Can Goats Eat Milkweed?

Can Goats Eat Milkweed? (Find Out!)

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Milkweed is considered toxic to goats. Even though it would take a very large quantity to do any real harm, it’s still best avoided—there’s not much benefit to it compared with other, safer staple foods. The goats themselves will avoid it if they have adequate feed available.

 

While it would take more than your goat would ever really eat in a single sitting to do themselves any immediate harm with milkweed, it’s always better to be safe than sorry.

The thing about milkweed, as the name implies, is that it tends to grow in large quantities—a young goat that didn’t know better might gorge itself.

Let’s look further into this.

Can Goats Eat Milkweed?

 

Is milkweed good for goats?

So, let’s first consider what might actually be beneficial in milkweed—and then I will show why you are better off feeding them other things.

Milkweed is not, I should stress, nutritionally void.

There are benefits to eating it, at least in small amounts.

For one thing, during the fertile months, your goats should ideally be getting a lot of their diet through foraging.

This means they should have a pasture to roam where they can find food on their own.

Milkweed growing on such a pasture might, you would think, represent a new item on the menu, to diversify the goat’s diet.

Indeed, for any other plant that wasn’t toxic, this would be true.

In terms of specific nutritional benefits, though, there’s very little to speak of.

They are stalky, fibrous plants—and a goat needs a lot of fiber in its diet.

That said, though, there are plenty of other much better sources of fiber.

Beyond that, there’s really no significant benefit to feeding milkweed—and a reasonably high chance of doing harm.

 

Is milkweed bad for goats?

The simple answer is yes, it is.

While, again, it would take a very large amount to do any real harm, the basic fact is that milkweed is poisonous to goats.

Every part of the plant, but particularly the stems, contains a toxic compound called cardiac glycosides.

These, as the name implies, can cause cardiac arrest in high enough quantities.

So, though it would take a very large amount to do any real harm, the possibility is always there.

And, as I said, the only real benefit would be in the small amount of fiber from the plant, and the opportunity for fresh forage.

There are countless other, safer ways to get such things into your goat’s diet.

In any case, your goats will probably leave milkweed alone on their own accord.

So, yes, milkweed is potentially very bad for goats, and has little potential to be much good.

Over time, even if eaten in very small amounts regularly, it could cause lasting damage.

Don’t take the chance!

 

Can goats eat milkweed flowers?

The flowers on a milkweed plant are quite small, individually, but nonetheless, this is likely one of the things that will attract your goat to the flower.

Goats actually have reasonably good color vision, and this is why they are often attracted to colorful flowers.

The flowers, though, still contain those toxic compounds and are not safe for your goat to eat. as I said, they’d need to eat a huge amount—probably more than any goat would.

Nonetheless, I would always advise caution.

So, no, goats cannot and should not eat milkweed flowers.

 

Can goats eat milkweed leaves?

The leaves also contain the toxic compound, in fact in higher concentrations than the flower itself.

The leaves are quite a lot bigger than the actual flower, and this will be attractive to a goat unfamiliar with the plant.

The leaves are no safer than any other part of the plant, and in fact probably look just as appealing, so in that sense are even more dangerous.

Do not let your goats eat milkweed leaves?

 

Can goats eat milkweed stalks?

Most of the toxin in milkweed is contained within the fluids internally—after that, the highest concentration is in the stalks.

So, no, your goats should not eat milkweed stalks.

Given that the stalks are almost certainly the most fibrous, and therefore nutritionally rich, part of the plant, it goes to show that there is really no benefit to feeding your goats milkweed.

The most nutritious part of the plant is also the most dangerous.

So, essentially, no part of the plant is safe for your goats.

 

So, the simple answer is that milkweed is best avoided, and you should make an effort to uproot it from your goat’s pasture.

If it grows there, it always stands a chance of becoming attractive to a hungry goat who eats more than is good for them.

Though it takes very large quantities to do any real harm, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be cautious.

Don’t give your goats milkweed, and remove it from their pasture where you can.

 

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