Goats VS Cattle

I want to see what people prefer, and for what reasons! =)

Goats are smart.

Cattle are not, they are know to try to eat barb wire.

Goats are smaller and can have more in small spaces.

Goats are escape artists.

Cattle give more milk over all, but need bigger space.

Cattle are to dumb to escape.

must I go on?

oh, a prefer goats!

I've never heard about cattle eating everything, in fact, I've heard quite the opposite, and that it's the goats that eat everything. I guess it depends.

I personally prefer goats. Maybe because I have them. My goats are incredibly affectionate. They act like little dogs with hooves. I've met some very sweet cows, though. But you can't snuggle a cow on your lap like you can a goat!

A milking goat produces a bit more reasonable of a quantity of milk for a single family.

salt and pepper said:

I've never heard about cattle eating everything, in fact, I've heard quite the opposite, and that it's the goats that eat everything. I guess it depends.

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Cattle can suffer from something called hardware disease. It occurs when they ingest nails, wire, or other sharp pieces of metal that can perforate their reticulum. Any livestock supply store sells cattle magnets, which is a big magnet that is administered orally to the animal to stop this from happening.

Goats are actually more picky than you'd imagine. People say they 'eat everything' because they are browsers who prefer shrubs and brushy plants rather than just grass. They'll dine on your roses like they are a feast! So their diet is a lot more varied.

Stacykins said:

I personally prefer goats. Maybe because I have them. My goats are incredibly affectionate. They act like little dogs with hooves. I've met some very sweet cows, though. But you can't snuggle a cow on your lap like you can a goat!

A milking goat produces a bit more reasonable of a quantity of milk for a single family.



Cattle can suffer from something called hardware disease. It occurs when they ingest nails, wire, or other sharp pieces of metal that can perforate their reticulum. Any livestock supply store sells cattle magnets, which is a big magnet that is administered orally to the animal to stop this from happening.

Goats are actually more picky than you'd imagine. People say they 'eat everything' because they are browsers who prefer shrubs and brushy plants rather than just grass. They'll dine on your roses like they are a feast! So their diet is a lot more varied.

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I have just read about goats destroying your garden... and your clothes!! lol, I could see a cow accidentally eating metal, while grazing, but I doubt they do it on purpose... I'm enjoying this!

I have both and love having both....no complaints on either set of critters....sorry such a boring post.....lol.

salt and pepper said:

I have just read about goats destroying your garden... and your clothes!! lol, I could see a cow accidentally eating metal, while grazing, but I doubt they do it on purpose... I'm enjoying this!

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Goats will only destroy your clothing if you let them. I don't let mine nibble on my sleeves, pants, hoodie strings, etc. and I do not let them jump up on me without being invited. Their hooves can hurt! Just like dogs they learn quite quickly. I used a little squirt gun, one that fit in my pocket. When they went to nibble, they got a quick squirt and a firm no. Kinda like cats, they HATE water. With the jumping, I just push them down with the same no. Eventually, they got the idea that it wasn't going to be allowed.

Honestly, I found my goats more trainable than my dogs. They are so treat/food oriented, that once you have a treat they love, they'll do anything for it. I use clicker/positive reinforcement only. Simple stuff like backing up (so you don't get bombarded at the gate by the herd) and asking them to jump on something (like a milk stand for hoof trimming) make life easier. I started by training them to touch a target (tennis ball on the end of a dowel) and once they had that down, used it to teach them other things. They get SO excited when they see that tennis ball, they like learning how to do things!

goats for sure, same as poster above. like dogs, or three year old children... i trained one girl to sit on her butt, on command; also, jump up, get off, back up (same reason, not to get knocked over when feeding ), they all knew their names, even years later in a different local, they still recognized me and responded to their individual names...

goats are curious, have real personalities, are interactive, there are different breeds for different things, just like iwth breeds of dogs, to match your personality... (a slow easy going breed like the boer, a vocal affectionate breed like the anglo/nubian; i never liked the saanans, i found them sort of too group oriented and silly, flightly; alpnies are supposed to be really calm and workable (used as pack goats); never liked sheep of any sort. enjoy horses but goats are , like, IT. at least for me. (besides dogs). i think that dog people are also goat people (personlaity traits that enjoy teh same kind of reactions. goats are like, well, even like 8 year olds: still innocent, still chicldren, but reacting to surrroundings, curiuos, creative (trust a goat to find a way to open a door/gate/food box, get over or under something, and also very social but can be 'mean' to someone who doesnt quite fit in with the group)..

It's kind of like comparing apples and oranges. Each has it's own set of pro's and con's. The question would be what are you wanting one or the other for? Pet's? Mowing the pasture? Milk and/or meat?

We've had cattle but they were raised for meat or dairy, I've never kept any just as a pet. I've had goats for years. Fun, interesting animals but they can also be a royal pain in the backside as they really do their best to get into everything you don't want them in and out of everything you want to contain them in!