# Too much sweet gum???



## sadieml (Oct 18, 2015)

Our babies get to browse most of the day, but they can almost always be found eating one of the many young sweet gum trees we have.  I don't mind, of course, I'll have to take them down if they don't.  I just wanted to know if there's any reason to limit how much they eat.  I am squarely in the middle of the grain/no grain thing...some need it some don't, some people have a choice, some don't.  Mine are just starting to get a little, since they are growing boys, winter is coming, and we are weaning them.  They also get good hay (alfalfa and timothy), water, minerals and salt, & baking soda all free choice.  They are healthy and growing well, but not as fast as their litter mate who gets 1c grain morn and night and very little browse. His owners don't HAVE much browse. They have 1 acre, we have 4.  It makes a big difference, so I'm not judging, but Jim did say that Cowboy(the littermate) was being agressive, and my boys aren't at all.  I wonder if the grain is playing a role there?  Anyway, back to my question.  Since they seem to love the sweet gum trees sooo much, and they are browsing and eating other stuff, too, should I limit their sweet gum intake?


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## goatgurl (Oct 18, 2015)

in my humble opinion the sweet gum won't cause a problem.  the only trees my goats have ever had a problem with are the wilting or wilted leaves of stone fruit ie wild cherry, plum and peach trees, azaleas and rhododendron.  if the cherry leaves are damaged, wilted, frosted on etc they have cyanide that can make a goat really sick or even die.  i have had goats vomit wild azaleas before.  not pleasant for me or them.  i had always been told that rumens couldn't vomit but no one ever told my goats.  what a slimy mess.


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## babsbag (Oct 18, 2015)

@goatgurl  Just the other day I read that rumens can't vomit, and while I have never seen it I sure have read about it happening enough to know that it must. I wonder if it it the "rumen" that can't vomit, but other stomachs can?


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## OneFineAcre (Oct 19, 2015)

Sweet gum is my goats absolute favorite to browse on.  They love it.


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## sadieml (Oct 19, 2015)

I know horses can't vomit, their stomach has a one-way valve, but I'm sure that goats can.  My Mom had a mini years ago, so even though these are my first goats, they aren't absolutely foreign to me.  The rumen, being the first stomach, is certainly where any vomit would come from, PLUS, how do they ruminate if they can't VOMIT???  It requires the same action, duh.  What is with all of these so-called experts who seem not to know what they're talking about.  WE are goat-people(you know what I mean), and we know our goats.  Just ignore all those loonies out there.  
BTW, I really just kind-of wondered if their predilection for sweet gum might just be too much of a good thing.  Like me and too much cheese or too much chocolate.(My family says the words "too much" cannot properly be used with words like cheese, chocolate, pizza, etc. in the English language.  They always say "I heard you say something, but I couldn't quite understand it.")


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