However, if it were my goat, Rocky, he might have been trying to read the label. Picky! In fact, I think I might be sharing the planet with the pickiest goat of them all. I have brought numerous cut up vegetables and fruits only to see the younger goat, Sunshine, have to eat all of them. Rocky had smelled them all, chewed up some and spit them out. He looked at me almost frantically, "Where is my food?" Of course, he did get his hay, so he was not starved, but I really wanted him to eat the treats I brought that were organic and packed with vitamins and minerals. Don't worry, I give them loose minerals which they get to lick out of my hand: one goat per hand, I have two hands and two goats, so can do! But, still everyday, the verdict of whether or whether not this wether will eat my cut up treats is up to the wind. Although, I am getting smarter in my approach to serving this picky goat.
They don't like cut up vegetable or fruit treats that are wet. They must be dry. If they fall on the ground, they are out of bounds, literally. I have to pick them up, wash the sand off and then I must dry them with my shirt. Then they get a second chance to become an eaten treat. Sunshine is not as picky. Although, recently I have watched him learn from Rocky to reject pieces of my treats. Mind you, these are organic (don't want pesticides and chemical fertilizers in my goat's blood. Remember these are my sons!) and fresh. They will positively not eat anything going slightly bad. Even if I might munch on a salad with a few "almost" pieces that have only hours left of their nutritious life left; they are much more pickier than I am. But, I don't have a four chambered stomach with a rumen, precious bacteria that digest the raw vegan food. (nor do I chew my cud, but I become more goat-like as I spend more years with goats.)
Goats seem to protect their rumen. The goats smell and inspect food carefully. I believe in this way they protect their rumen and their health. But, they don't always know what is best for themselves. Make sure they do not overeat. A wether (a male castrated goat) should never eat alfalfa nor grains. The pH in those foods throw their systems off and can cause sickness in various ways. If you have other animals on your farm, make sure their food is kept well away from goats.
When the goats lived at a horse ranch, there was an open barn that had food in it that was bad for goats. I could not leave the goats unattended for long, but they learned. They used to go into the barn and eat what they wanted when my back was turned for a half-second. (the ranch they stayed at during that time didn't allow a door to be put on the barn so I had to be really careful) Even if I pulled them by their collars, they found a way back in. I soon gained control of the situation by creating loud sounds by banging the metal tops of trash cans that contained pellets with grains and alfalfa for older horses. The lids made wonderful crashing sounds that scared the goats away. After a few times, the goats learned to stay away from the open barn. But, I still made sure I knew where they were while I was cleaning, like a mom who must watch her brood while she tends house. But, when we foraged, we foraged together, so they usually were not too far away from me as the herd usually stays with its herd members. Be careful!! They must be watched carefully. When they were living at that ranch, trash could be found laying anywhere blown in from the wind. Many times you could find me screaming, yelling and running as fast as I could to pull a plastic bag from one of my goat's mouth. This was a serious situation. If you live near an area where wind can blow trash onto the land, you must be on your toes at all times and ready to take action as fast as possible. A goat can choke on human trash.
Rocky is not picky when it comes to eating plastic bags, so I hold on tightly when I let him lick the sticky mango pulp left on it. But, when it comes to vegetables and fruits I have learned a lot. If the vegetables and fruit have been in the fridge and are too cold, a picky goat may not like the temperature. If they are too hot, they may not like that either. They may not like them wet or if fallen on ground. They may not like them here, but might like them there. Yes, that is right! I discovered that often times when we walk a bit after he has rejected my cut up organic carrots, he might eat them later at a different location when he gets a treat for playing a jumping game. (I have to make up games because they can get bored too easily) Yes, you read correctly. The same rejected fruit or vegetable may be redeemed later at a different location. Perhaps the temperature of the food changed. He often became less picky when the treats were given because of a physical action that he enjoyed. It was if his attention was diverted from the taste a bit. Maybe he suspended his picky behavior for the moment because he knew that he had already eaten all of the banana peels and had to settle for mere carrots. Who knows. Just know that if you have a picky goat, do not give up on giving treats, just change them, keep them organic, make sure they are not too hot, not too cold, and given at the absolute right time. There is a definite method to this madness. One thing is for sure, if you bite off one end of something and expect a picky goat to eat it, don't take it personal, but your saliva just ruined it for them. The rumen apparently does not do well with food tainted with human saliva. I am a vegan, so I have been able to bite off pieces of apple and he would eat it, but, again, not always. Don't take it personal if a goat is offended by your saliva.
One other thing, if you cut your treats on a cutting board, don't share that board with onions or garlic, etc. Your goat may not like his banana tasting like an onion.
If you think my life has gone bananas from all of this goatish paranoia, it has. I have become an overprotective, overly-attached mama goat whose pupils are moving toward the horizontal line.
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