Feeding goats properly is essential to the overall health of the herd, and to the success of any meat goat, dairy goat, or fiber goat homesteading operation.
Goats are ruminant animals, they have four stomach chambers. When they are eating the wrong type of food, too much of the right kind of food, or introduce feed changes too quickly, their rumen gets out of whack, and can cause potentially deadly bloat or other serious medical issues.
To keep the ruminant stomach chamber healthy and fully functional, a goat must eat enough roughage and avoid ingesting too much rich grain feed.
Some goats tend to be more prone to bloat than others, which means a keeper may need to adjust feeding habits slightly and provide more of an administered free choice supplement (baking soda) or keep bloat drenching
Table of Contents:
Grain
Grain feed should be only a small part – if at all, of the goat’s diet. A goat that consumes too much grain is at increased risk of health issues – like bloat. A quality grain feed is comprised of significant percentages of protein, minerals, and vitamins.
If feeding grain to goats it should account for no more than 10% of their overall daily food intake. Dairy goats are sometimes given more grain than meat and fiber goats in an attempt to enhance milk production.
Sweet mixed that have a high percentage of molasses should only be given (if at all) in incredibly small amounts or to pregnant and nursing nanny goats to give them a calorie boosts.
Hay
A goat should eat between 2 to 4 pounds of hay on a daily basis. This recommended amount varies based upon the maturity of the goat, stature (miniature goats, standard goats), and takes into account the enhanced caloric needs of pregnant or nursing nanny goats.
Goats are browsers and not grazers like horses and cattle. They can garner some if not all of their daily roughage intake while wandering around your homestead eating grass, weeds, brush, leaves, and similar natural items – at least during the warm weather parts of the year.
Even during the winter time goats can browse for a portion of their roughage intake, depending on your climate, and on how much space the herd has to roam and forage for food.
Hay Types
The quality and type of the hay provided to the goat herd matters a great deal from a rumen health and nutrient intake perspective. Suffice it to say that all hay is not created equal.
A leafy legume type hay is recommended for goats. This type of hay is usually comprised of alfalfa, soybeans, vetch, and clover.
Goat kids as well as their nursing mommas typically thrive on a legume style of hay. Mature goats, regardless of type, usually prefer a grass and legume style hay mix to fulfill their dietary needs.
Being a small to medium sized livestock, goats generally will not eat a grass style hay unless it is their only option. Their small mouths are not well equipped to eat such a coarse variety of hay.
Alfalfa Hay
This legume style hay boats a high protein, fiber, vitamin A and calcium percentage. Alfalfa hay is comprised of roughly 15% to 22% crude protein, and 32% crude fiber.
The leafy fiber strands are longer than the ones produced by a grass hay. Goats will ingest approximately 120% more energy from an alfalfa hay that they would from an oat style of hay.
Orchard – This style of hay is lower in protein than alfalfa hay but boasts a higher percentage of fiber. Orchard grass hay is comprised of about 30% crude fiber and 7% of crude protein.
Cereal Grains
A cereal or oat type of hay is lower in protein than either alfalfa or orchard grass hay but is comprised of a higher carbohydrate and fiber percentage.
Goats tend to love this type of hay because it is sweet and is soft enough that they can consume it right down through the stem easily.
A diet of only cereal grain hay would not be good for goats due to its lack of protein content, but mixing some cereal grains into your hayfield or buying hay from someone who does, will be welcomed as a tasty and healthy hay bale treat.
Cereal grain hay is comprised of 9% crude protein, and also has a significant manganeses, zinc, and phosphorus content.
Timothy
This style of hay is a nice mix of essential nutrients, but it also has a lower protein percentage than alfalfa hay. Timothy hay is comprised of approximately 7% crude protein, and 32% crude fiber.
Safe Treats for Goats
Treats should only be given as a training aid or in small amounts on any type of a regular basis.
It can be difficult for some goat owners not to provide too many healthy treats because the goats love them, but too much of a good thing can also cause rumen problems.
Training the goats to stay in their pen, free range on your homestead, or simply to establish trust so the animals run towards and not away from you if injured or trapped in fencing are all great reasons for giving small amounts of healthy treats.
You can plant many of these healthy treats in the goat herd browsing area, or inside their pen as a free choice snack.
But, if you go this route, expect the herd to devour all of the treats quickly – often before the plant matures and produces the produce is yields that they would most enjoy.
