When Do Baby Goats Start Eating Grass? (Answered!)

One of our does has recently given birth to kids for the first time.

This is our first time dealing with new-born goats, and it’s been a lot of fun for all of us.

The kids are adorable, and they’re full of so much character and energy.

Even the older goats seem to have had a new lease on life.

It’s been beautiful to watch.

I’ve been doing my best to keep up with their needs, but at this age, everything is changing so often it can be difficult.

I’m expecting them to start eating grass sometime soon, but how old exactly?

So, when do baby goats start eating grass?

Kids will typically start consuming grass at about 2 weeks old. They might only begin to chew it and spit it back out at first. Around this age, they will begin to be able to eat pasture of some sort—be it hay or grass. Grass is actually harder to digest. 

So, grass in particular will start being on the menu after about 2 weeks—however, they might have trouble digesting it, and so might spit it out until they’re more used to it.

Hay is more typically given to kids as they will find it easier to digest.

Let’s look further into this.

 

What age can baby goats eat grass?

Firstly, it is going to vary from individual to individual.

Not all goats are completely the same, and there may be considerable variation between any two goats.

That said, there are certainly some guidelines and benchmarks you can use to get an idea of what you’ll need to do.

As I said, around the time the baby goat is 2 weeks old, you should begin to see signs that it is taking an interest in grass or hay.

You’ll need to monitor, though.

In perhaps the majority of cases, when a goat first begins to eat grass, it will most likely chew it up and spit it back out without even swallowing it once.

It will take a few attempts before it is comfortable swallowing grass.

In that time, it will certainly need to carry on being bottle fed or suckling, too.

So, look for the change at about 2 weeks.

Don’t panic if there’s no sign at this stage, though.

If your goat still shows no interest in grass by 3 weeks, try to encourage it.

It may just have a slightly harder time weaning off milk.

So, how long do you need to keep using the bottle?

 

How long do you have to bottle feed a goat?

The bottle will actually continue to be used for a good while after the kid has started eating grass.

To some degree, how long exactly will depend on your judgement.

The absolute minimum is two months.

You should bottle feed your goat for a minimum of two months.

You should let them suckle from their mother for as long as possible, if you are not milking her.

Ultimately, bottle feeding for two to three months is typically fine and will produce a healthy young goat.

However, some homesteaders would suggest that bottle feeding for five to six months provides the healthiest possible goat.

So, to a degree, it is up to you.

However, as I say, two months is the minimum, and the perfect average amount is probably around 4 months, depending on the actual goat’s preferences—they might not be interested in milk anymore by this point!

What else can you feed a 4-week-old-goat?

 

What do you feed a 4-week-old goat?

So, first things first, you should certainly still be bottle feeding them at this point.

Milk will be really important here.

Naturally, make sure they also have access to water.

Other than that, though, you can begin slowly introducing the goat’s other foods.

Give it access to hay and grass to graze.

Again, by 4 weeks, many goats will already have been attempting to eat hay or grass.

The other thing you can do at four weeks is begin to introduce their pellets, and potentially small amounts of fruit or veg.

It’s really important that you let the goat take its own time to decide about eating this stuff but giving it the option will begin to get it used to these foods.

This is what we call weaning.

 

What do you feed baby goats when weaning?

So, the weaning process will mostly involve the foods I’ve mentioned above.

Hay and grass are going to be the big players, here.

You’ll need something really simple that your goats will enjoy, and that they will be willing to attempt to digest.

Pellets and treats like fruit and veg are great to have around, but the kid will take longer to attempt these.

Grass or hay is your best choice and will do the most work in weaning your kids off their milk diet.

Just remember to be patient—some goats will take longer than others, and it won’t happen quickly.

 

So, it’s not an overnight process, then—you’re going to have to make sure the goat has a couple of options when it is at this transitionary age.

They may be ready to start eating grass and hay, they may still need a bit more time on a bottle or suckling.

For the most part, by about 2 weeks, you should at the very least see signs that their diet is beginning to shift.

Support them with bottles until they are completely comfortable.