Who Sleeps More: You or These Adorable Animals?

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By Claire Nowak, Reader's Digest

Cats—15 hours

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Hedgehogs typically get 10 hours of sleep every day, and since they’re nocturnal, they have opposite sleeping schedules from humans. Hedgehog owners can wake up their pets to play during the day, but the little guys usually get grumpy and curl up into a ball.

Hedgehogs—10 hours

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Hedgehogs typically get 10 hours of sleep every day, and since they’re nocturnal, they have opposite sleeping schedules from humans. Hedgehog owners can wake up their pets to play during the day, but the little guys usually get grumpy and curl up into a ball.

Giraffe—about 2 hours

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There’s debate about how long giraffes actually sleep, but it’s between one and five hours a day. They can sleep standing up with their necks down and heads resting on their back. Like humans, they have an REM (Rapid Eye Movement) cycle, but in order to reach that, they need to lie down with their legs tucked under their bodies.

Chimpanzees—9 hours

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Chimpanzees sleep between eight and nine hours in their nests, located high up in tree canopies, and they’re very picky about finding the best materials for those nests. An eye-opening 2014 study found that 70 percent of chimps in a Ugandan wildlife reserve used branches from the same tree—sturdy Ugandan ironwood—even though that species made up less than 10 percent of the trees in that area.

Chinchillas—13 hours

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Chinchillas are nocturnal, but don’t be surprised if they look awake during the day. They sleep with their eyes open. They’re also known to be light sleepers. In the wild, chinchillas sleep in crevices or burrows so predators don’t spot them.

Sheep—4 hours

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Sheep typically spend about 15 percent of their day sleeping, which adds up to less than four hours. Their odd sleep habits probably came from their ancestors that needed to stay awake to avoid getting attacked by predators.

Rabbits—8 hours

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Rabbits sleep around eight hours. Although they mostly sleep during the day, they’re not nocturnal either. They’re crepuscular, which means they’re most active at dusk and dawn. These are the best times for them to find food since it’s hard for predators to spot them in the low light. Wild rabbits even have special places for sleeping in the tunnels they live in underground, also called warrens.

Horses—3 hours

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Like sheep, horses evolved from a species that was preyed on in open fields, so they don’t need much time to sleep either. This is also why they sleep standing up, even though scientists may believe horses need to lie down to enter a deep sleep.

Dogs—Between 12 and 14 hours

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Dogs can sleep anywhere from 10-14 hours, although 12-14 is considered average for adult dogs. Puppies can need as much as 18-20 hours of sleep because they use so much energy running around all day. Canine sleep habits vary between breeds, but any dog that seems to sleep all the time may need a trip to the vet.

Squirrel—15 hours

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Nighttime habits differ for different types of squirrels (who, by the way, are probably smarter than you). Tree squirrels sleep in dens in the side of trees, while ground squirrels dig theirs underground. When ground squirrels hibernate in the winter, they are only awake for 12 to 20 hours each week.

Seals—6 hours

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As creatures of land and sea, seals can sleep pretty much anywhere in their habitat. Rocks and beaches often serve as seal beds, but they are also able to sleep floating upright and even underwater. A study from the University of Alaska-Fairbanks found that while elephant seals sleep, they let themselves sink in a way that resembles leaves falling from a tree. One possible explanation? They sleep with half of their brains awake.

Elephants—4 hours

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In total, elephants sleep about four to five hours during a 24-hour period, but their bedtime is actually split into chunks throughout the day. They can sleep lying down or resting against tree trunks and termite mounds. Elephants in herds take turns sleeping while the others keep watch for trouble.