So, while pecans are very good for your goats in the right amounts, it can be quite easy to overfeed them on pecans.
You need to make sure your goat’s diet is carefully balanced, otherwise, it will end up with nutrient deficiencies.
A goat’s diet you may imagine to be simple, and it largely is, but you still need to be careful.
Let’s look further into it.
What is a pecan?
For one thing, we use ‘pecan’ to essentially refer to the whole tree.
It is a pecan tree—we just think of the fruit as the pecan.
The natural assumption, and indeed the one I had at first, is that pecans are nuts.
But they are not true nuts, they are what’s known as a drupe.
This is a fruit with a single pit.
So, they are not nuts but rather very tough fruits.
It’s handy to be aware on a minute level exactly what you are feeding to your goats, so know that they are fruit and not nuts.
So, are they good or bad for your goat?
Related – Can Goats Eat Acorns?
Are pecans good for goats?
Pecans are a fantastic treat, that your goats will love.
They are, for one thing, just really tasty and your goats will be happy to have them.
Beyond that, they are packed with all sorts of nutritional benefits that are good for your goats.
Firstly, they are a fantastic source of fiber.
A goat’s diet should in fact be mostly fiber since it will eat mostly hay, but it will always benefit from some extra.
They are also packed with many vitamins and antioxidants.
Antioxidants prevent the formation of free radicals in your goat’s cells, which can damage the cells immensely over time.
Pecans, finally, are a great source of many essential minerals, including copper, thiamine, and zinc.
These minerals serve a variety of functions in the body, from regulating blood pressure to maintaining the immune system.
Getting these minerals can be tough in a hay diet.
So, in other words, yes, pecans are very good for goats.
All that said, though, there are as always caveats to this. let’s look into them.
Are pecans bad for goats?
Pecans are not inherently bad for goats.
There is nothing dangerous or toxic in them.
However, the important thing is moderation.
You need to have a strict idea of exactly how much you’re going to give them.
My advice would be not more than once or twice a week, in small amounts.
Large amounts ingested in one sitting could be problematic, although your goat will normally stop before it has gorged itself.
In any case, the very fact that they are so nutrient-rich means your goats only need a few before they have extracted all the benefits they need.
Change out their treats for the rest of the week.
This will keep them from getting bored, for one thing, and ensure the greatest range of benefits.
Can goats eat pecan shells?
They can, but you should ideally shell the pecans first.
Leave them some of the shells if you like, they may well have a go at eating some of them.
But they won’t be particularly bothered about it. it’s really up to you, some goats may prefer the shells in rare cases.
There is very little nutritional benefit to the shell, so my advice would be to just discard them.
Can goats eat pecan leaves?
Yes, the leaves are perfectly safe, too, which takes us to another point.
Your goat should be able to forage for food on a large pasture, so if you have a pecan tree on your property, this is a great way to get some enrichment.
The leaves and indeed all parts of the tree are perfectly safe, so you’ve nothing to fear.
Pecans are really great and healthy for your goats, then. they make a fantastic addition to their diet, especially in cases where you can allow them to freely forage from a pecan tree.
Pecans are packed with all sorts of healthy nutrients, indeed some that your goats may struggle to get elsewhere.
All that said, the very fact that they are so nutrient-rich, as I’ve said, is why you need to be careful of moderation.
Too much will quickly be a problem—it’s a treat, not the main part of their diet.
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