# Will pigs eat Eggplant?



## laughaha (Mar 4, 2008)

Planning on getting a couple pigs to raise up sometime in the next couple of months. Wayyyyyy overseeded eggplant and have about 150 seedlings coming up :hammer: If I can't sell/give away the extra's (I only want about 2 dozen for cooking/canning) I'll probably end up either just planting them in the flower garden (eggplant flowers are really pretty) or killing them. 

Chickens and geese won't touch them, but will pigs??? If pigs will eat them, I'll keep another couple dozen to help lower their feed bill a bit.


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## Paquebot (May 10, 2002)

I would probably safely say that there has never been a study as to the nutritional value of feeding eggplant to hogs. Every pig that I ever met was more than willing to eat anything that I might eat. Generally that meant wary chickens working on one end of something and a sow on the other. But, we also didn't have eggplant on the farms. As far as nutrition goes, should be no different than for a human. Other than that, no reason that I know of to not include it in their diet.

Martin


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## laughaha (Mar 4, 2008)

Thanks- guess I'll keep like 5 dozen plants then.


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## olivehill (Aug 17, 2009)

Probably depends on the hog. Seems just about every single one of mine has likes and dislikes. I have a boar who won't touch a green bean, but all the others gobble them down like candy. Another boar has actually spit a carrot back out and if I didn't know better I'd say he didn't just spit it out he spit it out back _at me_. LOL! I would certainly try though.


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## laughaha (Mar 4, 2008)

olivehill- lol, as long as one of them like it I'll be happy. We are planning on only getting two.


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## HeritagePigs (Aug 11, 2009)

Eggplants are night shade plants. Just like tomatoes, potatoes, sweet and hot peppers. Night shade plants have alkaloids that can cause serious side effects to the nervous system, joint and bone health (interference with calcium intake) not to mention damage to the stomach and intestines. Cooking reduces the alkaloids only 40-50%.


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## Paquebot (May 10, 2002)

Seems that the likes and dislikes are up to the individual pig. There was such a discussion previously on this and it's interesting to see what some will and won't eat. Not liking turnips wasn't for ours as we planted rape and turnip just for them.

www.homesteadingtoday.com/archive/index.php/t-231089.html

Martin


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## Jcran (Jan 4, 2006)

Eggplant makes my mom REALLY sick...I'd agree that raw eggplant might make em sick. HOWEVER, I don't know ANYONE who doesn't love a good eggplant parmesan! Cook for your pigs!


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## laughaha (Mar 4, 2008)

lol, I'm SOOOO not making eggplant parm for pigs!!!! 

Adding eggplant to the root veggie "stew" is an option, especially if it makes it better for the pigs.....

Thanks for the link Paquebot- I did a search but didn't see anything about this. off to read the link


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## KIT.S (Oct 8, 2008)

Our pigs have not been partial to eggplant, but the sheep love them.
Kit


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