Photo by Rachael Brugger Don’t believe everything you hear about goats. They can be delightful additions to your hobby farm.

Goats sometimes get a bad rap. People who have never kept goats often believe and pass along negative stereotypes about the species, such as goats stink or eat everything in sight. If these ideas have kept you from raising goats on your farm, read below to find out if what you’ve heard is fact or fiction.

Myth No. 1: Goats stink.
Only bucks have a powerful odor, particularly during the fall breeding season. Unless they’ve recently been with a buck, the females do not give off a strong smell.

Myth No. 2: Goats eat tin cans (and everything else).
“Goats are picky eaters that want clean, wholesome hay, and they’ll turn up their noses at forage a cow or horse would snarf right down,” says Nubian goat breeder Sue MacDougall. “Goats use their mouths to explore their world. They’ll examine a tin can and perhaps eat the tree-based paper label, but would never eat the can.”

Myth No. 3: Goat milk tastes bad.
Naturally homogenized whole goat milk may seem richer than cow’s milk, but it only develops a strong, unpleasant taste when the doe has been feeding on onions or another strong plant (same goes for cows).

About the Author: Cherie Langlois is a freelance writer and hobby farmer based in Washington