Feeding Beet Pulp Pellets

[TyeeRanch]

I am a true believer in feeding beet pulp. Love what it does to my horses. I usually feed shredded beet pulp, but am having trouble getting it. And the feed store that I usually go to only carries pellets. I have my horses at a boarding facility and pre-package their grain each week for feedings. Therefore I am not able to soak the pellets as directed. Is it possible to feed whole beet pulp pellets and what are the risks?

 

[cretahillsgal]

Im sorry but I am not sure.

I have fed the shreds dry before with no problems. And we used to feed the pellets dry to our show cattle. But Im not sure how they would affect the horses.

 

[Miniv]

Nick...There was an article written for full sized horses in Equuis (I think) two or three years ago, by a vet, who was saying that soaking the beet pellets was highly over rated. (But that was for BIG horses.)

Personally, we always soak, when we use them..... BUT, if you are forced to feed the pellets without soaking, I'd cut the amount to 1/4th of what you'd usually feed....and MAKE SURE THEY HAVE PLENTY OF WATER......

Just remember, those pellets expand very rapidly within a couple of hours when liquid is added. I don't personally know the ratio. That same thing will occur in a horse's stomach as the horse drinks and as the pellets reach natural body fluids.

Just play it as safely as you can, Kiddo. (Listen to me giving YOU "advice"! LOL)

 

[disneyhorse]

I personally wouldn't do it, particularly with a mini.

However, anecdotally...

I had an older Arab that had a VERY sensitive stomach, would colic twice a year every year when the weather changed or he didn't drink enough.

Well, we went out of town and the person caring for our horses gave him a FULL BUCKET of beet pulp pellets INSTEAD of the alfalfa pellets twice a day, and soaked the alfalfa pellets supplementally. We discovered this coming back, and noted that the beet pulp was mysteriously way used up.

The horse happily cleaned them up (he had bad teeth, thus no hay and the little pellets instead) and didn't colic... so I assume it can be done!

I would probably opt to NOT give the horse beet pulp if I couldn't soak it. I would give an alfalfa pellet instead for the calcium/protien (or what are you giving the beet pulp specifically for?).

Andrea

 

[Bess Kelly]

They can be fed dry. OBVIOUSLY, they require more chewing than shreds and thus the issues. If your horses are elders and lack jaw teeth, this is not for them. Very young, same deal...and at an age where caps are dropping, caution is best.

So, matured horses with good teeth and good eating habits can eat them dry. Those who bolt, don't chew, etc. are better of without the whole pellets in favor of shreds &/or soaked.

I use pellets. They have been coming to me in a shorter pellet size (like they've been broken up, not long)from Blue Seal. Most of mine receive them dry, mixed in their pelleted feed (Blue Seal Demand, about the size of a Strategy pellet). Have done this for a couple of years and had no issues. My older ones get them soaked.

They will become approx 4-5X the volume when soaked, so keep that in mind as you measure. Truly the ones I am getting now are approx 1/3 of an inch long, so one good chomp and they are broken down to almost shred sized. Chewing is a must, along with good drinking habits.

The risk, if not chewed, could be choke. So, size of pellet is critical in addition to horses normal habits.

 

[mizbeth]

Good morning!

I am not sure that you will get your little guys to eat the dry pellets. Not much flavor to them, no molasses added. I would not feed them dry in any case either. They do need to be soaked and it takes a good bit longer to soak them than it does the shredded. I feed shredded beet pulp, that has molasses in it. Mine won't eat the plain shredded beet pulp (without molasses), and I have fed this one dry on many occassaions. Just limited amounts as mentioned it does swell up.

I use it primarily to add plenty of water to make sure my horses are getting plenty of fluids, both in hot and cold weather. On show horses, but for a different reason.

Good luck,

 

[chandab]

I realize plenty of people have answered, but will throw in my 2 cents for what its worth... The biggest problem with dry beet pulp pellets is the risk of choke, the size of the pellets is such that they are more likely to cause choke in a horse that bolts their feed than the shreds or other types of pellets.

Here's a good article on feeding beet pulp:

http://www.shady-acres.com/susan/beetpulp.shtml

Here's another article with informaiton on feeding beet pulp (along wiht other feed info):

http://www1.agric.gov.ab.ca/$department/deptdocs.nsf/all/hrs3243#You

 

[rabbitsfizz]

It depends on the size and the consistency of the pellet, I would say. Whilst we are all aware that there is no inherent danger in feeding dry beet pulp, if you are only able to get the big, cattle sized pellets I would say, no, do not feed them unsoaked. Are you aware that, especially in winter, they can be soaked up to 24 hours ahead of use with no ill effects? You could get some of those little popcorn buckets (I always think of them as this as I get popcorn n them) they have a seal lid and you could easily set the BP to soak slowly in the pail, adding cold water and leaving it. If the person feeding the horses was also supplied with a large spoon (on a rope these things grow legs and walk!!) they could just give the whole feed a quick stir and they you are....

