You probably heard people saying things like “goats can eat anything”. Sayings like this hold water to an extent, but this is not a fact. Goats love to explore different things and taste with their mouths, but they can be selective.
Goats can be very picky when it comes to what they eat. Goats have gotten a reputation for being able to eat just about anything because they walk around a lot. They are known to sample a vast assortment of foods, unlike cows or sheep, that graze pastures.
The primary part of a goat’s diet is referred to as roughage. Goats can feed on hay, weeds, grasses, grains, and even tree bark.
Foods that goats can eat
Hay or grass
It is normally hay or grass rich or abundant in fiber and contains slightly low levels of calories. Goats are designed to eat a lot of hay because it has low-calorie content.
The first chamber of a goat’s stomach is called the rumen. It is stocked with beneficial bacteria whose task is to break down the hay and transform it into digestible fats.
Aside from the rumen, goats also have three other chambers in their stomachs; their function is to help the goats absorb the nutrients present in the food they consume.
A goat’s digestive system is complex and peculiarly suited for hay consumption. Goat consumption of sugary or human foods can stall or slow down their digestive process and induce sickness.
Goats stay healthy when they feed on what they are meant to eat.
Vitamins and minerals
Similarly to humans, goats require little amounts of minerals and vitamins to keep their bodies optimal. They also require little amounts of salt in their food as well. Minerals such as sodium, phosphorus, and calcium are vital for the health of the goat.
Baking soda, commonly referred to as sodium bicarbonate, is one source of vitamins that can be used to prevent stomach bloating in goats. Vitamin E, A, and D are essential for both infant and adult goats.
Black oil sunflower seeds are also rich in vitamin E which aids the goat in boosting its milk and enhancing its reproductive system and muscles.
Probios aid the goat with the rumen’s function and kelp meal is an iodine-rich food that stimulates milk production in goats. Apple cider vinegar is rich in minerals and enzymes which boosts the immune system of the body.
Grain
Goats may be designed to feed on hay, but their preferred meal is grain. Goats’ grain can be made up of barley, corn, soybeans and oats. They contain an abundant amount of calories, and they are low in fibre.
Excessive consumption of grain can make a goat overweight or obese. It’s okay if goats are moderately fed grain as a delicacy from time to time or for them to put on some weight to stay healthy.
Leaves and tree barks
Another food goats love includes leaves and the bark of trees. Goats can also be fed sticks, and branches with the leaves still on them. Goats heartily eat off the barks and leaves of branches.
This method of foraging or feeding is referred to as browsing.
Chaffhaye
Chaffhaye is primarily grass or hay made by cutting them at an early stage into tinier chunks and spreading with molasses. After this is done, it is usually placed inside a bag where it will get parched inside.
It mixes beneficial bacteria with the hay, which makes it easier for the goats to digest. This method includes additional minerals, energy, and nutrients.
Kitchen and garden waste
Scraps from the kitchen or garden have great nutritious content and can be suitable for the feeding of goats. It is also time and money-saving.
Kitchen waste like tomato ends, banana peels, orange peels, and garlic skins can be significantly nutritious to goats.
Even human foods such as vegetables, dried fruits, and fresh fruits can be used for this purpose. Sugary foods shouldn’t be fed to goats because it can make them dependable on them and induce laziness.
In conclusion, goats love to feed on pasture, raisins, greens, chaffhaye, sunflower seeds, carrots, pumpkin seeds.
Things goat shouldn’t eat
Many farmers provide their goats with unwholesome and unhealthy foods. This isn’t only counterproductive but could cause some health complications. Goats prefer to browse through leaves, grasses, trees, hay, and a couple of other things.
Nonetheless, herders need to ensure there are no cigarettes or paper in what they are feeding their goats.
Farmers should also do well not to give cat or dog food to their goat even though it is considered nutritious.
Other products that should be kept away from goats include:
- Crotalaria
- Azaleas
- Chocolate
- Milkweed
- Wild cherries
- Lilly of the valley
- Rhubarb leaves
- Any of the nightshade vegetable
- Lilacs
- Holly trees or bushes
- Avocado
- Palm leaves and peach
- Kale
It’s been noticed that goats also try to avoid grass hay. Mixing with other legume hays is allowed but the combination of alfalfa and grass hay is a good feed.
Toxic plants
The digestive systems of livestock are a bit more complex than humans, and goats are no exception. Like humans and almost all other living things, goats can react badly to some plant.
This is because some plants are toxic and can cause a series of complications when ingested.
Farmers may find themselves giving their goats some plants that are not as toxic but when taken excess can become poisonous.
These plants include:
- Grass: Velvetgrass, Johnson Grass, Sudangrass, and Sorghum
- Berries: Elderberry, China berries, Inkberry, and Baneberry
- Weeds: Pokeweed, Buckwheat, Pigweed, Milkweed, Redweed, Nightshade, Sneezeweed, Rattleweed, Staggerweed, and Jimsonweed
- Lily
- Ferns
- Poison ivy
- Poppy
- Cherries: Chokeberry and Blackcherry
- Corn cockle
- Backyard or lawn shrubs: Oleander, Boxwood, Virginia creeper, Carolina Allspice, Black locust buckeye, and Rhododendron wild hydrangea
Many farmers have to deal with slow growth and bad health in their livestock. Goats require feeds rich in protein and an ideal diet should contain at least 7% of portions. Notwithstanding, milking goats require about 14% of portions.
To ensure maximum health, farmers can maintain a balanced diet plan for their animals. It is important to provide enough clean water.
Farmers can also include small portions of minerals, too much of that isn’t advised as it can cause water phobia in goats.
Feeds that can help improve the health of your goat:
- Pasture: 80 to 90% of daily diet
- Grain: 7 to 10% of daily diet
- Minerals 1 to 2% of their diet
- Black Sunflower Seeds: This provides vitamin E and selenium
Also ensure Vitamins gotten from foods or Protein supplements.
Farmers pointers
- The volume of green feed, vitamins, water, and minerals have to be sufficient because these are the main elements for goat farming
- Particular attention needs to be paid to improve your goat’s physical state
- Supplements have to be supplied to goats to help develop their milk, skin, and improved immune system
- Goat feeding must be protected to prevent germs, bacteria and parasites
- The diet can be managed with hay
Famers can get more information on how to best raise their goats by connecting with other farmers in the goat business.
