A COMMUNITY farm on Portland has relaunched an appeal for unwanted Christmas trees to feed its goats.

No, we are not ‘kidding’. Fancy’s Farm, based at the end of the Glacis, is encouraging people to donate their trees to the farm for its goats to enjoy a post-Christmas treat.

Su Illsley, who manages the farm with her husband Jon, said: “The goats are craving Christmas trees.

“In their natural diet goats are browsers. They would eat the bushes, shrubs and trees before they would eat grass.

“We need to enhance their diet. The goats are natural browsers rather than grazers.”

The goats strip the greenery and bark. Last year leftover wood was used along the edges of the farm to provide shelter for other animals.

Whilst trees of all sizes are welcome, the farm has asked people to make sure the trees being donated are in a fit enough state to be eaten.

Su said: “Make sure all the decorations are off and they are ones that haven’t got spray on them.

“If it is one of those ones they need to go to the dump.”

The farm has between 30 and 40 goats of various breeds.

Last year’s appeal for trees saw between 200 and 300 trees arrive at the farm, donated by businesses and families across Dorset.

Su said: “We lost count in the end. We had two pens full up with them. We were still feeding them (Christmas trees) in March.”

Fancy’s Farm is a community farm that cares for more than one hundred animals.

As well as goats, the farm is a home to horses, sheep, reptiles, wallabies and a barn owl.

The farm relies on donations and its feed bill alone can cost up to £2,200 per month.

Fancy’s Farm recently shared a Christmas wishlist online featuring products the farm was in need of, including sheep shears, woodchips, and pellets.

Winter is considered to be the quietest time of the year for donations and visitors to the farm.

For more information on how to donate a Christmas tree, please telephone 07810 485351.