Seeds That Are Poisonous to Rabbits

Vegetables and Legumes

• The gastrointestinal tract of a rabbit is different than the GI system of a human, and your pet may not be able to readily digest some of the fruits, vegetables and seeds you enjoy. The high sugar content in legumes and root vegetables -- even the quintessential carrot -- can cause serious, even fatal, gastrointestinal problems for rabbits if consumed in excess. Legumes, seeds that include peas and beans, are high in starch and sugars, which when consumed in excess by a rabbit, veterinarian Susan A. Brown reports in her HRS 2012 article "Suggested Vegetables and Fruits for a Rabbit Diet," can throw off the pH levels in the intestines, possibly resulting in serious GI disease. Some legume seeds, including uncooked lima beans and yam beans are poisonous to rabbits. Eating the seeds, or eyes, of potatoes can be fatal.

Birdseed and Treats

• Birdseed that falls from your backyard feeder may attract squirrels, chipmunks and other small animals, even wild rabbits. That doesn't mean, though, that birdseed is safe for a pet rabbit to eat. Even if the seeds themselves are safe in small amounts, many mixed-seed feeds contain milo, a filler seed that is toxic to rabbits. Feeding your bunny treats containing seeds, like sticks or ropes made of grains and seeds that are promoted as "chewing treats" can lead to GI problems from the sugary blend that holds the seeds together. Seeds are high in fat, putting rabbits fed a high-seed diet at risk for obesity as well as fatty liver disease, which can be fatal.

Common Fruit Seeds

• Many fruits and berries contain seeds and pits that are poisonous to rabbits. To be safe, remove all the seeds before feeding fruit to your bunny. Even some common household fruits that are safe for bunnies to eat contain seeds that are poisonous to rabbits. Apples, apricots, cherries, pears, peaches and plums, for example, are fine for rabbits to consume in small quantities, but their seeds contain cyanogenic glyconsides, or cyanide. The ASPCA says cyanide can cause diarrhea and vomiting in addition to a number of other ailments in rabbits, including respiratory congestion, decreased heart rate, lack of oxygen in the blood, seizures, respiratory failure and even death.

Plants and Flowers

• Wild rabbits may hop about your back yard, munching away at clover and other plants, but don't let that allow you to let your pet bunny eat plants and flowers in and around your home. Some plants or their seeds, or both, are toxic. Some of the seeds that are poisonous, House Rabbit Society reports, come from violets, sweet pea, yellow jasmine, wisteria, bird of paradise, lady slipper, angel trumpet tree, azalea, Christmas rose, corn lily, coral plant, coral berry, crab's eye, jack-in-the-pulpit, milkweed, moccasin flower, morning glory, poison ivy, poison oak, poison sumac and poison hemlock. Other plant seeds, including larkspur, rosary bean, rosary pea and castor bean plant, are fatal when ingested.