Vegetables and Fruits That Will Kill Your Rabbit

Just because rabbits are herbivores, it doesn’t mean they can eat all varieties of vegetables, fruits, and greens.
In this video, we will talk about the most common foods that should never be fed to rabbits.

Avocados
Avocados contain a toxic substance called persin, which is perfectly safe for human, but can cause serious health problems — even death — in many animals including rabbits.
Chocolate
Chocolate is an absolute no-no for rabbits. As with dogs and cats, chocolate has no place in your bunny's diet. The sweet treat is incredibly toxic to rabbits because it contains theobromine and caffeine.
Iceberg Lettuce
While there are some varieties of leafy, dark lettuces, like romaine, that make wonderful staples in a well-balanced rabbit diet, light-colored lettuces, like iceberg, contain a substance called Lactucarium that can be harmful to rabbits. Lactucarium is not usually harmful in small amounts, but a large portion of iceberg lettuce could cause diarrhea and physical weakness.
Iceberg lettuce also contains mostly water and will add no nutritional value to a rabbit’s diet.
Mushrooms
Rabbits should not eat any type of mushroom. Wild mushrooms are particularly dangerous, but even store-bought mushrooms should not be fed to rabbits.
Meat, fish and eggs
Although this shouldn’t come as a surprise, rabbits are herbivores, meaning that they eat plants, and should never be offered meat, fish or eggs.
Make sure to avoid feeding your bunny any product containing animal-derived proteins such as meat, eggs or chicken.
Raw Onions, Leeks, and Garlic
Onions, garlic, leeks and all herbs from the Allium family are toxic and can cause serious health problems to rabbits as well as many other animals. These vegetables will destroy a rabbit’s red blood cells.
Fruit Seeds
Although small amounts of many fruits are safe for rabbits to eat, the seeds and pits of many fruit varieties contain small amounts of cyanide, which can be toxic to your little pet.
Pears and apples are the most notorious examples, but the pits from peaches, apricots, plums, cherries, and mangos also contain cyanide, which is fine in small doses, but will make your pet sick if they are repeatedly fed these pits.
For safety's sake, keep your rabbit far away from seeds and pits.
Dairy products
Even though it is common to see image of rabbits drinking milk in picture books and cartoons, you should not give rabbits milk to drink.
Even baby rabbits should not be fed cow’s milk.
Rhubarb
All parts of the rhubarb plant are toxic to rabbits. This vegetable contains a compound called oxalic acid, which can interfere with calcium absorption and lead to unpleasant side effects.
Eye catchy pet-store treats and pellet mixes
Oftentimes, many treats and pellets sold at the pet-store are far from healthy for rabbits. Many of them include harmful ingredients such as yogurt, seeds, corn, nuts and legumes. Some also have colorful pieces with a high amount of added sugar in them.
Raw Potatoes
Before being cooked, potatoes contain a poisonous substance called solanine which is toxic to rabbits.
Fruits and vegetables
Most fruits and vegetables such as bananas, carrots, pineapples, peaches, and grapes are safe for rabbits to eat, but only in very small amounts as occasional treat. These foods are not toxic, but have high sugar content which can lead to weight grain, obesity and could cause an imbalance in the rabbit’s digestion.
As a rule of thumb, an approximate amount of fruit to feed your rabbit is one teaspoon per 2 pounds of body weight per day.
Houseplants
Even though rabbits are herbivores, there are some house plants that can be toxic to them when ingested.
Among the most toxic plants are Daffodils, Ivy, Lilies, Aloe Vera, and Golden Pothos.
Kidney Beans and Broad Beans
Legumes, including peas, beans, and lentils, should never be fed to rabbits.
Chilli Peppers
Rabbits can eat almost all types of bell peppers – green, yellow, red, or purple. However, hot peppers such as the Jalapeno, Cayenne, or Habanero shouldn’t be fed to rabbits as their digestive system is sensitive to hot and spicy foods.
Bread, Pasta, Cookies, and Cereals
The problem with these highly processed foods is that they are loaded with sugar and carbohydrates which can lead to abnormal stools, abdominal discomfort, and dysbiosis.
Likewise, muesli-style foods shouldn’t be fed to rabbits.
Remember, rabbits' digestive systems are designed to process high-fiber diet. This is why a rabbit’s daily diet should be made up of mostly hay, a small amount of fresh vegetables, and a limited number of pellets.
Olives
Olives have a high sodium content which makes them dangerous for rabbits to eat if consumed in large amounts.
Hamster Food
Hamsters and rabbits are two different species, and they have different food requirements.
Hamster food is designed to meet the nutritional requirements of an omnivore, whereas rabbit food is designed to meet the need of an herbivore.

[aneesjaneeali]

18. Avacado
17. Chocolate
16. Iceberg lettuce
15. Mushrooms
14. Meat, fish, eggs
13. Onions, garlic
12. Fruit seeds
11. Dairy products
10. Rhubarbs
9. Treats n colorful pellets
8. Raw potatoes
7. Certain fruits
6. Houseplants
5. Kidney n broad beans
4. Chilli peppers
3.

