Can Goats Eat Forsythia?

Can Goats Eat Forsythia? (Find Out!)

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Yes, goats can eat forsythia no problem. They are very attracted to such flowery bushes, and few are as bright and brilliant as forsythia. Goats will love to demolish these bushes often in a single sitting, eating every bit of it they can get to.

 

So, if you are asking the question with the intent to grow forsythia for your goats to eat, or if you’ve moved and there’s some wild on the pasture you’re worried about, you have no need to worry.

If, on the other hand, you’re asking because you want to grow forsythia and you’re wondering if the goats will leave it alone—the simple answer is they won’t.

Let’s look further into this.

Can Goats Eat Forsythia?

 

Is forsythia good for goats?

It is in some ways, although I will say straight away that isn’t massively beneficial.

It’s a simple flower and bush, so there isn’t a great deal of nutrition in there.

Your goats will enjoy eating it, but it won’t be much of a part of their diet.

That is the first point to make, though.

The best thing about having forsythia for your goats is that they love eating flowers.

Despite what you might think, goats are not colorblind—they can distinguish colors quite well.

This is often how they choose what they are going to eat.

So, in that way, forsythia is really just great foraging enrichment, if nothing else.

If you can, try and get it to grow on your pasture wherever it will take root.

This will mean that it can even bounce back after being eaten once, providing repeat foraging activity.

So, realistically, it’s best just as enrichment—there isn’t much to it, nutritionally speaking.

That said, it’s not completely void of nutrients.

But is it bad for them, at all?

 

Is forsythia bad for goats?

The simple answer is no, it isn’t bad for them.

There’s nothing inherently toxic or dangerous in it, and nothing that would harm your goats.

The only problem is with not seeing the nutritional deficit that eating too much of it could be.

Your goat needs the best range of nutrients, so you need to be providing them with  well-balanced diet—even the biggest forsythia bush in the world wouldn’t be enough to get them the full range of nutrients they need.

So, no, forsythia is not bad for goats.

A lack of a proper diet is, though—the foraging should only make up a small part of their diet.

 

Can goats eat forsythia petals?

Yes, they can, and this is likely to be the part of the plant that most attracts them.

As I said, part of the reason goats are so often attracted by flowers is because of their adept color vision.

So, in a sense, the petals will be the reason they are attracted to the bush in the first place.

And the petals are totally safe for your goats.

There is nothing dangerous or troublesome in the petals, so you don’t need to worry.

Again, though, there also isn’t a great deal of valuable nutrition in there, either.

They’re tasty and attractive for your goat, but they are not getting much out of it.

So, what about the rest of the plant?

 

Can goats eat forsythia stems?

Yes, they can, and in fact the stems are likely to be the most nutritionally rich part of the plant.

Most of the benefit of eating forsythia is going to come from the fiber contained within.

The stem is the part of the plant that is richest in fiber, so this is likely to be the most valuable part of the plant.

Your goat may be selective about which part of the plant it eats.

It may just destroy the flowers.

The likelihood is, though, that it will eat as much of the plant as it can.

 

Can goats eat forsythia leaves?

Yes, they can eat the leaves as well. essentially, no part of the plant is off-limits.

It will happily eat all of it without suffering any issues.

Again, though, there are very, very few leaves on a forsythia plant—it is mostly flowers.

So, while they can eat the leaves, there isn’t going to be much of a benefit to them doing so beyond the opportunity to forage.

While this benefit shouldn’t be understated, you’ll need to be sure they’re getting the missing nutrients in the rest of their diet.

 

So, whatever part of the plant, then, it will not be safe from your goats.

It will be safe for them, and they can eat it without a problem.

However, the plant itself will not be safe.

It will get eaten by your goats.

While it’s not massively nutritionally beneficial, it is not without its foraging and enrichment benefits, and your goats will love making short work of the bush.

So, yes, however you look at it, forsythia is perfectly safe for your goats to eat.

 

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