95 Things Goats Can Eat
| Jojoba | Black Locus |
| Lemongrass | Poison Oak |
| Yellow Locus | Poplar Tree Leaves |
| Wandering Jew Plant | Poison Sumac Vines |
| Peppers | Lilac Bark |
| Ginger Root | Mint |
| Monkey Flower | Roses – entire Bush |
| Jambolan Leaves | Mullein |
| Virginia Creeper | Raisins |
| Greenbrier | Coyote Bush |
| Sassafras | Douglas Fir |
| Marshmallow Herb | Strawberries |
| Spruce Trees | Amaranth |
| Salvation Jane Plant | Peas – cooked |
| Elm Tree Leaves and Bark | Jerusalem Artichokes |
| Blackberry Bushes | Clover |
| Black Eyed Susan | Cottonwood |
| Catnip | Bay Leaves |
| Lavender | Beets |
| Collard Greens | Pomegranates |
| Soybeans | Cow Peas |
| Oranges | Cedar Leaves, Bark, and Needles |
| Mustard Seed | Yarrow |
| Daisies | Peaches – after removing pits |
| Red Clover | Indian Currant |
| Watercress | Calendula Flowers |
| Bramble | Corn |
| Sunflowers | Grapefruit |
| Garlic – in very small amounts and to help naturally prevent worms | Bananas – some goats prefer only the peels |
| Plantain | Dill |
| Kudzu | Camellia Flowers |
| Arborvitae | Thyme |
| Fennel | Lemon Balm |
| Honeysuckle | Rosemary |
| Turnips | Dandelions |
| Cauliflower | Cantaloupe |
| Squash | Mango Leaves |
| Mustard – spice | Oregano |
| Sow Thistle | Watermelon |
| Oats – raw or cooked | Pumpkin |
| Oak Tree Leaves | Cabbage |
| Peppermint | Apples |
| Mesquite | Broccoli – raw or cooked |
| Unsalted Sunflower Seeds | Celery |
| Carrots | Pears |
| Weeping Willow | Raspberry Bushes |
| Black Raspberry Bushes | Wild Tobacco |
| Wax Myrtle |
60 Things Goats Cannot Eat
Not only are some kitchen scraps or store bought food stuffs not safe for your goats to eat, some naturally growing matter that could be in the browsing area of pen can even be dangerous to deadly.
| Elderberry Trees | Maya-Maya |
| China Berry Trees | Burning Bush |
| Plum Trees | African Yew |
| Lilac Flowers | Coriaria Arborea Plant |
| Red Maple Trees | False Tansy |
| Brouwer’s Beauty Andromeda | Ficus |
| Althea | Boxwood |
| Oleander | Bracken Ferns |
| Horse Nettle | Chokecherry Trees |
| Mayapple | Flixweed |
| Holly | Garden Iris |
| Japanese Pieris | Water Hemlock |
| Castor Oil Plant | Cestrum |
| Lily of the Valley | Morning Glory Flowers |
| Yew | Cherry Trees |
| Ponderosa Pine Trees | Laburnum |
| Poison Hemlock | Potato Weed |
| Pokeweed | Acorns |
| Azaleas | Fiddleneck |
| Mountain Laurel | Ngaio |
| Fiddleneck | Blue Lupin |
| Dumb Cane | Iceland Poppy |
| Nightshade | Kale |
| Rhubarb Leaves | Calotropis Plant |
| Datura | Raw Potatoes |
| Buttercups | Dog Hobble |
| Avocadoes | English Ivy |
| Rhododendrons | Fireweed Plant |
| Foxglove | St. John’s Wort |
| Japanese Yew | Goat’s Rue |
Many newbie goat keepers give salted crackers or bits of bread to their goats. This type of snack is not necessarily deadly, but can lead to significant health problems – especially bloat.
A goat, or any ruminant animal that consumes too much grain will have digestion and gas build up problems.
If you give bread, crackers, or even graham crackers to members of your goat herd, do so as only a special or rare treat, and not a daily or weekly small amount treat.
Never give off treats before the goats have eaten their daily ration of hay. The goats should first have a healthy food that will foster proper rumen function in their bellies, and not gobble down a snack or even grain ration, before their base healthy dietary meal.
