Re: Beet pulp/Potassium and Oranges

["Susan Garlinghouse" <suendavid@worldnet.att.net>]

>Hi Ridecampers; I am kinda directing this at Susan G.   I >understand that there is a limited amount of Potassium in >beet pulp, and wonder if you feed a lot, if it could cause >a deficiency.? 

 

It is lower than that in hay, but if you follow the general rule of thumb to provide at least half of the forage ration in the form of long-stem hay (of any type), than the horse is still getting *plenty*.  Although during an endurance ride, he'll still be sweating it out faster than he can replace it through normal feeding, so it should always be orally supplemented with electrolytes.

 

 

>I was also wondering if a horse ate oranges or lemons, >would they get Potassium from that, like humans do? If >so, would it be a good idea to put orange, into the beet >pulp?  How's that for a wierd question--

 

Yes, they'll get some potassium, but not much, and certainly not enough.  On a pound for pound basis, citrus has pretty close to the same potassium content as hay (citrus is a little lower).  You'd have to feed a horse about 25 pounds of citrus to meet daily requirements, and of course the citrus wouldn't supply the other nutrients in the right amounts (ie, fiber).  So it's no problem at all as an extra treat on the trail or whatever, it's just not a major component (though when that was all that was available, rations *can* be formulated using some pretty bizarre things).

 

And that's not such a weird question, sounded like a pretty good one to me.

 

Susan G