Our fuzzy goat friends are rather social creatures, and are capable of living with many varying kind of animals. A goat can save you space and money, by being capable of living with certain animals. cows are a common social farm animal as well, but can the two live together as they do with other animals?
Goats and cows are fully capable of living peacefully with each other. They decrease cost and increase efficiency by sharing the same space. However, with different routines and necessities, Goats need extra care to make sure that they have their needs met at all times.
So what exactly differs among cows and goats that causes this contrast in necessities? And how do we care for them both equally, efficiently, and properly?
A Friend To All, Or At Least, To Many – Goats
Goats are highly sociable creatures and can get along with cows, sheep, horses, llamas, and even donkeys. As it turns out, there isn’t all that much that is capable of actually concerning or phasing our furry little friends out of their comfort zones. And stranger danger is far from making their list of concerns.
Thanks to the social nature of the goat, there are many possibilities and doors that are opened of where to put our goats, how to keep them safe, and which animals to bond them with. As it turns out, goats can survive mostly on their own. They’re intelligent and agile creatures that know how to get from one place to the next in ways that most other animals wouldn’t imagine.
Goats still need to be given proper care in a space that fulfills all of their individual necessities. Otherwise, they could be getting the short end of the stick in their newly combined environment in which they live.
A Friend To All, Or At Least, To Many – Cows
As long as all species have their primary needs met, cows are able to live amongst pigs, goats, horses, donkeys, chickens, turkeys, ducks, and geese. Many of these animals share the same foraging ideals and can be placed within the same living space as long as their individual needs our properly met.
Combining a cow’s environment with pigs, goats, horses, or donkeys, will increase the amount of land being foraged by about twenty percent from what it was before. Greater foraging brings about a more efficient use of the space around the animals that live there. These animals are also mindful of their own space as well, careful not to bother their new friends.
Our bird friends, however, do not share the same foraging ideals and necessities as our other animal friends. They are capable of living peacefully with them, but only if their needs are properly met. These bird friends will need a different form of feeding than the other animals, and may not be as forgiving about the space of a cow or any other animal.
Tip: The most efficient use of space, is to put two types of animals of a similar grazing pattern or with a similar list of necessities together. They will more equally share the space, while having their individual needs properly met.
Varied Necessities And Environments
Problems that should be considered, and may eventually arise between goats and cows, is that they do have slightly different needs. While being fully capable of foraging in a similar pattern as each other, it is obvious that goats and cows have incredibly different personalities and needs.
Cows don’t require as much exercise and won’t be as adventurous. Unlike Goats, cows do not need the extra space to entertain themselves.
Goats need to have a certain space set aside to be more adventurous when they choose to be. From something to climb on to a small pond to swim through. They also require specific minerals in their diet that cows may not always have a need for. You will need to keep up on their mineral intake in order to ensure that their eating habits are still healthy for them.
Although they keep their space, goats are still rather social creatures, and may not keep their own space separate a hundred percent of the time. So be sure that you are almost entirely aware of what both your cows and goats need. You want to ensure that both are well looked after and taking care of.
Efficient Use Of Resources
Putting goats and cows together in the same living space, is also a highly efficient use of resources. As previously stated, they have similar needs when it comes to foraging. You may otherwise experience that a lot of your land has gone to waste without having enough furry mouths to thoroughly forage the land.
If your resources have a lower efficiency, then bringing these two furry friends together could bring your resource efficiency to a higher level. This will not only make your other resources and land more available to house other animals, but will also increase the number of livestock that can live on your land.
Money Saving Experience
By not using excess space to house your goats or cows with wasted resources then you don’t have to spend so much money on them.
They are both capable of taking up a large piece of land while not foraging enough of it to consider the area of use to them at all. In turn, causing you to spend extra money on a space that is unnecessary.
The needs of these animals can be costly. If you can save a little by not having to worry about another expense, then combining the two animals together into one area will be worth the effort.
Something to watch out for: Goats can escape from almost anything. Even though you can have a wider and cheaper fence surrounding your cows, you will need to have a sturdier fence without small gaps for your goats to escape through. Make sure that the area is properly fenced off before creating a space that is efficient for both animals.
Increasing Space And Productivity
Due to the available space that was originally taken over by the two animals, their productivity will begin to increase. With more animals per measure of land, there will also be available space to fill with other animals of your choosing. You can use this opportunity to increase productivity in your livestock.
Doing so will also help to increase your current income according to the project that you acquire within the excess of land that now remains. From raising meat cows to selling milk from them, you can use the sudden rise in productivity to further increase income and provide for your animals.
Fun fact: Having an increase in animals per measure of land is known as having an increase in stock density. Which, especially if there is a lot of unwanted vegetation, will help increase productivity within your land. The animals will increase their foraging and help to get rid of any unwanted vegetation.
For your information: Productivity ties in greatly to how many animals per measure of land that you have.
When A Pasture Is In Short Supply
When a pasture or when foraging is in short supply, the goats will almost always get the short end of the stick. They will be at a greater disadvantage and will need to be moved to an area with a greater food supply. Goats will not be able to eat enough of what is leftover from other animals when available pasture and foraging decreases.
Warning: If you do not move your goats, then the productivity will no longer go up due to lack of care towards your goats.
Verify that the care of both animals is well looked after and that, in the case of little foraging, the goats will have a separate space for them to be able to forage in peace. However, there are still two options to consider if you are unsure of what your goats may need.
- Call a professional who will aid you in your situation. They can ensure that you make the right move for your goats.
- Restructure your land and find a temporary space that can be set aside for your goats. Setting aside a temporary space will give you time to figure out how to increase vegetation for your animals.
The Transference Of Diseases And Sickness
A common concern for animal owners, is the transference of sickness that can occur between different animals. To help prevent the spread of sickness, you should always verify whether or not certain diseases or sicknesses will amongst the other animals in the area.
If the animals are not affected by each other, then putting them together will increase the health of both herds. It will also help prevent them from getting sick as often. As the other animals cannot carry the sickness that they have, they will not spread the sickness or disease around.
Warning: If there is a disease or sickness which can be spread amongst both animals, then sharing the same area will cause more harm than good. The sickness will not just affect one, but both animals living on the same land.
(Source: Can Cows and Goats Live Together? | Agriculture Site (agricsite.com))