Goat Tractor

Why I didn't think of this before.....

In the past, I have used tons of Premier 1 netting to wind complicated fences through my orchard in order to let the goats graze it down so I don't have to mow as much or buy as much hay. Of course, they can reach over the net for any tree branches that may be in their field of vision and demolish them faster than you can say "Alliekat, don't you dare!"

I have had this chicken/duck tractor sitting for 2 years without a job and it suddenly occurred to me to put it to new use. We are currently building another one since this one is going to work awesome! I realize it's not built to withstand goat abuse but I rarely leave my goats unsupervised when out of their pasture so if there was a problem brewing, i.e. pushing through the chicken wire to get that one dandelion, I will catch it before they can bust out and go for a romp through the garden!

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/qqRKIXrYTPo

I don't know why that link won't work so here's a picture

What a great idea! I want to get goats but can't afford to fence my 13 acres. But, I want them to eat my brush/briars, so I don't see how I could get a tractor into the brush.

Good re-use of something you own! I agree they'd need close supervision, and I expect you need to move it multiple times in a day considering how fast Alliekat is hoovering the grass! I built something similar years ago, and upgraded it multiple times with hardware cloth at the bottom instead of chicken wire, but even that likely wouldn't hold a determined goat!

Unfortunately, like Meli, the places I need goats to clear, aren't even remotely good for fencing or a tractor, but I've heard they'll eat both blackberries and English Ivy, so if I could figure out a way, I would give goats a try.

It's true this would be useless in heavy brush or blackberries. I mainly like it because it'll keep them from snacking on my fruit trees. The amount of grass inside is perfect for one goat for one day to keep them from getting an upset rumen on the spring grass. I can swap out goats (I'm currently at 20 with all the littles) and move it repeatedly without overdoing it on anybody's digestion.

To get into heavier brush, I would use the electric netting. It's costly but if you take care of it, it'll last for years and years. It's also much cheaper and much more useful than trying to build permanent fencing as you can pull it up and move it easily. You will have to clear a path for it to run with a weed eater or something, but that's easier than clearing the whole thing. I should add that goats will eat blackberries but they don't eat the mature canes. They will strip every bit of green off and eat the younger shoots but be prepared (if you get goats) to go in after and knock it all down. One plus is that if they continue to eat the green stuff, the canes will eventually die!

Here how to embed youtube shorts Gina.