Shredded Beet Pulp

[MikePA]

Have any of you horse owners fed your animals shredded beet pulp with molasses (even though it has molasses, it is very dry)? Our riding instructor recommended it as an alternative to sweet feed because; (1) It's better for our one high strung horse and (2) In the summer it will reduce the fly population.

Any experiences with this feed?

 

[cowboydoc]

Mike,
Beet pulp is not a bad feed by any means but it isn't necessarily going to accomplish the 2 things that you pointed out. The main reason that horses are high strung is not because of feed but because of lack of exercise. It's like saying that children are hyperactive because they eat lots of sugar. Well it's been proven time and again and again just recently that sugar has no effect at all on the hyperactivity of kids. It's the same with horses. When people feed horses alot of food it's just like us it doesn't make you more aggressive it makes you less aggressive.

As to fly control that's also a wives tale that your fly pop. will be reduced. The only way to do that is with external fly control of by feeding your horse a supplement that kills the eggs and flys in the manure.

I mean you want your horses to feel good which they will with a good diet. Once they are feeling good you need to channel that energy into plenty of turnout time and training. Most horses I have ever worked with and seen with people are not the result of the specific breed or of feeding it's how the horses are handled and trained. I'm a quarterhorse man but I can take arabians and make them act like a quarterhorse with the proper training.

Unless it's something that you can get cheaper and that meets all the req. of your regular feed I wouldn't even bother with it. There's nothing wrong with it it just isn't going to make alot of difference in the areas you mentioned.

 

[MikePA]

Thanks for the insight, doc. That's kinda what I thought, now all I have to do is figure out how to explain this to my wife /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif Perhaps I will just let her find out for herself. As you said, the beet pulp is just as good a feed as the sweet feed, it just wont accomplish the objectives mentioned by the trainer.

Also, have you used the feed supplement that reduces flies?

 

[cowboydoc]

Mike,
I used to use it and yes it does work. It just got to be too cost ineffective for as many horses as I have. You have to have them all on it or it doesn't do much good. I think it's called Rabon. Also you need to start feeding it before the fly season actually starts and continue until fly season is over. I think you only have a few horses don't you? If that's the case it wouldn't be too bad for you to feed it. I think the blocks are around $5-7 a piece and usually last one horse for a couple months. You can't put it out in rain though or it will just fall apart. Also they have to be able to lick on it most days. It does work though.

What I use now is the little wasps. They work really well if you do it right. It costs me about $40 a month during the fly season to use it but I rarely have many flys with it.

 

[gerard]

Little wasps? Please elaborate cowboy doc, I never even heard of the rabon stuff but sounds worth exploring. re beet pulp my wife has used it but I think it was to help put on some weight. Had to put some water in it first and let it soak a while first before it got fed, she never fed it dry ( I think because it would absorb water from the intestinal tract like a sponge and then colic would be a concern)

 

[MikePA]

We've ordered the wasps through the mail from Jeffers.

You're right, my wife soaks the beet pulp before feeding the horses.

 

[cowboydoc]

Gerard,
They are little wasps that can't sting you. They work by burrowing into the larvae of the fly eggs and stop the reproduction cycle. They work well but you have to have enough for your area and you have to start before the fly season starts.

 

[Molerj]

<font color=blue>It's like saying that children are hyperactive because they eat lots of sugar. Well it's
been proven time and again and again just recently that sugar has no effect at all on the
hyperactivity of kids.
<font color=black> Well, I don't know about that./w3tcompact/icons/shocked.gif Just watch my two kids after they load up on some
junk food./w3tcompact/icons/crazy.gif

Ron

 

[MikePA]

Here's a link to a WebMD article. Like cbdoc, I just heard on the radio (NPR I think - Is it legal to own a tractor and listen to NPR? /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif) about the most recent study.

 

[webbmeister]

Hmmm ... most folks just don't know what a sharp bunch of cookies we tractor people are! ;-) ... and yes, NPR for tractor people is legal in all 50 states, although in a few it is forbidden to actually ride a tractor and listen to NPR (or classical music) simultaneously. (I would have written "at the same time" but "simultaneously" made me feel so much smarter ...)

Time for a little Masterpiece Theater, then off to bed. Ta Taa!

James

 

[billboe]

Cowboydoc,

What are your $0.02 on the wet vs. dry beet pulp? My wife has always fed it wet, but her trainer now tells her that dry is fine...

Also, my wife says her horse is very sensitive to the type of feed she gets... Exercise doesn't seem to be the problem (horse is in pasture each day and gets ridden 4 to 5 times a week), so, maybe it is training or temperament? Her horse is a thoroughbred mare...


Billboe

 

[MikePA]

Billboe,

The horse we have that needed 'calming' is a TB/QH (more TB than QH) mare.

 

[cowboydoc]

Billboe,
As long as your horse has free choice to water it doesn't matter if it's wet or dry. A little moist certainly isn't bad but dry isn't either as long as there is plenty of water around.

As far as your horses behavior problem I can almost 100% guarantee you it's not related to food. Thoroughbred are a little hotter horse naturally than others. They're bred to run first and ask questions later, well they all are but some more than others. It's harder to train that out of them. As far as temperment goes I always go with a quote from my Grandpa. He said there's no such thing as bad horses only bad trainers. It depends alot too on how your wife rides and how your trainer trains the horse. Without knowing anymore about the situation I would have to say it was the training of the horse. If you can give me some specifics and such about the style of riding, equipment, etc. I can give you some pointers about how to calm him down.

 

[billboe]

Cowboydoc,

Thanks very much for the advice! The mare has water always available, so, the dry beet pulp shouldn't be a problem...

In terms of behavior... My wife rides dressage with a snaffle bit. That's about as technical as I can get. I can describe one problem that she has...

There is an 80 acre horse park where they ride. In the past, they had to trailer to the park (about 10 miles) and the mare was reasonably sane. About six months ago, the place where she boards moved so that they now border on the park. Now, when they try to ride in the park, after about 15-20 minutes, the horse becomes unmanageable. She has a very strong tendency to go home (her barn mates are within sight from most of the park). When you try to keep her going in the park, she begins bucking, spooking, and running backwards. Any advice for this type of behavior?

Thanks again for your great advice!


Billboe

 

[billboe]

You know it Mike! TBs can really be "full of it"! /w3tcompact/icons/crazy.gif Its funny tho... Our horse is an angle on the ground (well, MOST of the time), but, when you're on her back, you don't know what you're gonna get. Either beautiful lively movement or not so beautiful very lively movement! /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

Billboe

 

[cowboydoc]

Yea I used to work with those kinds of horses all the time Bill. The horse is what is called barn sour. Give me your email and I will write up a how-to for you tonight and send it to you.