Can mini horses be housed with goats

[Cara]

I mean that my goats and my horses frequently eat the same grain. Meat/pet goats may be able to eat moldy hay, but I wouldn't feed it to my dairy does for fear of tainting the milk.

 

[duckluck]

I've seen both extremes...stallions that got along with goats and stallions that killed them. One stallion I knew had a goat buddy for years and then one day just up and killed him...grabbed him by the neck in his teeth and shook him till dead. If the goats have no horns, they will be completely defenseless against a horse of any size.

 

[bonnylass79]

Quote:
What do you think dairy cows eat? There is a reason hay is sold as being either horse quality or cow quality.

 

[duckluck]

Quote:
What do you think dairy cows eat? There is a reason hay is sold as being either horse quality or cow quality.

This is true...simply amazing the stuff you see fed to cows. Some of the round bales I have seen in pastures are enough to make this horse person's guts ache. The cows don't seem to mind, but around here anything that isn't horse quality is definitely referred to as cow hay.

 

[Cara]

Before this thread gets any further off track, i'm not disputing the fact that a cow/goat/sheep can eat moldy hay and not suffer the same effects that a horse would. However, the OP is discussing keeping goats with horses, so cannot feed moldy hay if she keeps them both together. I drink what comes from my goats, I want their milk to be as good as possible both in terms of flavour and nutrition, so only feed them horse quality alfalfa. Not to mention it is a lot more convenient than having two different supplies of hay. Commercial dairy cows eat all kinds of crap, that doesn't mean I want it in our food supply.

 

[19hhbelgian]

Ok... Stallions will act however you allow them to act, whether you're a man or a woman. A mini stud is no different. Saying that, I posted in your other thread that I have my minis in with a pony, and in the spring a mare & foal. I know I can trust my mini stallions (I have 2) with the babies, and they were raised in with the goats, who DO have horns, with no problems. My older stallion actually acts like a Daddy to the babies, and the younger one just minds his own business. Assuming the mini you want to get is well natured, I would try putting him in with the goats. BUT, keep an eye on them to make sure things don't get out of hand. I have 5 fainting goats, who live up to their breed name on a daily basis... If I was going to have trouble with my mini studs, it would have happened once their horror-mones kicked in

My goats and horses all eat the same thing... We grow our own alfalfa/grass mix, which keeps everybody in the mini pasture fat & happy.

Below is a pic of Rocket ("Dad") & last years colt... Who's being a pain in the rear??!!

 

[Skyesrocket]

I wouldn't feed any animal moldy hay. Getting back to the subject...it sounds like you really want this stallion. I read your other topic too.
People are right that a stallion is a stallion and a mini is a horse. Unless you have a seperate stall and pasture for him in case things don't work out, you might want to pass on him. Or ask the people if you can have him for a week to see how it works out.
I have a mini gelding stalled with a non horned dairy goat right now and it is working out fine. But the mini is gelded and the goat is the same size and doesn't have horns. They also share a pasture. They aren't best buddies, but they don't fight either.
I have had to seperate young bull calves from the mini gelding because the calves kept trying to mount him. I don't know if the stallion will mount your goats or not, but it could happen.
Just some stuff to consider....

 

[19hhbelgian]

Also, another option is to simply geld the mini once you have him. Obviously at his age, you'll want to take his health into consideration, but I don't see any reason he couldn't be gelded. It does take a while for the testosterone to cool down, but it will

 

[19hhbelgian]

Quote:
I've never had my minis try to mount anything other than the pony...

I can see a bull calf trying to mount a mini though...

 

[Skyesrocket]

Those darn calves were mounting anything that stood still long enough.