# Oats ???



## laughter777 (Jun 16, 2008)

Oh great and knowledgeable DGI members....can someone explain to me the difference in whole, rolled, and crimped oats?!?!

I went to the feed store to get oat prices and wasn't sure what price to get so I got all three...
crimped $8
rolled $12
Whole $14

Is there a major nutritional difference?? I would like to go with the cheapest, but want to have the cheapest and healthies...does that make sense???

can I get away with crimped oats for goats?? That is what we used to feed our horses long before we got started on processed crap, so I am looking at something I can feed goats and horses. If whole or rolled are what the goats need, can horses eat those??

Thanks,
Sarah


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## Guest (Jul 28, 2008)

We have been giving some oats to our test goats (boer / boer-cross), but it seems like you can get some other decent feeds for the same price. We mix in other stuff with the oats right now like medicated pellets and BOSS.


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## Chaty (Oct 25, 2007)

At my feed store the prices are changed the other way as they charge more for doing things to the oats. I feed whole oats to my goats and they love them and havent had any problems. I also add alfafaf pellets and other feed too.
Kathy


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## tmfinley (Feb 21, 2008)

Okay, someone can correct me if I'm wrong, but I asked a similar question about 6 months ago and I remember a few things. My question was between whole and rolled. The concensus was either oats was okay. Some people thought that the rolled oats (and maybe this applies to crimped as well), were easier to digest, while others thought because goats are ruminants and not single stomach animals they could digest the whole just as well. I buy whichever is cheapest. 


The reason given for price difference was because the extra stuff done to the oats costs more in some places ie with the rolled and crimped. But in other places the whole oats cost more because when horse people buy WHOLE oats they do not want broken pieces at all and the mill has to be anal about getting only perfect whole pieces in the bag. 

Hope this helps.

Tiffany


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## feistygoatwoman (Apr 29, 2008)

Well, to tell you the difference:

rolled oats are pretty much like the rolled oats in your kitchen- oatmeal
whole oats are the whole oat grain
crimped oats are the whole oat but have been put through a machine that kind of flattens them and looks like your hair does when you use a crimper on it- it's pretty obvious and you probably already knew all that 

Anyways- I am pretty sure the whole oats have a higher nutritional value because they haven't been processed in any way. You can actually get them uncleaned which would be cheaper, however with oats, (at least with horses) many of the oats are not digested they just pass right through. I am not for sure how well a goat digests whole oats because I feed a complete natural pellet feed to my goats. The crimped and rolled oats are a little easier to digest (at least in horses) but since they have been processed I am sure some nutritional value has been lost. You could ask your feed store what they think, and hopefully other, more knowledgable people than me will chime in and maybe give you a little more info. Hope something of my rambling will help.


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## wheytogosaanens (Oct 26, 2007)

I would purchase the crimped. A little bit processed (to me, better) and almost 1/2 the price of whole.

All the dairy farmers (cows) we know have a roller in their barn to roll their barley or oats or whatever. They know that they get up to 40% better utilization from the feed when they break it down for their ruminant cows.

For long term storage you would need whole oats.

Camille


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## NubianSoaps.com (Oct 26, 2007)

I thought only whole oats had their bran left. I thought crimped oats had to be steamed to be crimped and it's a higher moisture product which won't keep. I feed whole, but I know whole is not preferred for horses. What about crimped barley is it an option for you? Up here it's gold. Vicki


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## laughter777 (Jun 16, 2008)

I will have to check my feed store. Don't think they carry Barley (someone was asking for it last time I was there)
Is the main downside of crimped being higher moisture and not keeping well?? I won't be buying large amounts, pretty much a week (maybe 2 weeks worth)


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## wheytogosaanens (Oct 26, 2007)

When I talk about storage, I mean 6-12 months LOL. However, we live where it is dry, not humid, so you would have to check on conditions where you live. For instance, most Texans have to worry about hay molding etc. So long as our hay was baled correctly and we store it in the barn with pallets on the floor, we can keep hay good indefinitely (yes, I know you can lose nutrients over time, I am just referring to the fact that we don't have the same challenges storage-wise as folks in other parts of the country).

I would think that crimped would be fine for at least a month, but ask your feed store guy as well. I'm sure they don't like feed coming back to them!

As far as whole vs. rolled, we purchased some rolled oats from a farmer last Fall. The difference was that he ran the oats through the roller - all of the material was still there, just kind of broken up a bit. Those oats were good well through December (by which time the girls had eaten them all).
Not sure if the sacked feed is the same, but I would imagine it is. They don't want to waste anything!

Camille


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## NubianSoaps.com (Oct 26, 2007)

Thanks Camille! Vicki


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## LynninTX (Oct 25, 2007)

feed store guy here says crimped does not last as long as in molds... well... I really doesn't want to raise my risk on mold... 

also I know Vickie said whole... so. I use whole. 

Never see undigested oats. 

also even if you plan to buy weekly... goats do not do change well... my goal is a MINIMUM 10 day supply of feed and I mean MINIMUM that we rotate when we buy feed.... so if something is out we are not freaking. 

Start just by overbuying... you use 5 bags per week... buy 6-7 every week...


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## Rose (Oct 26, 2007)

Also make sure they aren't adding molasses to the crimped oats. I got a bag of that, and it's HEAVILY molasses-ed. YUK!


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## Sondra (Oct 25, 2007)

Well I use whole (race horse oats) and here it is the cheapest of the three so dbl ck your prices


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## laughter777 (Jun 16, 2008)

I asked the girl twice because I thought that was strange, then even asked the owner. He said crimped is cheapest and it is oats only, no molasses.


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## LynninTX (Oct 25, 2007)

crimped or rolled is cheaper here Sondra I know because I was questioned by a goat person WHY I feed it.


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