# Can goats eat juniper and honeysuckle? Finding conflicting info online...



## Sara S (Jul 19, 2020)

My husband finally said 'yes' to goats, so I am planning on getting 3 nubian wethers as pets. The area that I am thinking about fencing in has an eastern red cedar or juniper (I 'think' they are basically the same thing?) tree, but I'm unsure if this is poisonous for goats. I have seen many conflicting statements about this while researching online. Some sites say goats are being used to keep under control and others say it is poisonous for goats.

Same for honeysuckle....I have seen sites that claim goats LOVE honeysuckle and others that claim it is poisonous for goats. It's very confusing and I just want to make sure I have a safe location to house the goats before building the fence.


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## NigerianDwarfOwner707 (May 17, 2018)

Honeysuckle is absolutely safe, cedar is safe, and I’ve never heard that juniper is poisonous.


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## Goats Rock (Jun 20, 2011)

Juniper is very poisonous to goats. Especially the berries and needle like leaves. No idea about honeysuckle.


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## MellonFriend (Aug 8, 2017)

My goats eat honeysuckle _all _the time, and lots of it with no issues. That one's definitely not a problem. I'll even cut it and bring it to them. They love it.


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## Morning Star Farm (Sep 26, 2018)

Goats Rock said:


> Juniper is very poisonous to goats. Especially the berries and needle like leaves.


I heard that too, but couldn't take them out of the pasture. I was also told oak leaves were poisonous but they never had any ill effects from eating leaves that blew in from neighboring fields so I wasn't sure what to believe. We have cedar/juniper all over. The goats never touched those trees apart from an occasional taste of the branches. They never ever ate the berries though. They did eat the bark, but a lot of fence posts here are made from cedar and they would strip those as well.


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## Ashlynn (Oct 1, 2017)

Honeysuckle is safe


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## Ashlynn (Oct 1, 2017)

Based on my research it seems like some goats can tolerate juniper more than others, but that it probably is not good to have in the pasture as you don't know how your goats will react to it. Basically the oil in the plant is the issue. Here is what one website said...https://www.webpages.uidaho.edu/rx-grazing/WoodyPlants/Juniper.htm


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## SalteyLove (Jun 18, 2011)

Ashlynn said:


> Based on my research it seems like some goats can tolerate juniper more than others, but that it probably is not good to have in the pasture as you don't know how your goats will react to it. Basically the oil in the plant is the issue. Here is what one website said...https://www.webpages.uidaho.edu/rx-grazing/WoodyPlants/Juniper.htm


Really interested link - thanks for posting! I have mostly Boer goats and they DEFINITELY eat Juniper.


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## mmahamilton (Jun 25, 2020)

I'm new to goats also and I have red cedar, honeysuckle and oak throughout my property. I try to keep them away from the cedar but it is impossible to keep them from the oak trees. Also, is hickory and black walnut okay for them to eat?


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## NigerianDwarfOwner707 (May 17, 2018)

Hickory, black walnut, and oak, are all fine.


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## alwaystj9 (Apr 10, 2019)

My goats love honeysuckle, oak and cedar. I know with the oak, if that's all they have and they gorge, that bothers them. As long as they have other feed & browse, they rarely eat any one thing to excess. They eat more cedar in the middle of winter than any other time. They are chomping acorns as fast as they fall, right now.
I don't have any scientific studies but I have had my herd where they are for 30 years.


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## dchemphill1 (Jul 25, 2013)

Our goats eat pasture cedars in the winter. They love it because it is fresh living as opposed to the hay. I remember reading somewhere that the cedar helps fight worms naturally. We also have an invasive species called Autumn Olive that our goats can't get enough of. Leaves and bark- they do the work and I run the chainsaw.


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## mmahamilton (Jun 25, 2020)

I'm glad that that the oak trees and acorns won't make them sick! I had a border collie mix that loved to eat oak leaves and acorns and she ate so many that it caused her to go into liver and kidney failure and we had to put her down. Our vet at the time said that he had only seen that happen in cattle.


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## CaramelKittey (Oct 31, 2019)

My goats eat honeysuckle without any issues. They love it!
Not sure about juniper.
From what I’ve heard, oak leaves are poisonous, but only in the Fall. My goats have never had issues eating the leaves on the ground, but they don’t really like them either.
Congratulations on getting goats!
They are so much fun!


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