're both 3-5 years old; a younger rabbit might be more prone to being up & about at stranger times (not unlike teenage humans).

I don't do anything special with the inside lights. Rabbits have very good vision in low-level light, so I may get home when it's "dark" out, but I don't feel my rabbits are literally "in the dark" and not able to see anything. They react a bit when I turn the lights on, but then again, humans do the same thing when you turn the lights on in the classroom or meeting room after a presentation. It takes a few seconds to adapt, then everyone's fine. I wouldn't worry about shocking them by doing it.