Do Bunnies Cry? Why Do Bunnies Cry? 9 Clear Facts

It can be quite startling for anyone who keeps bunnies as pets to hear them making noise that sounds like crying. Upon hearing such sounds, one will usually want to know whether indeed bunnies cry and if yes, why. This article has the answers.

Do bunnies cry? Yes, bunnies do cry. Bunnies may cry when they are experiencing intense fear. The bunnies may also cry when they are in pain. And baby bunnies may cry when they happen to be very hungry.

In some cases, you may find the bunnies crying softly. But in other cases, you find the bunnies crying loudly and in a deeply anguished manner.

Either way, one is left wondering, why do bunnies make crying noises.

And that in turn leads to other questions like, do rabbits get sad? And if yes, do rabbits cry when sad?

In another case, you may find the bunnies crying so badly that it looks as if they are dying. And this leads to a question like: do rabbits cry when they die?

In some cases, you may not actually hear the bunny crying. But when you come to check on him, you find what looks like tears around the eyes.

And then you are left wondering, my bunny looks like he’s been crying, what could be the reason?

Thus the whole subject of bunnies crying has many facets.

There are actually people who have doubts on whether bunnies can cry in the first place. So we have to start by addressing that issue.

Can Bunnies Cry?

People who are new to bunnies may find it hard to believe that these animals can cry.

This is what leads to questions like, do rabbits cry, can a rabbit cry and so on.

The truth of the matter is that bunnies do cry.

Often, you will hear a sharp or low sound coming from the bunny: a sound that can only be described as ‘crying’.

Many people who keep bunnies report hearing them cry.

And there is a lot of literature – online and else – about the phenomenon of bunnies crying.

So bunnies do cry.

To be sure, of all the sounds that bunnies make, the crying sound is one of the rarer. But the fact remains that bunnies do cry.

Why Do Bunnies Cry?

After learning that bunnies are capable of crying, the next question that arises is on why they do it.

So, indeed, why does a rabbit cry? Are bunnies emotional? Do bunnies whimper and cry for emotional reasons Or why exactly do the bunnies cry?

As it turns out, there are three key things that can make bunnies cry.

The first thing that can make bunnies cry is fear. If bunnies are experiencing intense fear, they often cry.

The second thing that can make bunnies cry is pain. When bunnies are experiencing a lot of pain, they may cry.

And the third thing that can make bunnies cry is hunger. When bunnies – especially baby bunnies – are under conditions of extreme hunger, they may cry.

We will now proceed to look at each of these things that make bunnies cry in turn.

Fear As A Reason For Bunnies Crying

One of the commonest reasons for bunnies crying is fear.

If, for instance, a bunny sees an animal it perceives as a predator approaching, it may cry out.

Similarly, if a bunny is suddenly picked up, it may cry: typically in the screaming fashion. This often leads people to ask, why do bunnies scream upon being picked up?

And the answer is that they usually scream because they think that they are going to be harmed.

You have to remember that these bunnies are prey animals. They often get harmed a lot in the wild. So they are always alert of potential harm.

That is why the bunnies may scream upon being picked up.

Thus fear is a common cause for bunnies crying.

There are also situations in which bunnies cry when they are about to die. Even in such situations, chances are that it is the fear of the impending death that makes them cry.

Strange sounds and even strange sights can also make bunnies fearful. They may respond to those by crying.

The inference is if you find your bunnies crying, you need to investigate if something may be scaring them.

Remember, these bunnies are prey animals, which get scared rather easily.

Pain As A Reason For Bunnies Crying

If a bunny is in pain, it may sometimes let out an anguished cry.

Take for instance a bunny that happens to have a urinary tract infection. You may tend to find such a bunny crying out (in pain) whenever it is urinating.

This would be on account of the burning sensation it experiences while urinating: due to the urinary tract infection.

Another bunny that happens to have arthritis may also sometimes cry out in pain, whenever it makes certain movements.

And a bunny with a condition like gastrointestinal stasis may cry out, due to the pain such a condition causes.

Therefore if you hear your bunny crying, you need to know that it may be due to pain.

You first need to investigate if something is scaring the bunny. If nothing is scaring the bunny, yet it is crying, then you need to know that the crying may be due to pain.

That would in turn call for a further investigation, on where the pain may be. Once you pinpoint where the pain is, you can proceed to figure out a possible cause for the rabbit crying in pain.

Besides physical pain, there are those who argue that bunnies may cry due to emotional pain. But there is a lot of debate on this aspect.

A common question in that context is, how do you tell if a bunny is happy or sad? Can crying be a sign of a bunny being sad? Indeed, what do rabbits say when they cry (in emotional terms)?

Many experts seem to be of the view that rabbits express emotional pain through behavioral changes, rather than crying.

Thus, for instance, it is unlikely that a rabbit would cry due to loneliness or sadness.

Hunger As A Reason For Bunnies Crying

There are situations in which bunnies – especially baby bunnies – cry on account of hunger.

Mother bunnies have a rather strange approach to sucking their babies. They normally only do it once, around the time when the sun sets (at dusk). In between, the baby bunnies may get quite hungry: and start crying.

