So, Can Goats Eat Dog Food?

If you own goats, you already know that your goats are pretty adventurous eaters. They might be herbivores, but it seems like they will try to steal a little food from any other animals in the area, and are often more than interested in trying any food that you are eating.

Take dog food for instance. Can goats eat dog food?

No, goats should not eat dog food. The dietary requirements of goats and dogs are completely different, and the vast majority of dog food on the market is nutritionally incomplete for goats, it might be indigestible or even harmful.

A few bites of dry dog food are unlikely to harm goats, but you should never allow them to eat it or deliberately feed it to them.

It makes sense to me; dog food is for dogs, not goats. You already know if you live on a working farm or just have a busy homestead of your own that it rarely fails the various animals will have occasion to swipe a little bit of food from one another if given the chance.

This generally isn’t that big of a deal, and you don’t have to worry about dog food harming your goats if they only get a few bites but repeated feedings can definitely be harmful.

Keep reading to learn what you need to know.

Dogs and Goats Have Entirely Different Diets

I’m not telling you anything you probably don’t already know, but for those who are unaware goats cannot eat dog food because dogs and goats have entirely different diets, different nutritional requirements and indeed are completely different animals.

Dogs are omnivores, meaning they can eat all kinds of things even though they’re diet is usually high in meat content.

Goats, on the other hand, are strictly herbivores, meaning they eat nothing but plant matter.

Goat feed, and other wholesome food for goats, is made of nothing but plant matter and supplemental items that will give them the vitamins and minerals they need in a manner that their body can handle and digest without ill effect.

Dog food, on the other hand, will invariably have some kind of meat in it, or other animal derived crude protein. Goats should never have meat, animal fat and things like that.

At best, they won’t derive any nutrition from it. At worst, it can make them very sick or even hurt them.

Can Goats Eat Wet Dog Food?

No, goats should have never eat wet dog food. Wet or moist dog food is invariably meat, fat and some sort of gelling agent, none of which is good or safe for goats.

Once again, if they have a single bite, perhaps two, there’s probably nothing to worry about even if it does give them indigestion.

However, eating a large quantity or worse, you regularly feeding them wet dog food is bound to cause serious health problems.

Can Goats Eat Dry Dog Food?

No, goats should not eat dry dog food either. That being said, dry dog food is usually more well-rounded than wet dog food, and most often contains plant matter in the form of vegetables and sometimes fruits along with grains.

Dogs might need these items in their diet or they might not, but it does bulk up the food a little bit and, more important to our purposes, makes it a little more palatable to goats.

If your goat manages to get at your dog’s food, or by accident a little bit of dog food gets scattered in their area, you needn’t to worry about it.

The dry nature and higher plant matter content of dry dog food means that it shouldn’t hurt your goats so long as they don’t make a habit of eating it regularly.

Can Goats Eat Organic Dog Food?

No. Goats cannot have dog food, at all, even if it is organic. Just because something is organic or all natural does not mean it is nutritionally complete or even viable for another animal.

All natural, organic ingredients that are typically found in dog food are still inadequate or harmful for goats.

Can Goats Eat Dog Treats?

No. Dog treats are just things that dogs normally get in their food and a fun and easy to handle shape that makes humans feel good for giving it to them.

Do not give your goats dog treats, and don’t allow your goats to eat dog treats if your dog drops one.

Some items, like rawhide, can actually cause devastating injuries in goats if they manage to ingest them because of their digestive tract works.

Regular Ingestion of Dog Food will Lead to Illness in Goats

In case you are planning on being cheap, or perhaps you have no other choice, you should know that regularly feeding dog food to goats or allowing them to eat it regularly will calls harm eventually.

No matter what kind of dog food it is, it is nutritionally incomplete for goats.

Keep in mind that just because the label on the packaging states it has vitamins and minerals that goats might need does not mean that goat’s bodies are equipped to extract that nutrition from the food.

The type of food matters, and as mentioned above, dog food and very early has meat and other animal products in it that goats cannot digest.

How Often Can Goats Have Dog Food?

In a perfect world, goats will never have dog food. But, in the real world, sometimes they will manage to steal a few bites.

As mentioned above, for a little nibble of wet food or perhaps a mouthful of dry food, this is nothing to worry about.

Keep an eye on your goats and as long as they don’t show any signs of distress go on with your life.

However, should you find that goats managed to make a full meal out of dog food or they were erroneously fed dog food instead of their usual feed, you are advised to call your veterinarian for advice.

Can Baby Goats Have Dog Food?

No. I trust it should be clear by now that no goat should ever have dog food, especially baby goats.

Kids have sensitive digestive systems, are growing quickly and must have adequate nutrition and dog food will only irritate their systems or leave them lacking in the nutrition that they need badly.

Never, ever give dog food to kids.