Agreed. I've got two horses that have choked on dry
beet pulp after they've been on the diet for several years. They're pigs and eat
as fast as they can regardless.
Well that may work for some
horses, but not for my mare. She has been eating for 9 years and still has not
figured out that she doesn't have to gorge.
At the end of our last 50 we were
waiting for the vet and she is literally ripping the hay bag trying to get the
hay out fast enough. The VET finally grabbed a handful of hay and said to
keep feeding her while he was checking her because she was so ravenous she
wouldn't stand still when I took the bag away. He joked that he
was "afraid" what she'd do if we got between her and her food.
LOL! Needless to say he said her appetite was fine.
So not all horses will LEARN to
slow down, especially one that gorges on HAY!
Katrina &
Perle (mom's not going to take
another $4000 chance on me)
From: ridecamp-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:ridecamp-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of
Spottedracer@xxxxxx Sent: June 29, 2007 6:42 AM To:
ridecamp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [RC] Beet
pulp
Once the horses are USED to eating a ration
with significant shredded beet pulp in it - you don't HAVE to soak.. Since
they've figured out they have to take smaller bites and chew it like hay -
unlike what they do with pellets/grains.
When I'm first introducing
Shredded beet pulp to a horse/cow - I wet it 'lightly' prior to giving it to
them... It starts expending almost immediately, so it's 'pre-expanded' when
they first get a bite - instead of them gorging on it (like with
pellets/grain) and it expanding within their throats and causing choke
problems. I do this for the first two weeks or so with horses, then
slowly add less and less water - until it's dry.. By then, they've figured
out HOW to eat it properly..... Now, I'm still wetting it for the
cattle..
