is it dangerous for goats to eat chicken feed?

[therealestchicken]

my goats are menaces to our backyard. they ocasionally eat the chickens feed even though i put them down their own food i mean the chickens eat their food sometimes to so im not sure how to prevent this. we have our coop that shuts but its just wire so everytime i lock the chickens in there with food my two goats tear it up and i have to go out there with zip ties. so is it dangerous for them to be eating chicken food? i came across something on google that said this but i cant find much more info. all i give the chickens is layer feed and all flock crumbles but i read something about the calcuim is bad for them. i dont even know how i can separate them, any ideas will be greatly appreciated.

 

[casportpony]

I think a little is okay for goats, but it's not okay for sheep as it has too much copper in it.

 

[MarlaMac]

my goats are menaces to our backyard. they ocasionally eat the chickens feed even though i put them down their own food i mean the chickens eat their food sometimes to so im not sure how to prevent this. we have our coop that shuts but its just wire so everytime i lock the chickens in there with food my two goats tear it up and i have to go out there with zip ties. so is it dangerous for them to be eating chicken food? i came across something on google that said this but i cant find much more info. all i give the chickens is layer feed and all flock crumbles but i read something about the calcuim is bad for them. i dont even know how i can separate them, any ideas will be greatly appreciated.

If that were they only thing they ate, or if it is a majority of what they eat, there might be nutritional issues as the nutritional needs of chickens and goats differ. If they are just occasionally eating it, because goats eat everything, you are probably okay.

 

[Barnette]

I've heard it can bloat them, but I'm not sure

 

[therealestchicken]

If that were they only thing they ate, or if it is a majority of what they eat, there might be nutritional issues as the nutritional needs of chickens and goats differ. If they are just occasionally eating it, because goats eat everything, you are probably okay.

alright thank you.

 

[MarlaMac]

alright thank you.

Found this on a different site. If they eat a lot you probably have issues.

"The goal here is to dilute, buffer, and move contents out. The grain will mess up the pH of the rumen and it will go acidic. Chicken feed is grain.

A goat's rumen is about 5 gallons and to "fix" this you need to buffer the acidity caused by the grain overload and a little dose of baking soda or pepto isn't going to do it. You need to drench him with 1/2 cup of baking soda in 1 GALLON of water or electrolytes, make sure that there is no sugar of any kind in the electrolytes. You can probably do a little less since this is young goat and not an adult. Another option is a large bottle of pepto and the electrolytes everyday for 3-4 days. Milk of magnesia instead of pepto will work too. Also treat with Pen G, Probiotics, and Banamine. Heffenweisen beer, flat and warm, is a great probiotic."

Here is a link:

https://www.backyardherds.com/threads/goat-ate-chicken-feed-what-do-i-do.38472/

 

[NatJ]

is it dangerous for them to be eating chicken food? i came across something on google that said this but i cant find much more info. all i give the chickens is layer feed and all flock crumbles but i read something about the calcuim is bad for them.

Apart from the calcium, there are two other points that might matter.

One, chicken food contains mostly grains. Too much of any grain can be bad for goats. Chicken food should not be more dangerous than any other grain or grain-mix in this respect.

Two, some chicken feeds contain animal products. Some diseases can be spread if other animals eat the food ("Mad Cow Disease" is probably the best publicized of diseases that could be spread that way.) It is assumed that chickens are not susceptible to such diseases, but cattle and sheep and deer certainly are and goats probably are too. If your chicken feed does not contain any animal products, you do not need to worry about this. It used to be very common to include various forms of meat in chicken feed, but that has become much less common at the present time. You can check yours by reading the label.

If your chicken feed does not contain animal products (meat, blood, etc), and if the goats only eat a small amount, I do not think you have to worry about any of these points.

 

[SourRoses]

I think one of the bigger concerns is the chickens going hungry because the goats are scarfing the feed.
The best solution is to beef up the security of the coop, and put in a small pop door only the chickens can fit through (it doesn't have to be automatic, it can be a manual door you open and close, pretty easy and cheap to make). Then have feed always available in there so they can pop back in for a quick bite before resuming their chicken activities.

 

[StinkyAcres]

The best solution is to beef up the security of the coop, and put in a small pop door only the chickens can fit through (it doesn't have to be automatic, it can be a manual door you open and close, pretty easy and cheap to make). Then have feed always available in there so they can pop back in for a quick bite before resuming their chicken activities.

This ^ I did this when my chickens and sheep lived together. You definitely need to keep the goats out of the chicken feed. Sheep and goat panels, plywood, pallets, whatever. Zip ties and thin wire will not keep goats out.

 

[cassie]

If they are not used to it and if they eat too much of it, chicken feed can kill them.