There are also situations in which the mother bunnies abandon their babies altogether. They may assess them, and decide that they are not worth suckling!

Eventually, such baby bunnies will start starving. And this causes them to start crying in an anguished manner.

Thus hunger can be a reason for bunnies – especially baby bunnies – to keep on crying in an anguished manner.

One may ask, why do baby bunnies cry when hungry? And the reason may be alert their mother, so that she can know that they are hungry and in need of feeding.

Indeed, if you happen to have baby bunnies, and you hear them crying, you need to know that is likely to be due to hunger.

Only after ruling out hunger can you start thinking of other possible reasons for the baby bunnies crying.

How Does A Bunny Cry?

In a discussion on the subject of bunnies crying, we have to mention something with regard to how exactly the bunnies cry.

So, indeed, how does a bunny cry? Or, in other words, exactly how do rabbit cry?

The key thing in answering that question (on how does rabbit cry) is focusing on their crying sounds. So we ask ourselves, what sound do bunnies make when they cry?

And as it turns out, there are three types of sounds that bunnies make when crying.

Firstly, we sometimes find bunnies crying by way of screaming.

Secondly, we at times find bunnies crying by way of whimpering.

And thirdly, there are times when bunnies may cry by way of emitting strange grunting sounds.

It would seem that the sound that a bunny makes while crying can reveal the reason for crying.

For instance, if a bunny is crying due to fear, it may give out a scream.

On the other hand, if a bunny is crying due to pain, the sound may come out as a whimper.

Do Bunnies Cry Tears?

Although they are equipped with well-functioning tear ducts, bunnies don’t actually cry tears most of the time. So their crying is of the dry type.

Nonetheless, there are situations in which the level of anguish is so high that they actually cry tears.

In most cases though, you normally won’t find tears on the face of a bunny that has been crying.

If you do find them, it is worth seriously asking, why does my rabbit have tears? You then need to investigate whether what you are seeing are actually tears, or other discharges.

You need to understand that bunnies with allergy conditions may sometimes seem to be having tears.  There are also dental conditions that can make a rabbit look as if it has tears.

Do Baby Bunnies Cry?

Yes, baby bunnies do cry. In fact, crying seems to be more common in baby bunnies than in adult bunnies.

Why do baby bunnies cry? For instance, do baby bunnies cry for their mom? Or why exactly do they cry?

In most cases, if you hear a baby rabbit crying, it is likely to be due to hunger.

So they are indeed crying for their mom: to alert her that they are hungry and in need of feeding.

But baby bunnies can also cry due to fear or due to being in pain.

The first possibility to consider is always that of the crying being due to hunger. But this doesn’t completely exclude the pain and fear possibilities.

Why Do Bunnies Cry At Night?

There are many things that can make bunnies cry at night.

If something is scaring them at night, the bunnies may tend to cry: due to fear.

A bunny that is in a lot of pain may also cry throughout the night – due to the pain.

And baby bunnies that are starving may also have a tendency to keep on crying at night.

So there are several possible reasons for bunnies crying at night.

How Can You Help Crying Bunnies?

Once you hear your bunnies crying, you will instinctively start thinking of helping them. But how can you help?

What to do if a rabbit is crying depends on the likely reason for its cry.

If the crying seems to be due to fear, you need to identify what may be scaring the bunnies. Then get rid of it (or reduce the bunnies’ exposure to it), so as to lessen their fear.

In case the crying seems to be due to pain, you may consider taking the bunny to a vet. The vet can then examine the bunny, identify the cause of the pain, and get a treatment plan going.

If it is baby bunnies that are crying due to hunger, you need to feed them. If their mother can’t feed them adequately, you can consider buying kitten replacement milk for them.

Final Verdict – Do Bunnies Cry

Bunnies are capable of crying.

One common reason for bunnies crying is fear. If something happens to be scaring the bunnies greatly, they may tend to start crying out.

Another common reason for bunnies crying is pain. When bunnies happen to be experiencing some sort of intense pain, they tend to cry out.

Yet another common reason for bunnies crying is hunger: especially in the case of recently born baby bunnies.

Sometimes, the bunny crying takes the form of a scream. But it can also be in the form of a whimper or even grunting.

Usually, bunnies’ crying is dry: with no tears.

If you find bunnies with tears, yet you didn’t hear them crying, it can be a sign of something else. That may be an allergy condition, dental problem or some sort of infection (with discharge that looks like tears).

Identifying the reason for bunnies crying is the first step to helping them.

In case they are crying due to fear, you simply reduce their exposure to what is scaring them.

If they seem to be crying due to pain, you take them to a vet, for pain alleviating treatment.

And if they seem to be crying due to hunger, you get them food. This may be kitten replacement milk, for baby bunnies whose mother is completely unable to feed them.

As a pet lover, make sure to learn about pet more and give your pet rabbit a good and comfortable life!

Rajkumar Ravichandran

Welcome to Learn About Pet. My name is Rajkumar Ravichandran and I love all pets, travel, and amazing food. I write about my passion and personal experience caring for multiple pets in this blog! ❤️