Re: RC: Re: Beet Pulp Pellets????

[Dreamweaver <nvweaver@yahoo.com>]

At 07:07 PM 12/29/2000 -0700, Susan Garlinghouse wrote:
>I'm not keeping official records or anything, but I think the record so far
>for engulfing beet pulp is held by my four year old Karahty young'un Dakota.

Yessum, even Weaver is in awe.  :o)

>He went this past summer to Karen Chaton's for conditioning and I breezily
>told her she could feed him about all the beet pulp he wanted---never
>expecting that overgrown piglet to stuff in more than maybe eight pounds
>dryweight.

I had to keep asking "are you sure he can eat that much".  I was worried 
for a bit that she had really brought me an Audrey II in disguise.  <G>

>   It turns out he is perfectly happy snorkeling his way through
>fifteen pounds a day (yes, it was weighed) dryweight and then well-soaked,
>plus plenty of hay and a bit of LMF, and looking for more of everything.

Plenty of hay?  He was eating 3-4% of his body weight every day, and I 
think he could have eaten more if I had let him.  He sure looks good now 
though.  He's been cut way back, and eating at a more normal level.  I 
guess maybe only 5 pounds of BP a day, about 20-25 pounds of grass hay and 
2 pounds of LMF, and some carrots and cookies (courtesy of the neighbors). 
(and supplements) Once or twice I've tossed him a flake of alfalfa, but 
generally I've not been feeding any, it's only gotten down to 10 degrees 
and they are all plenty furry.  He's a big boy though, and needs to have 
plenty of groceries supplied.  Did I tell you I now have to ride in him 
Weaver's cinch?  I'll get some pics this weekend, he looks so good now with 
some muscles developing and shiny and filled out so well.

>Oh, well.  I've always thought a good endurance horse should eat like
>there's no tomorrow, and if that's a predictor of future success, there
>should be no beating this orangutang.  At least if we can drag him away from
>his bucket long enough to agree to trot down the trail now and again. <g>

Well, he's been learning from the pro --- so now when he stops to pee out 
on the trail he does it where he can grab something to eat at the same 
time.  No use wasting any time just doing one thing ya know <G>.

>BTW, just as trivia, well-soaked beet pulp is one of the prescribed diets
>for horses recovering from colic surgery at the CSU vet hospital.  Over on
>the small animal side, they're also using it as a recovery diet for dogs
>whose intestinal mucosa have been wiped out by parvo virus.  Handy stuff.

It sure did take my guys awhile to get used to eating much BP.  They barely 
touched it the first few times I gave it......now they love it.  I've never 
seen a horse devour it like Dakota does though.  Now of course, I have bags 
stacked to the ceiling of both pelleted and shredded.  when I have time, I 
soak the pellets, when I don't or it's too cold, I use the shredded.  I 
much prefer the pellets.  The horses don't know the difference, you can 
soak buckets of either and can't tell them apart (after they've soaked up 
the water).

k



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