Can Goats Eat Pine Trees?

Pine trees are one of the trees that grow around us. 

If you have pine trees within the surrounding area, you might be wondering if pine needles are safe for the goats to eat as a treat.

In this blog post, you are going to discover if it is good to allow your goats to eat from pine trees. you will also discover if pine needles can affect goat milks.

Can goats eat pine trees? Goats can eat pine trees. Goats will eat pine needles as well as the bark on the tree. Goats are also capable of eating small branches on pine trees. 

There is nothing to worry about if you discover that your goats manage to eat pine needles. 

Are pine trees safe for goats?

Pine trees are safe for the goats provided they eat it in moderation. I would like to tell you that pine needles contain a toxic substance. 

This is the reason why it is very important to have control over the amount of pine needles they are going to eat from the tree.

In order to be more certain about this, I went online to do some research about goats eating pine needles.

A member of the goat spot forum said that his goats love eating from pine trees but he prevents the pregnant one from eating the pin needles. 

Another member said he always throws pine tree branches at the goats and they love it. 

One of the members also said he serves pine trees to the goat as it acts as a natural dewormer for them. 

You need to research about the new treat you want to serve the goat. Get to know from other goat owners or go online and read what people are saying about the particular treat.

This should be your first assignment before you can go ahead and start introducing a new treat to the goat. 

You need to first determine if a treat is harmful to the goat by knowing the level of toxicity in the treat. 

You can still serve the treats to the goat if it happens the toxic substance in the treat is a bit minimal.

You should avoid any treat that has a higher percentage of toxic substances. Do not be tempted to serve the treat to the gold even if other goats are claiming that their goats are fine when they are eating the treat. 

Some goat owners don’t have consideration for whatever goes into the body system of the goat. They feed the goat with anything they see. 

They have turned their goats literally to garbage cleaners. They feed the goat with whatever leftovers they have at home. 

Goats that are raised with this practice usually suffer from malnutrition and they get affected by diseases and fall sick easily. 

How do I introduce pine trees to my goats?

Introducing pine trees to the goats should not be complicated. It will even be easier if it happens that you guys usually go on free range.

The goats are going to eat enough of the pine needles while they are browsing around. But it is very important to watch over them so as to control the amount they are going to eat.

If it happens that your goats are enclosed in a pen, you can simply cut off a branch from the pine tree and serve it to the goats. 

It is very important to go slow at first when you want to introduce a pine tree to the goats in the pens. 

You can serve them a little amount that will not satisfy them even if they finish everything you serve. 

This will get them familiar with the tree as they are more likely to reject it if you serve them a bunch at a time. You can then gradually increase the amount you serve them if they show high interest. 

The goats may likely ignore the pine tree at the first serving, you don’t have to rush and take away the pine from the pen.

They are likely to return back to the pine, try it out and later finish everything you serve them. 

How often do I feed my goats with pine trees?

Now it is clear to you that goats can eat pine trees, this does not mean that you should give goats free access to the pine trees in the surrounding areas all the time. 

Pine needles should be regarded as a treat, this means that you only serve pine trees to the goat once in a while.

Remember I told you that pine needles contain some toxic substances, though in trace form.

This means that you only need to serve pine trees to the goat once in a while or otherwise it is going to cause stomach distress in goats. 

Can pine trees cause bloating in goats?

The short answer to this question is yes. Your goats are going to experience bloating if it happens that they gorge on the pine trees. 

You should know that goats are ruminant animals and they have complex stomachs. The digestive system of the goat will work hard to get rid of excess treats they eat and this will likely lead to bloating overtime. 

Can baby goats eat pine trees?

You should prevent the baby goat from eating pine trees. The reason is that they are used to develop a strong digestive system that will neutralize some of the toxins found in pine trees. 

Besides, pine trees do not contain enough protein and calcium in their nutritional facts. Both of the nutrients are very essential for proper growth and development of the goat kids. 

Can pine needles affect goat milk?

Pine needles do not affect the goat milk. It does not affect the taste so you can allow your nursing goat to eat pine trees. 

A member of the goat spot forum said that his nursing goat usually eats pine trees and the kids never show a sign of this pleasure anytime they are sucking their mother. 

Why are my goats not eating pine trees?

There is nothing to worry about if you discover that your goats are not eating the pine trees.

You should know that goats have unique body systems and this makes it possible for them to react differently to a certain treat, this might be the case with pine trees.

Other treats you can serve the goats

These are some of the healthy things you can serve the goats if it happens that they reject the pine tree you serve them.

Cabbage

Vegetables are good for the Goat and cabbage makes one of the best ones you can serve the goat. Cabbage is a good source of antioxidants for the goats.

Oranges

Oranges are one of the fruits you can serve the goats. The goats are capable of eating orange peels. Oranges are a good source of vitamins and minerals for the goat.

Cashew

Goats are capable of eating cashew flesh. Make sure to always serve fresh cashew to the goats. The show also provides the goat with some of the essential nutrients.

Bread

If you have some leftover bread you can send them to your goat as a treat. Goats are capable of eating all types of bread except for chocolate and moldy ones.

Conclusion

Pine trees are good for the goat. You can serve pine trees to the goat as a treat. Those are capable of eating the branches of pine trees as well as the needles. Try to have control over the amount of pine trees they eat when they are browsing for pasture.

Reference

https://www.backyardherds.com/threads/do-goats-eat-pine-trees.8067/