There’s an age-old rumor that goats can eat anything and everything. According to the myth, goats are like organic trash compactors, constantly chewing through anything and everything in their path. And while that isn’t one-hundred percent true, it might be tempting to believe that goats can eat everything–including notoriously-toxic poison ivy.
Goats can eat ivy. They can eat all types of ivy, including poison ivy, and it won’t affect them negatively at all. Some goatherds even rent out their goats as a business practice to other people’s land since the goats are so efficient at clearing out overgrown ivy.
In this case, the rumor is true. Goats love munching on ivy, and the concept has become so profitable that more and more goatherds are renting out their goats to work for days as ivy-vacuums. But even though one question has been answered, it still makes one wonder, how did goats get like this? How can they eat poison ivy, while we can’t even touch it? And should you consider renting goats for your yard, or is that biting off more than you can chew?
Goats and Ivy
Goats and ivy, two peas in a pod (if one of the peas was a cannibal). Goats have a tendency to devour anything and everything in sight, and ivy is no exception. Even poison ivy isn’t immune to their slow, but determined stomachs.
Interestingly enough, goats might’ve gained more immunity to poisonous plants from their homes. Ninety-five percent of all goats live in the tropics (right above and below the Equator). There are more than one billion goats in the world, and most of them live in Africa (central, east, and west), India, and central Mexico.
Goats have lived in those humid, tropic locations for centuries and they’ve been exposed to a whole variety of plants. While poison ivy developed a trait that makes it toxic to some animals, ensuring its own survival, it didn’t do much to protect them from goats. The goats, in turn, developed a trait that allowed them to eat the poison ivy anyway, almost like they used an “Uno Reverse card.” The goats that carried a trait for immunity to poison ivy reproduced, and the ones that didn’t carry that trait, well, they didn’t last long enough to even think about dating. Rinse and repeat, and after a couple of centuries, all goats developed the ability to digest and process plants that might be toxic to humans (and other animals). Evolution at its finest.
But they don’t only eat poison ivy. Goats don’t discriminate–they eat any and all types of ivy. Goats are to ivy like college students are to ramen, and English ivy is another one of their favorites. English ivy is similar to poison ivy, but the main difference lies in the toxicity and the roots. English ivy can be touched safely by humans (not producing the trademark poison ivy rash), but it can be toxic if taken orally, so don’t start munching on English ivy. You’re not a goat.
Another big difference between English ivy and poison ivy is the roots. Poison ivy has thin, reddish roots, like many weeds, and it clumps together in dense mats under the dirt if they grow big enough. But, on their own, the roots can’t do much damage to anything. Thin pieces of red thread aren’t much of a threat.
English ivy roots, however, are brittle and strong. When English ivy claws its way around a building, it creeps its roots into the paint, cracks, and in some cases, right through the window casings, letting in cold air and making the casings obsolete. It’s a pretty plant, but when unmanaged, it can get out of hand. This is one of the many reasons why English ivy becomes a problem, and it’s also why people have turned to goats to find a solution.
Renting out Goats
If you’ve ever been to England and come across an old country house, there’s a high chance that it was covered in thick green ivy. It’s practically a staple of the English countryside at this point. If it hasn’t been dipped in ten layers of forest green leaves, can it even be considered British architecture? But even though the aesthetic is really pleasing to look at, it can be super annoying to deal with a constantly growing plant. Especially one that can tear down houses in the process.
Cue the goats. Ivy needs constant maintenance, and goats are constantly eating. It’s a match made in heaven! The idea is so perfect, that businesses willing to rent out their goats have been overwhelmed with customers from popularity. In most cases, people contact the businesses, either send photos/videos of their land, and the goat people get back to them with a price. And soon enough (from a few weeks to a few months), goats will magically appear, eat all the ivy, and vanish, leaving a clean yard in their wake.
Well, not exactly. It doesn’t work just like magic. Owners should prepare their backyard for the goats, covering up plants they DON’T want to be eaten, and putting up a fence or two to keep them in the desired location. Also, goats will stay for generally a few days, so as they eat constantly, they’ll also be producing waste. Sure, the ivy will be gone, but the goats will leave some little manure packages all over the lawn.
Plants they CAN’T Eat
Goats aren’t the walking disposals the rumors make them out to be, and they can’t eat literally everything. There are even some toxic plants their stomachs can’t handle. Goats can handle poison ivy, but they can’t eat extremely toxic plants, such as foxglove, Japanese yew, and pigweed. To see a thorough list of what they can’t digest, click here.
For the most part, though, goats won’t gnaw through a field of foxglove flowers all willy-nilly. They might take a few bites of toxic plants out of curiosity, but goats generally have good instincts when it comes to harmful plants. They like eating (a lot), but they also know what they can and can’t eat. To be on the safe side, though, goats should be kept away from toxic plants, and they should be given plenty of other sources of food. They’ll only start nibbling on the dangerous stuff if they have nothing else to eat.