[stephm]

I don't understand why companies still make rabbit pellet mixes when they are so very unhealthy for rabbits. Also, I'm a long time bunny mom and I do NOT feed my rabbits pellets of any kind. If they don't eat it in the wild, they don't eat it at home. Pellets, fruits, carrots, etc. are not fed to them. They get unlimited hay and greens (parsley & romaine). I also feed them Vita-Licious from Small Pet Select as a treat & plenty of apple twigs & willow because they love to chew. Your rabbit will have far fewer gut problems if you keep their diets free from pellets & sugar (cane molasses) and they will want to eat more hay. They're like children. They won't eat their broccoli if you're constantly feeding them sweets. So don't do it. Thank you for coming to my Ted Talk.

[MrDK]

Positively surprised by this video. There are far too many people who feed their rabbits bread, colorful pellet and corn mixes or lots of lettuce.

[purrpaws]

WHO WROTE THE CONTENT FOR THIS?!. Truly ONLY a very knowledgeable and educated RABBIT PERSON! Loving this channel! <3

[sia]

I love this channel. It’s probably one of the only listicle pages that is well researched and provides correct information.

[hafizskabdul]

18. Avocado
17. Chocolate
16. Iceberg Lettuce
15. Mashroom
14. Meat fish and eggs
13. Raw onions, leak and garlic
12. Fruit Seeds
11. Dairy Products
10. Rhubarb
9. Pallet Mixes
8. Raw Potatoes
7. Fruits and vegetables in high amount
6. House plants
5. Beans
4. Chilli papers
3. Bread pasta cookies
2. Olives
1. Hamster Food

[tymlineswithsheelu]

I follow this channel since I bought my pet bunny 🐰 your videos helped me a lot and m trying to make these informational videos for Indians too..
There are so much wrong information about bunny care here ... love 🐇

[LindaSueTheRabbits]

Thanks for the this very important information! Please note important facts about Kale that was not mentioned.
You can give to your rabbit Kale every once in a while. However, it's important to remember to avoid feeding it every day. Some rabbits may feel some sort of stomach distress (gas or other digestive problems) due to this being a cruciferous vegetable. With time if your rabbit eats too much kale he can develop some kidneys problems, because of the kale’s calcium content. Same with Spinach and all cruciferous vegetables should be every once in awhile in small amounts.
Moreover, Corn is deadly to rabbits, they should not be given corn on the cob, corn husks or corn in other preparations. The hull of corn is made up of a certain type of polysaccharide that rabbits cannot digest. Since they are unable to vomit, any corn kernel they eat will remain in their stomach largely unchanged. When this happens, they will experience digestive problems and or blockages that could be fatal.

[soxpeewee]

Lots of rabbit treats are yogurt based. Be sure to read ingredients even if it's marked "for rabbits." Also a lot of Asian herbs and vegetables are bad for bunnies, as is jicama.

[spotty]

About time someone posted correct Bonny's diet. Great channel.

[angelapietras]

I have had rabbits all my life, and still have them now retired this is a very helpful video, to show you what a rabbit can, and cannot eat, rabbits can go down hill very fast if the right food is not being given.Also the darker the pellets you buy the more fyhber

[internationalhorsegirl]

While many things explained in this video are very informative and correct (but shouldn’t have to be explained - who would feel chocolate to their rabbit?) I found some things on the list to be quite misleading. It is correct that iceberg lettuce isn’t the no. 1 on a feeding list. But that is not because of its poisonous content but because of its very low density of nutrients as well as possible pollution from pesticides on the outsides leaves. The same goes for fruit. Although fruit seeds do contain small amounts of cyanide, it is important to note that your rabbit would have to eat 100+ apple seeds for it to actually show any effect on their health. What is correct though is that most animals, especially herbivores, should NEVER be given meat, milk or anything else that they wouldn’t naturally eat. That is also true for grains, bread or pellets. Would a rabbit choose to eat it in the wild? If not, it’s probably not good for them…

[jankonicki]

I feed my rabbits with a huge amount of green hay, dried herbs (dried plants that grow in meadows), twigs of trees that are safe for them, dried roots of some plants and sometimes small amounts of fruits and vegetables

[medecko]

Carrots and some veggies in general are mostly just snacks, not actually meals. So giving them just like 1 or 2. Maybe even little slices ain’t bad. But it’s better to just feed them with hay, and give them a healthy diet.

[diablominero]

If you pay attention, you can taste whether a potato has much solanine. Some purple potatoes have noticeable amounts even after they're cooked. Some white potatoes don't have it raw. If you've ever tried to grow TPS potatoes, lots of the new varieties you create will have huge amounts of solanine, making them taste acrid and bitter.

[janetg]

I always preach no kale, broccoli, cabbage and other cruciferous veges since my first house bunny I rescued in 1984….I have seen more sick bunnies who eat a diet with a lot of kale and other cruciferous veges. I have only given it as a very small treat….also, too much spinach has too much oxalates in it which can cause problems….They also cause gas, and rabbits can’t expel gas….

[thomaswilson]

Ive got 4 Rabbits aged 5, 5, 10, 10 they are sisters and all rescues but unfortunately one of my bunny's named nibbles passed away from a lump in her kidney when she was 8 but her sister is still going on strong 2 years later. The younger two are very happy and play full same with the older one and have my FULL garden to play in from first light to dusk they are heatly diets. all i ask is feed your bunny well maintain its needs they will grow old and be happy :)

[sir-onworld]

Good video for people that love rabbits 🐇 i have a 10 year old rabbit . Thanks for sharing 👍

[lucmylius]

Thanks this helps but I do always check before giving them

[larasemerad]

Wow=Do I have to eat the same to improve my health? thanks for the education.