We had a scare the other day, our goats got out and into a small amount of Hosta! Googling the topic can lead to total panic since many people are of the opinion that Hosta is poisonous to Goats! I prefer a little deeper research followed by a flesh & blood expert opinion. Here is what I found. Hosta IS very poisonous for dogs, cats and horses. Interestingly supposedly deer can eat them? No mention of goats anywhere… Much more calm I still wanted to be sure so I turned to a Flesh and Blood expert, our local farm Veterinarian. You guessed it, he looked into it and told me he couldn’t find any case studies to suggest Hosta is poisonous to Goats. Of course given no solid answer he gave me the common sense advise of not worrying about is unless she ate a significant amount, and even then to keep an eye on her for any unusual behavior or bodily functions.
Ahh, a sigh of relief! But what about other poisonous plants? I don’t want to go through this every time they get into something. So I’ve complied this list for our reference that I thought I would share. But if you think your goat has consumed a poisonous plant, contact your veterinarian. Google doesn’t know everything! Remember collect a sample of the plant you believe your goat has consumed so your veterinarian can properly identify the risk.
Some common plants are poisonous to goats and can kill them. Here is a list of common plants that are known to cause death in goats. This list is not complete but it is a good start.
Alkaloid Containing Plants
| Aconite | Allspice | Black Snake Root | Bloodroot |
| Blue Cohosh | Boxwood | Celandine | Common Poppy |
| Crotalaria | Crow Poison | Death Camas | Dicentra |
| False Hellebore | False Jessamine | Fume Wort | Hellebore |
| Hemp | Horse Nettle | Indian Hemp | Indian Poke |
| Jimson Weed | Larkspur | Lobelia | Lupines |
| Marijuana | Monkshood | Moonseed | Nightshade |
| Pink Death Camas | Poison Darnel | Poison Hemlock | Poison Rye Grass |
| Rattle weed | Rock Poppy | Senecio | Spider Lily |
| Spotted Cowbane | Spotted Water Hemlock | Stagger Grass | Stagger weed |
| Sweet Shrub | Thorn Apple | Varebells | Wild Parsnip |
| Wolfs-Bane | Yellow Jessamin |
Cyanogenetic Containing Plants
The following plants are usually deadly to goats when consumed in a damaged or frozen state.
| Arrow Grass | Black Locust | Blue Cohosh | Broomcarn |
| Buckeye | Cherry | Choke Cherry | Corn Cockle |
| Dogbane | Elderberry | Hemp | Horse Nettle |
| Indian Hemp | Ivy | Johnson Grass | Kafir |
| Laurel | Leucothoe | Lily of the Valley | Maleberry |
| Marijuana | Milkweed | Milo | Nightshade |
| Oleander | Rhododendron | Sevenbark | Silver |
| Sneezewood | Sorghum | Stagger Brush | Sudan Grass |
| Velvet Grass | White Snakeroot | Wild Black Cherry | Wild Hydrangea |
Plants That Cause Physical Injury
Some plants, while they are not poisonous, can cause damage to the goat in other ways. For example, thorny or spiky plants can puncture or tear a goat’s internal organs. Other plants that are stringy can tangle up inside a goat’s intestines, causing intestinal blockages and other difficulties.
Saponin Containing Plants
- Bagpod
- Coffee Weed
- Purple Sesban
- Rattlebox
- Soapwort
Photosensitizing Plants
Photosensitization occurs when an animal consumes a plant that contains properties which allow the plant to interact with sunlight. If a goat eats a photosensitizing plant, the goat could become overly susceptible to sunburn or heat stroke.
Common photosensitizing plants include:
- Buckwheat
- Goat Weed
- Klamath Weed
- Lantana
- Rape
- St. John’s Wort
Resin Containing Plants
Christmas trees contain resin, and many people feed leftover Christmas trees to goats when Christmas season has ended. This may not be such a good idea, as new research indicates plants containing resin could have delayed effects and be the cause of miscarriage in pregnant goats.