# Creeping Thyme? Easy SC Ground Cover for Goats? Fight Dog Fennel? Free Produce! Dumpster Divers!



## New2Nubians2020 (May 4, 2020)

Hi Everyone,

I'm Nu! I do exchange work and live on my friends' SC homestead with currently 5 Nubian goats (3 doe/ 1 buck/ 1 kid, buckling) & 6 Dachshunds (the number fluctuates depending on whose humans are where, but this is where we are placed for quarantine)

I signed up here to ask the hard-hitting questions like:
-_Can goats eat _______? 
-Do they like it? 
-How much can I feed them?"_
for when I can't find the answers via asking local farmers/ permie websites/ searches.

*Current Challenges:* (I welcome your advice & experiences on any or all of these)

*Can Goats Eat / Do They Like / How Much? *
_Creeping Thyme/ Mother of Thyme_ (deer resistant and mint like flavor makes me think they may not like it) but it is a beautiful, easy ground cover that people can also eat. 
_
Suggestions for Ground Cover Crops for SC Zone 8b_ - hot humid - average annual extreme
min temp is: 15 to 20 °F

_How much fruit is okay to give goats?_ I pick up loads of produce that groceries are going to throw out that is perfectly good, & sometimes when it rains it pours. I try to limit the amount of sweets (fruit + natural sweets) For example: goats can and love bananas, but how much is reasonable considering that's never been apart of their natural diet?
If there are any dumpster divers, anti-waste, anti-mass consumerism people out there let's please connect!

*We feed our goats grain, constant access to hay, and move their fences so they get grass. They aren't malnourished by any means, but they get a lot of treats to supplement their diets, especially b/c it's sometimes a struggle to always have tall grass that the fences can reach*

*Easier Fencing for Silviculture *I take the goats on walks in the woods sometimes and they love it! (Yes our goats are completely ridiculous and friendly. The bucks especially will follow me around like puppies and come when called by name unless there's more pressing interests at hand like food or a doe or rutting.) That's great for when someone has time to keep an eye on them. Setting up the electric fence in the woods is extremely difficult. _Any advice on cheap fencing or hacks to move the electric fencing more easily in the woods?_

*Dog Fennel* is taking over our garden and land (tangentially related to goats)
-I've been ripping it out like Baobab trees, digging out the root masses, sheet composting on top of it and blocking out the sun to kill it, burning small hills of the ripped out weed, planting other plants in its place in hopes that I will have a garden overgrown with mint, potatoes, or something more manageable. All of these seem mildly successful, yet it is a constant problem to which I have not found resolution. Research has shown me inconclusive, conflicting info on if dog fennel is healthy for goats. Our goats will eat it, others will not. _How do you get rid of dog fennel?_

_Sending my love & best wishes to everyone facing changes + challenges due to the pandemic; we will get through this!_


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## Nigerian dwarf goat (Sep 25, 2017)

Just give as treats  
i am not sure if any of that is poisonous, so wait for someone else to chime in

Welcome to TGS!


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## 21goaties (Mar 13, 2018)

Our goats eat dog fennel with no ill effects. They won't eliminate it though, and they only like to eat certain parts of it at certain stages of its growth.


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## CaramelKittey (Oct 31, 2019)

https://wric.ucdavis.edu/PDFs/plants reported to be poisonous to animals.pdf
Here's a great list. I saw dog fennel on the list, so I guess it is poisonous.


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## New2Nubians2020 (May 4, 2020)

21goaties said:


> Our goats eat dog fennel with no ill effects. They won't eliminate it though, and they only like to eat certain parts of it at certain stages of its growth.


Ty, good to know! Ours seem to like the young dog fennel. They'll eat most of it. We haven't been sure if it's nutritious or what & do our best to keep it under control.


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## New2Nubians2020 (May 4, 2020)

Nigerian dwarf goat said:


> Just give as treats
> i am not sure if any of that is poisonous, so wait for someone else to chime in
> 
> Welcome to TGS!


Thank you so much. I'm pretty sure it isn't poisonous because they've been eating it with no noticeable ill effects. I don't know if it's nutritious or has any value to their diet, or has any ill effects. I have read from a few places that some compounds in it are potentially dangerous to livers (humans) in high amounts, but I don't even know if they can even eat that much & I didn't have a good source on that to know if it's true or not.


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## New2Nubians2020 (May 4, 2020)

CaramelKittey said:


> Here's a great list. I saw dog fennel on the list, so I guess it is poisonous.


Wow! Great info, thank you so much! It lists dog fennel as being poisonous to fowl. I'm going to read through this and send it to friends. (I haven't posted enough b/c I'm new so I can't link your v helpful pdf above)


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## CaramelKittey (Oct 31, 2019)

New2Nubians2020 said:


> Wow! Great info, thank you so much! It lists dog fennel as being poisonous to fowl. I'm going to read through this and send it to friends. (I haven't posted enough b/c I'm new so I can't link your v helpful pdf above)


You're right! I didn't even notice that it was only poisonous to fowl but, it is! In that case, your goats shouldn't have any problem eating it.


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