Do Goats Eat Chickens?

Many of us who keep goats and chickens together in the same facility have certain issues to deal with. One is that a frisky goat might step on or head-butt a chicken, especially a young one. Another is that, given half a chance, the goats will eat the chicken feed. But most of us never think to ask: do goats eat chickens?

What Prompted This Question

My husband Allan and I put a salt block on top of a tree stump across the driveway, so we can watch visiting deer. The other day I saw two birds fluttering around the head of a deer, sometimes landing momentarily on its back. A while later it happened again with another deer.

I asked my ornithologist friend Gene Morton what he thought might be going on. He responded: “I think the birds were trying to drive the deer away from an active nest. Why? Deer eat birds anytime they can get them! Bet you didn’t know that. I have had deer eat small birds caught in mist nets before I could check the nets.”

Of course I had to ask: What’s a mist net?

Gene educated me again: “A mist net is a net of a fine 1-inch mesh, 12m long, with horizontal strings supporting the mesh. Birds can’t see a net placed in shadow, and when they fly into the net they fall down in a pouch made by a horizontal string. Mist nets are the standard way we catch birds for banding and marking them.

“When a bird flies into a net it might just stay still, or it might flap around trying to get out. The deer are more readily attracted to the noise of a flapper. If you don’t frequently check the net, deer will eat the captured birds.”

I’d never heard of such a thing. So Gene sent me an article from a 1978 issue of Bird-Banding (published from 1930 to 1979) that cites reports of deer eating netted birds dating as far back as 1932.

Let me pause here and point out that mist nets are intended for research purposes. A reputable mist net supplier sells them only to a qualified researcher who has a valid federal or state-issued permit authorizing the use of mist nets to capture and release birds (and bats) for scientific study.

So What’s This Got to with Goats?

A lot of deer roam around our farm. They are remarkably like goats in the way they react to one another, and in the way they graze as well as browse. Sometimes when we see deer grazing in a field, we momentarily think our same-color goats got out. And it’s not at all unusual to see deer grazing in the fenced goat pastures.

So it seems that, if deer eat birds, most likely goats would do the same. Why we don’t hear about it more often is that goats are largely confined where they have little access to birds. The most common encounter between a goat and a bird, especially a young bird, would be where goats are housed together with poultry. And even then, they would be most attracted to tender young poultry fluttering around in their yard.

As I wrote in What’s Killing My Chickens: “Numerous accounts have documented cattle, sheep, deer, and other normally herbivorous animals eating baby poultry or even eggs. If baby poultry or eggs go missing where cattle, sheep, or deer graze, don’t overlook the possibility that an herbivore may have devoured them.”

Why I didn’t mention that goats eat chickens, I have no idea. I must have been in denial (not my goats!). One of the videos linked at the bottom of this blog clearly shows a goat munching baby chicks.

Why Would Herbivores Eat Birds?

Some researchers believe that once an herbivore accidentally gets a taste of chick or egg while grazing, it will deliberately seek more of the same. Others speculate that the unusual appetite may be triggered by a mineral deficiency, most notably calcium.

Many wildlife biologists conclude that the need for calcium relates to the growth of antlers. But that doesn’t explain why female deer eat birds.

Some experts feel that “pure herbivory is much rarer than we used to think.” And that bird eating may be a fairly normal behavior in herbivores that we’re just beginning to document.

Warning: Not for the Squeamish!

I personally have not seen any of my goats eat any of my chicks. On the other hand, over the decades we’ve had the occasional chick go missing that possibly could have been the victim of a hungry goat. The following YouTube videos are proof positive that deer, goats, cows, and even horses eat chicks.

The first scene is similar to the one I saw that started me down this particular rabbit hole. Except in my case the finale is missing — I never saw the deer eat a bird.

Deer buzzed by birds.

Deer eating a blackbird.

Cow eating a chick.

Horse eating a chick.

Goat eating chicks.

So it turns out that yes — herbivores, including goats, eat birds, including chickens. Before you have a complete melt-down over the possibility that your goats might eat your chickens, consider what retired Wyoming Game and Fish biologist Reg Rothwell has to say on the subject: “It’s not a huge problem, and it’s probably been going on for eons.” It’s just that we humans are finally catching on.