Sheep shouldn’t consume coffee (grounds) or anything caffeine related for that matter, as like all livestock animals. If you want to get rid of your coffee grounds then using them as a fertilizer in your garden or compost pile is your best bet.
If you have sheep you might have wondered if they can consume coffee. That’s why I have done some research about this entire topic to help you decide if you can feed them coffee or not, as well as how safe it is. I’ve also included what else they can and can’t eat.
Let’s get started.
Contents
Can Sheep Drink Coffee or Eat Coffee Grounds?
No, as much as your love your sheep and coffee, they shouldn’t meet each other. The same thing can be said about goats. People like to feed their coffee grounds to their livestock animals such as sheep or pigs, but this is not a good idea.
A little bit of caffeine surely won’t hurt them, and a research team found out that coffee can be used as a safe recovery treatment for cattle and sheep but further research is needed to confirm these results. So, for now, it’s best to keep your coffee (grounds) far away from them.
Caffeine is a powerful substance that animals can’t handle well. So your sheep should stay far away from it. In pigs, caffeine can even trigger Porcine Stress Syndrome (PSS), so who knows what it can do to your sheep?
What Else Should You Not Feed To Sheep?
There are a few more foods that are toxic to sheep and thus shouldn’t be fed to them.
| Foods you shouldn’t feed your sheep: |
| ❌ Animal Products (Meat, eggs, dairy) ❌ Avocados ❌ Chocolate ❌ Mold ❌ Rhubarb ❌ Supplemental Copper ❌ Brassicas (Broccoli, cauliflower, rapeseed, cabbage, turnips, radishes, brussel sprouts, mustard greens) ❌ Nightshades (Potatoes, tomatoes, eggplant, peppers) |
Plants That Are Toxic To Sheep
Since sheep are herbivores, they like to eat anything nature related. Be aware because there are a lot of plants that are toxic to sheep or can make them very sick. Keep these plants out of their reach as this can be dangerous to them.
| Toxic plants you shouldn’t feed your sheep: |
| ❌ Azalea ❌ Bitterweed ❌ Black Henbane ❌ Black Locust ❌ Boxwood ❌ Bracken Fern ❌ Buckwheat ❌ Buffalo Bur (Kansas Thistle) ❌ Buttercups ❌ Castor Bean ❌ Cocklebur ❌ Colorado Rubberweed ❌ Cow Cockle ❌ Deadly Nightshade ❌ Death Camus ❌ Delphinium ❌ Dogbane ❌ Elderberry ❌English Ivy ❌ Fireweed ❌ Foxglove ❌ Flax ❌ French Lilac ❌ Greasewood ❌ Halogeton ❌ Holly ❌ horsebrush ❌ Horse Nettle ❌ Horsetail ❌ Houndstongue ❌ Iris ❌ Japanese Pieris ❌ Jasmine ❌ Jimmy Weed ❌ Jimsonweed ❌ Johnson Grass ❌ June Berry ❌ Kentucky Coffee Tree ❌ Kochia ❌ Lambs Quarter ❌ Lantana ❌ Larkspur ❌ Laurel ❌ Lily of the Valley ❌ Locoweed ❌ Lupine ❌ Marsh Arrow-Grass ❌ Milk Thistle ❌ Milkweed ❌ Monkshood ❌ Morning Glory ❌ Oak ❌ Oleander ❌ Pigweed ❌ Poison Hemlock ❌ Pokeweed ❌ Ponderosa Pine ❌ Purslane ❌ Rhododendron ❌ Scotch Broom ❌ Snakeweed ❌ Sneezeweed ❌ Spurge ❌ St. Johns Wort ❌ Sudan Grass ❌ Tansy Ragwort ❌ Texas Mountain Laurel ❌ Wild Cherry (Which is the most common culprit of livestock poisoning) ❌ Yew |
Foods Sheep Can Eat
The daily diet of a sheep is quite straight forward. Its diet should consist almost entirely of healthy pasture or high-quality hay. Sheep are the happiest when allowed to graze freely for a variety of grasses, legumes, and forbs.
Fruits and Vegetables Sheep Can Eat Sparingly
It’s important to treat your sheep every once in a while, but keep in mind that their daily diet should still consist of healthy pasture or high-quality hay.
| Fruits and vegetables you can feed your sheep: |
| ✅ Apples ✅ Apricots (pits removed) ✅ Beets ✅ Blackberries ✅ Blueberries ✅ Cantaloupe ✅ Carrots ✅ Citrus (strictly in moderation) ✅ Collard Greens ✅ Corn ✅ Grapes ✅ Peas ✅ Peaches (pits removed) ✅ Peanuts (strictly in moderation) ✅ Pears ✅ Pumpkin ✅ Soybeans ✅ Squash ✅ Strawberries ✅ Sunflower Seeds ✅ Watermelon |
Weeds and Ornamental Plants Sheep Can Eat
Luckily there are plants that your sheep can actually eat, here are a few of them.
| Weeds and ornamental plants your sheep can eat: |
| ✅ Agapanthus ✅ Bamboo ✅ Bay Leaves ✅ Cedar ✅ Comfrey ✅ Coyote Bush ✅ Dandelions ✅ Dill ✅ Dogwood ✅ Elm ✅ Fennel ✅ Fiscus ✅ Greenbrier ✅ Lavender ✅ Lemon Balm ✅ Mint ✅ Oregano ✅ Roses ✅ Rosemary ✅ Sow Thistle ✅ Sunflowers ✅ Thyme ✅ Yarrow |
What To Do With Your Coffee Grounds?
Believe it or not but coffee grounds are a fantastic fertilizer in your garden or compost pile. If you truly want to get rid of them and get the best use for them then this is highly recommended as a lot of gardeners use this method.
The Bottom Line
Sheep should not consume coffee, coffee grounds, or anything caffeine-related for that matter. As with all livestock animals, it’s better to keep your caffeine to yourself.
Sheep are herbivores and thus should have a daily diet of healthy pasture or high-quality hay with some other treats that can be fed in moderation.
If you want to get rid of your coffee grounds then using them as fertilizer in your compost pile is the best option.
