And you, what do you do with your Christmas tree after the holidays? Are you one of the indelicates, who abandon it on a sidewalk? Or those who do things well, bringing it to a collection point? How about dropping it off at a farm, to be eaten by goats and sheep? In Saint-Pargoire (Hérault), each year, at the beginning of January, Sevy’s farm collects fir trees from local residents, to offer them to his goats and sheep. Because these animals love Christmas trees!
“In it, there are a lot of vitamins, and trace elements, especially in the sap. And it is a natural dewormer, like brambles,” explains Séverine Montfort, owner of this family farm, which offers animal mediation sessions with children, seniors or people with disabilities. Goats are the most fond of Christmas trees. “They start to eat the needles, everything that is green, then they nibble the bark of the branches and the trunk”, smiles the Héraultaise.
No artificial snow or glitter
Of course, Séverine Montfort makes sure, when a Christmas tree is brought to her, that there has been no artificial snow, colored bombs or glitter on the branches. It would be toxic to animals. And what goats and sheep like is when there is foot. Like that, it stands up, and the whole menagerie can cluster around it.
“The first year, after the holidays, I gave them my tree to eat, and those of two or three friends from the village, confides the operator. The following year, I published an advertisement on Facebook, I had a good ten of them. And this year, my post was widely shared! “Since then, she has been overwhelmed with donations. To prevent these goatee residents from coming close to indigestion, Séverine Montfort had to, for this year, a few hours ago, stop picking them up. “They brought me about fifty, that’s enough for this year! I only have 13 goats and 8 sheep! »