Goat Supplements
Some goat supplements should be provided as a free choice “treat” on a daily basis, but others may need to offered only at specific times of the year or when a goat herd member is showing signs of a deficiency or illness.
Baking Soda
Keep baking soda in a small feeder inside the goat pen so it is always available for herd members to munch on.
When a goat is starting to bloat or is bloated, it typically gravitates to the baking soda to help alleviate the increase in gas buildup.
Salt Blocks
Place a salt block on a clean and dry spot to help the goat herd replenish essential vitamins and minerals they lose when expending energy, and especially during the hot summer months.
Mineral Blocks
A mineral block for livestock works basically like a vitamin for human beings. By licking the mineral blocks a goat can help infuse more calcium, potassium, sulfur, copper, sodium, manganese, iron, iodine, and zinc into their system.
Some mineral blocks also contain salt, but not all. Also, sheep mineral blocks do not typically contain copper, which is a superb supplement for goats.
Either buy goat-specific mineral blocks, or read the content label carefully to determine what nutrients the goat herd will ingest when licking the block.
Diatomaceous Earth
This agricultural grade substance can be sprinkled over livestock grain rations or stirred into the grain feed storage tub to be fed as a supplement to the goat herd.
Diatomaceous Earth is a natural toxin remover and deworming agent that may help prevent parasites and bacteria from harming the health of your livestock.
Final Words
The best diet for your goat (or any livestock) is the most natural one you can provide. The closer you can keep to the traditional browsing habits of goats, the better the odds are that the animals will remain healthy.
Never feed your goats hay, grain rations, supplements, or healthy snacks on the ground – especially not inside their pen.
Food that is fed from the ground is far more likely to be subjected to soil bacteria, manure, and any worms that may be present in the goat droppings.
Tara lives on a 56 acres farm in the Appalachian Mountains, where she faces homesteading and farming challenges every single day. her homesteading skills are unmatched, she raises chickens, goats, horses, a wide variety of vegetables, not to mention she’s an expert is all sorts of homesteading skills such as hide tanning, doll making, tree tapping and many, many more.
If I have kale in the pasture of the goats, is that going to be concerning? Also, what about some of these others like turnip greens, chicory, buckwheat, plantain, millet, lentil, winter pea, flax, radish safflower or Camelina?
I have a field I was going to use for another purpose with all of this group cover and now want to use it for goats.
I was surprised to see acorns listed on the “bad” list! My goats LOVE acorns! Don’t know if it matters what kind of acorn. I’m pretty sure I have mostly white oaks around here.
I have also heard that the seed pods of the Mimosa tree is deadly for them. I have a few around here I need to clear out.
Identify the mushrooms you have. There are many varieties of mushroom that are toxic and should be avoided.
Remove the mushrooms, give the goat fresh hay, water and goat mineral free choice
Hello, do goats naturally stay away from ingesting things that are bad for hem?
Yes, as long as there are healthy food choices for goats available, goats will choose the healthier goat acceptable food; for instance, goats will choose healthy hay forage and avoid nightshade.
Not necessarily. If it’s palatable, they’ll eat it.
How about pine trees?
Mine eat them and love them, have had no I’ll effects at all from it!
Irises? Good/bad
Bad
Hey Tara, can you tell me if goats are able to eat ground cedar? Links below for the plant. I am planning a new turnout and found a lot.of this stuff growing throughout the area.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diphasiastrum_digitatum
Can goats eat Camelia leaves. I feed them the flowers, but do not have a definite answer on the leaves.
Thank you!!!!
Can goats eat yogurt?
No
YES!! GOOD for GUT health but just PLAIN and preferably ORGANIC yogurt (milk used)
I give 1/2 cup every OTHER day to a 13 year old Nubian. I mix in another 1/2 cup of whole oats or maybe they are groats into the yogurt.
I do this for her health. you can do the same for chickens
Nance, good adds to the list. Thank you.
Very nice
It doesn’t mention to never allow your goat to eat rhodedrendons or azeleas!! These are the only plants that have made my goats VERY sick!
Read the list of “60 Things Goats Cannot Eat.” She includes azaleas and rhododendrons on that list.
And i would like to know if they can eat mushrooms, cus one of are goats are sick and their is mushrooms growing in their pen. Please please tell me if they can becuse he is quite sick. Here are the symtums , snot ,not eating,hard time pooping.