Can Goats Eat Licorice? (Revealed!)

So, as understandable as it may be to want to share food with your goats, you should find something they like that you can also eat—not the other way around.

Virtually any processed food is going to pose a problem for your goats, and candy in particular is a bad offender.

Let’s look further into this.

Is licorice good for goats?

No, is the short answer.

Candy in general is not good for goats—it’s not good for us, either!

While we and indeed goats do need some amount of sugar in their diets, they will happily get this elsewhere in their diet if you are feeding them a balanced diet.

Licorice is nothing more than empty calories.

It is made of licorice extract, sugar, and starch.

Again, while goats need these things in their diets to an extent, they will comfortably get it elsewhere.

There is no benefit whatsoever, other than the novelty, of feeding licorice to your goats.

Consider whether licorice is good for anyone or anything at all in terms of nutrition, and you have the answer to this question.

Again, I know the value of a candy treat and I don’t want to take that away from you.

Our metabolisms and a goat’s metabolism are very, very different, though, and they will much prefer something plant-based as a treat.

For sugary treats, your best option is going to be a wide variety of fruits.

Fruits are much higher in sugar than we often realize, and they also come with many other benefits for goats, such as fiber content.

They get the sugar without the empty calories.

Is it specifically harmful, then?

Let’s look into it.

Is licorice bad for goats?

Yes! While, as I said, a very small amount once isn’t going to cause much of a problem, if you are regularly giving your goat licorice, you are going to run into problems eventually.

Goats simply do not need that much sugar in their diets, and over time it will cause weight gain, respiratory issues, and any number of other health concerns.

Not to mention the fact that eating empty calories like licorice will mean that your goat isn’t eating the same amount of its regular feed, and so will end up being nutrient deficient in a number of areas.

The negative effects of the excess sugar are one thing, but with proper nutrient deficiencies on top of that, you could be in for a serious problem.

While I know most people’s intention would probably only be to share small amounts as a treat, I personally do not think it is worth getting into such a habit at all.

But there are more than a few kinds of licorice, so are any of them safe for goats?

Can goats eat black licorice?

No, goats should not eat black licorice.

Black licorice is the most common and widely available and what most of us would recognize as licorice.

It is not, as you might have guessed, any safer than any other kind.

The ingredients that go into black licorice essentially all go into the other typers, too.

As I said, all licorice really is is sugar, starch, licorice extract and some other ingredients like gum Arabic and ammonium chloride.

Nothing in there is good for a goat in those concentrations—so just avoid it.

Can goats eat blue licorice?

Blue licorice is another common variety that is widely available, and you will probably not be surprised to learn that it is no safer than black licorice.

As I said, they are all essentially made of the same ingredients.

So, blue licorice is equally off the table.

Can goats eat grape licorice?

Again, grape licorice is just a different flavor of the same candy.

There is the same amount of sugar and starch and the same amount of processed chemicals in there.

There is nothing safer about eating grape licorice than any other kind.

While, again, a little bit is fine, just don’t get into the habit—feed them real grapes instead!

My advice is to just steer clear of any and all candy in your goat’s diet.

While, as I said, a little bit won’t cause them any harm in the short term, it’s really not a habit you should get into.

Your goats probably won’t even particularly like licorice.

It’s really just sugar, starch and flavoring.

There are plenty of much tastier, healthier treats that your goats will love a lot more that will contribute to a healthy, balanced diet.

More in Processed Foods

• Can Goats Eat Chocolate?
• Can Goats Eat Cookies?
• Can Goats Eat Donuts?
• Can Goats Eat Honey?
• Can Goats Eat Jelly Beans?
• Can Goats Eat Licorice?
• Can Goats Eat Marshmallows?