# How Bad Is Holly For Goats?



## MellonFriend (Aug 8, 2017)

We are slowly but surely clearing out the land that we are going to put the goat barn on (yes I know it's going to be spring soon and we're not ready at all!) and we are noticing that there is a lot more holly in our woods that we thought there was, now we will be able to cut it all down and hopefully eradicated it in the are that the goats will be but, I'm just wondering if holly poisoning is big deal and how hard I should try to get rid of all of it? And I also read elsewhere they may not really eat it, is that true?


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## Suzanne_Tyler (Jul 19, 2014)

My goats won't touch it.


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## mariarose (Oct 23, 2014)

Maybe keep some activated charcoal at hand...

I gave a doeling to some friends of mine with the understanding they would go ahead and butcher her for meat when the time came. Well she turned into a real pet and is still alive 3 years later.

Anyway, these friends have a lot of Mountain Laurel on their land, which Fortune did eat and become dangerously ill from. They got her through it and now she absolutely won't touch the stuff. No way, no how.

If you do miss some holly, and if someone does become ill, and you are able to nurse her back to health, chances are good your herd won't touch it ever again.


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## MellonFriend (Aug 8, 2017)

Alright that's good. I am definitely keeping active charcoal on hand as I do have mountain laurel in my area and there is some beyond our fence line. So I will be learning everything there is to know about treating laurel poisoning. Good to know about the holly though.


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## goathiker (Apr 14, 2011)

With Holly, the injuries and pulling the stickers out of everywhere is the worst of it. The area should be cleared and raked, especially if you plan on udders in that pasture. Concentrate on the female plants first, they are the worst ones and with them gone it will quit spreading.

Mountain Laurel is like "just one bite" for goats, they don't always live through that first bite.


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## MellonFriend (Aug 8, 2017)

We will be clearing all the holly out of our woods. The mountain laurel is not in a place we can get rid of it and there isn't any in the area where the goats will be, but I am concerned as I completely understand the seriousness of laurel poisoning, about the possibility of if they escaped they could easily get to it. I've got an idea though, What if we planted something surrounding the mountain laurel like a hedge that would block them from getting to it and maybe they would eat the hedge instead of the laurel? This would just be precautionary as I said before, what do you think of that?


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## mariarose (Oct 23, 2014)

The only experience I can relate is as my friends did. My (meat) gift to them ate some, became ill, they saved her, and now she won't go near it. Beyond that I just can't say if you can prevent killing them with Laurel, or not.

Holly I think you have a larger margin of safety with. Keep some activated charcoal around.


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