Can sheep and goats live together?

[TXMissy]

Hi!
I am curious if anyone out there has goats and sheep. Can they share the same space? Can you have a mixed herd that live together or do you have to have them separate?

Thanks!

 

[animalmom]

Goats need copper. Copper kills sheep. Not saying you can't have both, but they need to be separated.

 

[hoovesgalore]

not necessarily they can be kept together just fine just make sure your copper bolus the goats and NOT THE SHEEP like @animalmom said it will kill sheep but the goats need it or will get copper deficiency. But they do get along just fine and can be kept together just do your research on what goats and sheep need and what they cant have.

 

[Alaskan]

Copper bolus the goats...if your area is low in copper.

Other than that... should be fine together.

 

[stgarrity]

We do it with Suffolks & Boers. They get along fine but tend to hang out separately. Get the joint sheep-and-goat minerals (Sweetlix has a good loose one but it’s hard to find cheaply).

 

[Legamin]

Hi!
I am curious if anyone out there has goats and sheep. Can they share the same space? Can you have a mixed herd that live together or do you have to have them separate?

Thanks!

Hi!
I’ve had sheep and goats together for the last five years. The main dietary issue, as mentioned by others, is the copper thing. You can tell if your goats are not getting enough when you see the tip of their tail fur appear ‘split’. For one reason or another the fur on the very tip of the tail falls out or fades significantly. The other ‘tell’ is dull flat fur rather than shiny and soft (some goats have stiff fur but shiny and healthy like our own is best!) Your sheep should get very little additional copper. When people say ‘NONE!!!!!’ What they mean is to try to keep it under 40PPM/serving if there is any in your regular feeding diet. If you are going to breed the sheep the the wee lambs NEED some copper for their neurological development. Without it they will be….’not quite right’, sickly, weak, aggressive, stupid…whatever you decide to call it…if you deprive them of ALL copper and there is none available in their environment (pasture) they can actually die. This is not a big deal since even the sheep feed that has NO COPPER!!!!! Has trace amounts of copper. Copper is ubiquitous and we all get it in just about everything we eat and drink (if it is organic and natural). High quality breeding feed mix will have copper in for late stage of pregnancy and nursing time. At other times they don’t need it and of course too much is….well…too much And it becomes toxic in the liver. Their systems take much longer to eliminate it.
I recommend copper bolus every 6 months for the goats. I comes in packs of 25/50/100/250/1000 etc. and you get a bolus ’syringe’ (tube thingy with a plunger -$4.95) load a copper ‘pellet’ into it and stick it good and deep into the throat and plunge. because goats have remarkable musculature in their ’swallower’ it is actually difficult to get it into the lungs accidentally…and you shouldn’t be sticking it quite that far in anyways (i shoot for about 8” past the teeth)! But if you don’t go far enough in the miracle musculature of the goat-throat will bring it right back up and they will spit it out…wasted money, time, long term health! The bolus will settle in the first chamber of the rumen and slowly dissolve. It will not come back up and will not advance to the next chamber (as it would have to come up to be advanced and the goat would detect it and spit it out anyways)… (TMI?). I guess i’m a blabber fingers! But I started back with animals after a 43 year hiatus and had to learn everything over again! I asked a LOT of questions!
Your sheep’s access to copper should be very low. In our area there is plenty in the pasture and if they need it they will actually kick up dirt with their hoof and eat some! If I notice this behavior I add about 150mcg (micrograms) per week until the ‘digging’ behavior stops. I provide individual doses to the sheep with a cup of grain just to appease them.
Sheep and goats get along fine. They are great playmates. You will notice that the sheep can get more adventurous with climbing and play and the goats will be LESS adventurous around the sheep and you will have fewer ‘fence issues’ and escape attempts. It is really the best of both worlds! If you have a ram (or wether) sheep in with ram or wether) goats there will be rough play. The sheep rams will be far more aggressive in this than the goats but their aggression is not TOWARDS the goats but to others who come in the pen/pasture…like humans… You will need to be VERY aware when you go in the pen/pasture and keep your head on a swivel. I have a painful limp and an annoyed attitude towards aggressive sheep rams over that and I felt slightly less bad when Fall came and Christmas Supper…. It’s funny..not haha funny…when you get old and you have to think about what an animal can do to you very quickly that will effect the rest of your life. Which is why we changed breeds to a very docile breed of sheep.
You should provide some sort of climbing apparatus that is adapted for sheep (domestic breeds have smaller jump and climb distances) and goats (who will climb Mt. K-2 if it’s nearby). Your ewes won’t care about it mostly (like humans there are always the exceptions) but the sheep rams will enjoy some easier climbs. Your goats will go as high as you can safely build it! I like a tower of a 10 foot shipping crate with a couple large boulders on top surrounded by giant wire spools that our utility sells very reasonably. You can certainly hand build your vertical play yard but be considerate of neighbors.
The rest…grazing, movement, vax shots, health care, hoof/teeth maint. Is all about the same and most handling equipment will handle skinny goat folk and large breed sheep folk in the same ‘box’ (grandchildren might beg a ‘ride’ around the spinner once in a while too). If you’re a bit older and want an easier approach to handling I would strongly recommend Lakeland Farm and Ranch equipment. It is well made and VERY reasonable. It is manual so not as fast but it easy to use. A handling system for up to 250 animals is under $14,000 with the extra goodies that one inevitably adds while ‘standing in the checkout’.. they have great customer service, sell maintenance parts etc. (I’m biased because it is the one I chose when my back said “no more lifting sheep!”
So…wow! I’ve rambled…it’s a thing i do far too much! If you have any questions about what I’ve said, ask away. If I got it wrong I’m sure several people will generously and confidently correct the error of my ways! I’m always learning!