The Truth About Goats

"Do goats really eat tin cans?"

This question usually comes up after I've been talking to someone for a while and they find out I have angora goats. I don't know why folks automatically connect goats with tin cans, except that maybe we all watched too many cartoons when we were younger.

My answer to them is "No, they don't eat tin cans but....."

The best way to describe goat behavior is to compare them to a three-year-old child. They are constantly curious, always exploring, touching, tasting, and fiddling with things....except goats don't have little fingers like a three-year-old, so they use their mouth. How else could they explore the world around them? Zack (pictured above) is the master of chewing and "fiddling." He's learned to unlatch the gate (from the inside-thus we have double latches), he chews on my shirt and shoes or any loose thread on my jacket, and he's been known to take off with a stray paper towel or a pair of scissors. One of my older goats used to pull my husband's screw driver out of his tool belt (while my husband was wearing it!) and he'd turn and run as fast as he could across the pen. Trust me, goats love the chase and it's hard to get that stuff back once it's in their mouth!

I imagine that a tin can might contain some remnants of tasty food or maybe the label has been stuck on with some yummy glue. Or maybe it's just shiny and interesting to touch. So to answer the proverbial question...no, goats don't eat tin cans....but they would probably chew on it instead!

Oh, by the way, Zack also likes to chew on the fence post....

And the wire fence tastes good too...especially with a fresh crunchy coating of icicles!

That's Zack's twin brother, Zion, on the left. He's the Second Commander of the Chewing Brigade.