 

[ssshowhorses]

Here's a good article on feeding beet pulp:

http://www.shady-acr.../beetpulp.shtml

Here's another article with informaiton on feeding beet pulp (along wiht other feed info):

http://www1.agric.go...all/hrs3243#You

Very informative articles, thanks for posting them!

 

[Matt73]

Aside from choke, I'd be really concerned with just the fact that they absorb so much water. Seeing how much they expand in a bucket...that would happen in their stomach. Seems like a recipe for colic to me

 

[chandab]

Aside from choke, I'd be really concerned with just the fact that they absorb so much water. Seeing how much they expand in a bucket...that would happen in their stomach. Seems like a recipe for colic to me

I realize we all have minis, and I don't know the comparison; but a full-size horse's stomach holds about 4 gallons (the typical amounts fed aren't likely to cause an issue, plus feed moves out of the stomach relatively quick, like before pellets would expand).

 

[hobbyhorse23]

Just remember, those pellets expand very rapidly within a couple of hours when liquid is added. I don't personally know the ratio. That same thing will occur in a horse's stomach as the horse drinks and as the pellets reach natural body fluids.

I believe it's a 1 to 3 ratio, i.e. for every cup of beet pulp it will absorb 3 cups of cold water in about two hours. That's been my experience anyway! They'll fluff fully in 30 minutes if you use hot water.

With the beet pulp pellets my feedstore sells I can't imagine feeding them dry. They are like ROCKS (I have literally tried smashing them with a hammer and all it does is chip them

) and more than large enough to cause problems. Unless I wanted to wear my horse's teeth down a few years early I would not let them near unsoaked pellets.

Leia

 

[chandab]

I believe it's a 1 to 3 ratio, i.e. for every cup of beet pulp it will absorb 3 cups of cold water in about two hours. That's been my experience anyway! They'll fluff fully in 30 minutes if you use hot water.

Leia

I don't know the ratio, and it does depend a little on how soggy your horse likes its feed, but what has been working for me is to put a heaping 3-quart scoop of the pellets into a 3 gallon bucket (I think that's how big it is, its a well-cleaned kitty litter bucket) and fill 2/3 to 3/4 full of warm water; when its time to feed the soaked beet pulp is about 2-3" down from the top of the bucket. [its just the right amount, so each of 10 minis gets 4 cups soaked beet pulp. The 11th mini gets his own batch (3/4 cup dry measure) soaked iwht 1/2-cup alfalfa pellets for flavoring.]

 

[Matt73]

...plus feed moves out of the stomach relatively quick, like before pellets would expand).

It's not the stomach I'm worrying about but, rather, the intestines (the rest of the digestive system). Like you said, "...feed moves out of the stomach...quickly...before pellets would expand"; that's exactly what I'd be afraid of. The stomach is wider/holds more than a section of instestine (width-wise).

 

[chandab]

It's not the stomach I'm worrying about but, rather, the intestines (the rest of the digestive system). Like you said, "...feed moves out of the stomach...quickly...before pellets would expand"; that's exactly what I'd be afraid of. The stomach is wider/holds more than a section of instestine (width-wise).

Good point, but their digestive system is quite long, you'd think the pellets would spread out as it were and not be in a clump to cause issues, but with horses anything is possible. I soak, so that part isn't an issue; I use beet pulp to help with hydration, so always soaked.

 

[HGFarm]

Mine love the soaked shreds but would not touch the pellets, either soaked or not.

 

[tagalong]

Seeing how much they expand in a bucket...that would happen in their stomach.

No, it wouldn't. Nor would it happen in their intestines. Everything moves along in a train... it does not sit stationary in one place absorbing water for hours. There is no harm in feeding beet pulp dry - it just depends on the horse and the pellets involved.

 

[supaspot]

my friend nearly lost her shetland mare last year when she managed to get into a bag of sugar beat nuts and pigged out on them , she suffered from choke and then colicked (not impaction -was thought stress)

 

[Margo_C-T]

Like Leia, the beet pulp pellets I can get locally are HARD, and many are well over an inch long. No WAY would I feed them to ANY horse I have unsoaked, for exactly the same reasons she cited; in minis, I believe that choke is a very real possibility.

Helping w/ adequate hydration is a primary reason I feed beet pulp, so it goes w/o saying that they are going to be well-soaked and sloppy wet. I add VERY hot water about an hour before I intend to feed them, then top off w/ cooler water to bring them to the desired feeding temp AND 'sloppy-wetness' just before feeding. In the winter, this is vital, IMO, or they will get very cold/freeze before the horse's can get them eaten.

Margo

 

[funnyfarmnorth]

I was wondering just what is the benefit of feeding beet pulp? Is it fed as a replacement for hay? Grain? amounts or an addition to them? I have heard that it adds weight to the horses topline and pulls up tummies?? How much do you feed your mini and why? Thanks