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[RC] catching up regarding beet pulp, pt 1 - Susan E. Garlinghouse, D.V.M.I've been out of touch for awhile, but wanted to add a short comment regarding the abstracts about beet pulp being a modest mineral chelator. Yes, it is, almost certainly due to its oxalate content. Oxalates do that, they tend to bind to various minerals and make them relatively unavailable for absorption into the bloodstream. Although it's been known for a long time the action oxalates have on mineral availability, and it's also been known that beet pulp has a moderate oxalate content, no one had previously put together the two. Though it wasn't a big stretch to come to that conclusion. In looking at the abstract where foals lost bone density when fed a beet pulp based ration, I'm not particularly surprised, nor am I particularly concerned. One, the diet at face value didn't look like it provided a plethora of extra minerals--- corn and molasses are short on calcium, and pasture grass would be an unknown quantity without an analysis. Most pastures that do not contain a legume such as alfalfa or clover, tend to be only moderate providers of calcium. Also, no telling what other trace minerals involved in bone mineralization were either borderline or lacking, so even a moderate oxalate chelator could have a profound effect. Not a big deal--- just make sure the foals are getting an alternate source of nutrients that ensure an adequate source after the beet pulp has chelated a bit of it. Anyway, just IMO, but I think you kind of have to be careful not to throw the baby out with the bath water here in evaluating the inclusion of beet pulp in a performance horse's ration. Yes, it has a modest detrimental effect on mineral absorption. Fine--- so you make sure that there are sufficient amounts of macro and trace minerals in the ration, especially if beet pulp is fed in a significant amount. Not a difficult thing to do, just add a moderate dose of a top-quality vitamin-mineral supplement, which isn't a bad idea at any time. Two, I think you have to weigh both good and bad in *any* feed. Beet pulp isn't alone is having a minor pitfall. Every single feed has one thing or another to just keep in mind when feeding it. For example, alfalfa is a great source of protein and calcium, but is also a bit rich to feed in excess...AND is *also* a significant source of oxalate. It's just that nobody much cares about the oxalate content in alfalfa because hey, there's still plenty of available calcium left for absorption. More examples, corn is high in starch, bran is high in phosphorus, flax seed can be a powerful cathartic (read: projectile diarrhea), carrots are great in smaller quantities but can cause a truly foul, putrid, gassy colic if overdone. You get the picture. There's no such thing as one single feed that has nothing but good qualities to it---just properties that can be good or bad depending on how bright you are when you formulate a ration. Three, consider what beet pulp *does* do for an endurance horse. More calories per pound than any other hay, very useful for horses that need to maintain adequate weight. Thin horses are in negative energy balance (Tom would correctly refer to this as a catabolic state) and are poaching lean muscle mass for energy. Feed more energy, keep a decent fat layer on the horse and he'll have the glycogen and fat reserves needed for a long day, regardless of what your goals are. So beet pulp is good for that, although it's certainly not the only source of extra calories available. My personal favorite property is that beet pulp fed with hay increases the water content in the hindgut, more so than hay or beet pulp (or any other feed) alone does. As much as a couple of gallons. That's critical. I haven't been treatment vet at hundreds of rides like Heidi has, but I bet she'll agree with me that dehydration is the primary factor in metabolic failure. In the horses I have treated, and collected data on while at rides, I've often analyzed a blood sample on these horses, and invariably, the dehydration parameters were far more deranged than were electrolytes or glucose. So keeping the horse hydrated is a big deal to me, and beet pulp is a good tool for that. Continued... Susan Garlinghouse, DVM, MS =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
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