Feed Horse Beet Pulp
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Dried molasses-beet-pulp (Bulletin / Massachusetts Agricultural Experiment Station) … |
Feed Horse Beet Pulp
Anyone Feeding Horses Beet Pulp PELLETS rather than shreds, can you please tell me your preference and why?
I know there are those who say you don’t have to soak BP shreds…but it’s hard to teach an old dog new tricks…LOL.
Do you soak pellets?
Cost differential? Source? I can’t find pellets anywhere local.
Deb…tell me more about this Speedi beet? And have you read the squirrel story?
Yes, I feed beet pulp pellets. First, I’m where they grow most of the sugar beets (Idaho), and there are a number of plants around here. Oddly enough, it’s easier to come by the pellets, than the shreded beets.
Because I live in the high mountain desert, winters here are brutal. It’s negative 30 most of the winter, and I’ve seen it dip to negative 68 for about a week before.
Because it’s desert, and so brutally cold, getting a horse to drink enough water can be a factor. I mix COB (corn, oats, barley), alfalfa pellets, and beet pellets in a bucket, I add at least one cup of vegtable oil to this also, for the extra fats for the horses.
I soak all of this in HOT water. Sometimes carrots or apples are added, or some molasses. By the time it gets out to the horses, with the winter wind chill, it will be cool enough for them to eat. That extra moisture, and the hot meal really helps them during the winter.
Our power went out for two days last winter. No water from the well, so the mix did not get soaked. I mixed it up the night before, and added an extra two cups of vegtable oil to everyones mix (I have 9 horses). Nobody had problems with the beet pellets not being soaked. However I do NOT reccomend doing this….you are asking for potential problems. I did NOT feed this to my 29 year old horse, since he has choking problems. His mash must ALWAYS be soaked. I used cold water for his soaking….he didn’t like it cold.
I’ve read the squirrel story too….hysterical.
My poor sweet husband didn’t know about beet pellets, when we first married. I was sick one time, and he thought he’d save time. Instead of putting ingrediants into 9 buckets, and covering the kitchen floor, he thought he’d use only 4 buckets, and then dish it out into the horses feed pans. Needless to say there were MOUNDS of grain, an pulp around each bucket after he added the water….especially the one where he tried to combined three rations. The coughing/laughter fit I had nearly killed me. I’m pretty sure, three years later, I’m still sweeping up beet pulp from that little incident.
~Garnet
Homesteading/Farming over 20 years
Mister Eats His Grain
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Dried molasses-beet-pulp (Bulletin / Massachusetts Agricultural Experiment Station) … |
