Are goats/mini mules good guardians for chickens?

[chickenchickenbulkbulk]

Yes, to your question. I would get both if I had the room. Male goats stink. thought you would like to know that. By the way congratulations on your new farm.

 

[Blondie]

Goats do not protect chickens. I've just had some chickens killed by something (possum? raccoon?) and the goats obviously did nothing while the carnage was going on.

In fact we are looking for a mini donkey, also.

BTW, I still love my goats, even though they won't protect my chickens.

 

[chickenchickenbulkbulk]

Quote:
Goat are suppose to keep coyotes away. I have never heard of them running off a coon etc. I hate to hear about your chickens. I worry with all this cold weather..that this could happen to us, too. A friend of ours has both goats and donkeys and he still has coyotes running off with his baby sheep. He now carries a gun. I don't believe there is a sound investment to prevent this completely, do you?

 

[freemotion]

The rumor in my neck of the woods is that lamas will keep coyotes away.....however, I don't personally know of anyone who has one.

My horse had a policy: Kill all dogs and coyotes. After a brief three-week pregnancy, she decided one of the pygmies was her baby, and got very dangerous with dogs.

In the winter I would find coyote tracks on one side of the fence and her tracks on the other, where she obviously was on "coyote patrol" all night.

Not all horses are like this, however, and it is a VERY expensive choice!

 

[helmstead]

I have found my goats are good deterents to flying predators - I think there's too much movement in the goat yard that the chickens live in for a hawk to get a bead on the chickens. I've had only one attack from the sky in 4 years. I also have some dog eating goats...

We have a HUGE cyote pack in the woods. It isn't safe to tread more than halfway through the top horse pasture after dark (ie out of the flood light's beam). I cannot attribute the goats or horses into keeping them at bay...I think they stay away because the goat yard/chicken yard is so close to two houses.

The only problem predator we've had is a possum. The chicken feed and nest boxes are safe from goat entry, so this one possum figured out a way to sneak in before the goats could nab him. Took us forever to catch him in the act - he was eating at the egg bar like nobody's business. Anyway, we finally busted him, a very fat and healthy guy...

 

[chickenchickenbulkbulk]

What a picture..thanks for sharing with us. I sure am glad you got him.

 

[Hobbley_Farm]

Quote:
Oh Gosh! Your Chicken looks very NON PLUS'ED about that varmint being there!

 

[domromer]

Thanks for all the replies. I was more thinking that the goats would be a deterrent to flying predators rather than terrestrial ones. We have dogs which keep the coyotes out but the dogs are kept separate from the hens so I was thinking it would be good to have something in with them. From the posts I've read it seems like the equines are more protective than the goats. I like the idea of the goats for the milk, but as I'm the only serious milk drinker in the house even a mini goat might have us over flowing with milk. I guess it's pretty easy to get rid of goats milk these days. I could probably sell it locally on Craigs list.

I'll have to do some more research. Your posts have given me a lot to think about.

 

[Haviris]

In that case, I think it may be true that they are a deterent flying preditors, I don't know this for sure, but I haven't have any trouble at all with anything flying in and stealing chickens, and I know there is a chicken hawk not to far from me that hangs out at a chicken house, it's possible he gets all he needs there and that is why he doesn't visit me, but I've also considered the possibility that it's the goats.

As for the rest a coyote, will kill a goat. I have a big nubian wether that thinks he's all that, but when he went up against a rottweiler that was almost the end of him.

Right now I think our best protection is the neighbors annoying dogs, they go crazy any time anything goes in the pen that they think shouldn't be there (including me).

 

[freemotion]

You can always skip the milking thing altogether. Goats can make great pets. You can also get the wethers (castrated males) for next to nothing or sometimes even free. There have been a bunch on Craigslist here lately.

If you've never had goats, be sure to talk to some goat owners on what it takes to keep them fenced in. They are like little buzz-saws when they get into the garden or near your landscaping! They can girdle small fruit trees in seconds, too. Won't be popular with any nearby neighbors, either, if this happens....

I love my pet goats but we had to make several changes to our fences and gates until we could finally keep the little buggers contained. I have one that I call "the boneless goat" because she can slip through amazingly small spaces. My little chicken door is now about 8" wide....I had to keep making it smaller so she couldn't get in there and eat their food!

But they make me smile every single day, so they earn their keep....which is almost nothing, anyways.