# Azaleas and goats?



## bigoakfarm (Oct 6, 2007)

I just put out a new flower bed with 2 tiny white azaleas in it along w/some annuals. The 2-legged kids were playing on the gate (read- swinging like monkeys) and evidently left it cracked so naturally the goats were out the next morning in the new flower bed. They ate everything but the marigolds and today I had a few does with dirty bottoms. It's not smelly and everybody is still eating and acting fine. No temps and nobody is hunched over or grinding teeth but just very, very pale green runny stools. It's been about 3 years since I've had to deal with cocci in my herd but I used to fight it all the time and this doesn't look like it to me. 

Are azaleas poisonous to goats? I have a list somewhere of landscaping plants to avoid but I have no idea where it is and I don't remember if azaleas were on it. It's been two days so I don't think anybody is going to die from it but is there something I should be doing? I have baking soda out and I do have some pepto, probios, and neomycin here but I'm not even sure it's a case of food poisoning yet so I'm not sure if I even need to give them anything??? What do you think.

I had azaleas, snapdragons, marigolds, and some pretty red leafy, bushy type of plant. (sorry no green thumb and the name has escaped me). Does any of that send out a red flag to you guys?

Thanks!
Kristen


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## liz (Oct 5, 2007)

ABSOLUTELY!! Angel was just 5 1/2 weeks old when she wandered into her "moms" flower garden.....I almost lost her! She had eaten the azaela and it caused vomiting as well as a big drop in her heart rate, thank goodness the vet knew what to do!! (this was b4 I picked her up!)


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## bigoakfarm (Oct 6, 2007)

Seriously???? oh my- I didn't realize how close I had come to having a real disaster. I'll pull the azaleas up and toss them today. They were tiny, new bushes with just a few branches on them so I guess I'm lucky they weren't bigger and the goats didn't get really sick. I think I'll put out a new box of soda and watch them. Any other ideas?

Kristen


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## rgbdab (Nov 26, 2007)

Yes, I would say the plants being small may have save you. I am attaching a link to a poisonous plants. You can click on one and it gives info about it. Good luck, Denise

http://kinne.net/poi-list.htm


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## enjoytheride (Oct 5, 2007)

Snapdragons are also poisonous- I don't know if that includes goats too but I have never planted it here because it seeds freely in my area.


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## bigoakfarm (Oct 6, 2007)

Thanks!

rgbdab- that's quite a list. I can't believe that Johnson grass and Rye grass on on there!

enjoytheride- snapdragons weren't on the list (above) but I'm pretty sure they killed those anyway so I don't have to worry about them anymore hopefully. 

We are in serious need of some landscaping here! But most of what I had considered planting (hygrangeas, azaleas, etc. ) are on the poisonous list. :worried: The goats rarely get out into the yard but still......Any goat safe ideas?

Kristen


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## Bona Fide (Oct 9, 2007)

http://fiascofarm.com/goats/poisonousplants.htm

http://www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm/index.jsp

Gives a list of plants and when they are most harmful (or available).

http://www.goatworld.com/health/plants/- from there you can also go to a remedy page. There's a landscapers guide for "plants a goat won't eat" - not sure how true.

http://netvet.wustl.edu/species/goats/goatpois.txt

http://www.ansci.cornell.edu/plants/goatlist.html


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## enjoytheride (Oct 5, 2007)

This is one of my favorite places for looking up plants before I put them in- I do have one Rhodi, which is highly toxic, and a number of hydrangea, which are mildly toxic- but hopefully in a place where the goats will never go (two fences away) -I figured since I have wild Rhodis here anyway, I would allow myself one small one close to the house.

http://www.vth.colostate.edu/poisonous_ ... search.cfm

But I do research placts before they acome here and am careful about ones that self-seed.


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## StaceyRosado (Oct 5, 2007)

I don't know why it says Rye grass but Rye is not poisonous :shrug:


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## Tog Lovers (Oct 10, 2007)

Some things they have to eat alot of to actually get sick. Many farmers have advised us that well fed animals don't generally eat things that are poisonous to them. Our goats have nibbled on our Rhodadendrom (SP?) from time to time. They have never taken more than a nibble and have never been sick. We also have azelas and lilies along with several other plants on the poisonous lists. We haven't had a problem yet. They seem to prefer what is good for them.


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## rgbdab (Nov 26, 2007)

I know it's hard to figure out what will really hurt them. I know milkweed is poisonous but I too thought if they were well fed they wouldn't eat things like milkweed but yesterday I let some out into the horse pasture for a treat and later I went out there and nearly every milkweed plant I saw had been eaten on! So back to the house to get a bag and a shovel and I spent the next 2 hours digging up milkweed plants and bagging them up. No one got sick, so apparently it isn't highly toxic. Who knows, but I'd rather be safe if possible. Denise


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## bigoakfarm (Oct 6, 2007)

UPDATE* - No more runny stools today. I guess they just needed to get it out of their systems. I ended up with three adults and one doeling that I fed milk to from one of the adults who had it all yesterday but everybody is back to normal today. I pitched the milk from the one doe today thought just to be safe. I'll probably use it again tomorrow. Thank God for that super fast goat metabolism. Fortunately, I just had the one new bed out with young plants. I've got some morning glories planted and I'll be adding a few more shrubs this week but I think I'll probably go with some evergreens. 

Thanks for the lists!
Kristen


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## StaceyRosado (Oct 5, 2007)

Stay away from Yews though Japanese yews are the deadliest things on earth to them!


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## bigoakfarm (Oct 6, 2007)

*sigh* well, I'd be lying if I said I even had any idea what a Japanese Yew is. I'm just going to have to print everything out and take with me. :hair: 

I'm no gardener at all - so these plant names are all greek (or Latin) to me anyway. Maybe I can just find some convincing fake flowers? LOL. Just kidding.

I'll take my lists with me.

Thanks guys!
Kristen


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## StaceyRosado (Oct 5, 2007)

the reason I mention the Yew is that it is an evergreen in a way. It is a shrub.


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## enjoytheride (Oct 5, 2007)

There are lots of problems determining what is bad and what is OK. A lot of plants have common names that are foolers- like Lilac- there are a lot of plants that are called something lilac because thier flowers are in sprays like like but can be another family all together- some toxic. 
Morning glories are toxic but I don't know if that is toxic to people only or to goats???? Different things are toxic to different species- although there are some real no-nos like the rhodi family.

I make some choices on wherher something toxic will spread- if it is like to do that, I don't get it. If it is toxic but I really want it, I have a small area that is unlikely a goat could get to it. 

Usually though there are always plant that are pretty safe to choose.

But if there are a lot of even mildly toxic things in their fields, the weeder and I make trips out there to get rid of it- like bracken fern or horse tail.


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