Chickens with goats???

[RSTX]

I have two goats and 12 chickens. I milk one of the goats for the family (the other goat is just a companion for the first goat). The chickens stay inside the coop/run unless I let them out for a short time. I've heard not to allow the chickens to free-range in the same area as the goats due to the goats picking up a disease from the chicken poo. Is this true? I would like to let the chickens out for a couple of hours at a time just to let them eat some grass and bugs, but I'm not excited about my milk supply getting sick. Any thoughts?

 

[Frozen Feathers]

The only disease I can think of is Coccidiosis. You'd only have to really worry about the kids and you can also prevent coccidiosis. Mites may also be a problem. Of course they too can be prevented.

The women I am purchasing my 2 new Nigerian dwarfs from keeps free-range chickens with them . She is very much into the health of her goats, tests for everything yearly, knows every disease a goat may ever contract and if she's not worried then there is probably nothing to worry about.

The only thing she did say is she keeps the hens in during kidding season because chickens are known to peck at bloody things and may start pecking at her does or newborn kids. IMO keeping goats and chickens in the same area shouldn't be problem.

 

[4H kids and mom]

I also have 2 goats and they range my yard right along with the chickens, chicks, and now ducklings.

I've had no problems thus far. The only problem I had to rectify was the goats getting into the coop and eating the chickens food!

Not to mention, one of my goats (Hershey) thinks she's a hen because I would find her curled up asleep in the nestboxes!

The farmers I got my goats from also keep their goats with their free ranging chickens, geese, ducks, a llama, and sheep. Their only real suggestions to me were to do my best to keep the feeds seperate, and try to give them each their 'own' time to avoid them becoming tired of each other. So I alternate days on who gets let in the yard first and give whichever is out a good hour or more of their 'own' time before letting the others out. Its worked very well for me.

Our local farm vet in town also has goats and chickens, though they aren't free range, but they share a pen AND the coop! And thats the VET!

Cant be all that bad if the VET does it!

As far as getting sick from chicken poo, that would rarely happen because #1) the only way they could get something from your chickens is if your chickens have something and #2) they would have to EAT the poo to get sick, and dispite common rumors about goats, they are quite picky about what they eat, and I doubt I'd ever see a goat munchin away on chicken poo! Oh, speaking of that.....the chicken poo cant be all that bad (if your chickens are not sick of course) because I use an all Organic lawn feed and weed destroyer called Cockadoodle-DOO make from, what else, chicken poo! And my goats eat my grass right after I spray it in, so....

 

[WoodlandWoman]

When we had sheep, we let the chickens and sheep run together. I had the chicken run attached to the sheep pasture by a closable pop hole.

 

[Blondie]

My goats and chickens are out together everyday. They're pals.

 

[Chelly]

Blondie, those pictures are fantastic!