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Sugar beet
I have a question about sugar beet. My friend told me it’s best to soak it for 24 hours, even the “speedy” soaking varieties. But I just follow the manufacturer’s instructions. Who is right? And also, can you tell me if it is a grain or a forage (because we argue about that as well).
Melanie, Pamerston North
A : Sugar beet is neither a grain or a forage! It’s the left over parts of the beet, which grows in the ground like a turnip, which has had the sugar extracted (this is used for human food), and is then dried out, chopped up and pelleted.
Depending on the size of the chop, it has to be soaked for 12 hours or less. Fast-soaking beet is very finely chopped before pelleting, which means it rehydrates in water much more quickly, hence the less time needed for soaking before it is fed to horses.
Sugar beet is useful for horses, as (in its unmollassed state) it is low in sugar, but high in fibre and contains some protein.
It is also useful for putting weight on without ‘fizz’ as well as for older horses or those with bad teeth as its soft, moist form allows them to consume more of it, whereas they would struggle with conventional grain-based diets.
Losing weight
My 16-year-old horse, for the first time, has started losing condition this winter. I have recently changed grazing so that could be a cause (different pasture) or it could be the early and horrible winter we are having.
His feeding regime for winter is pretty much the same – night and morning he gets 1kg Fiber-Pro, 2kg commercial broodmare mix, and about a kilo of soaked sugar beet, with a mineral supplement, garlic and Bomac Feed-Aid. I have been feeding out hay, but it gets left and trampled, as there is still plenty of grass in the paddocks. He isn’t horribly thin, but for the first time I can easily see his ribs, not just feel them. He is currently turned out, having had a hard season, and I plan to bring him back into work in early July, just starting with hacking. I don’t want to give him lots more grain as he gets silly on it, but I would like him to put some weight on. What do you suggest?
BH, Auckland
A : There are several factors that could be affecting your horse’s condition here:
1. He is getting older and may not be as good at digesting his feed anymore (are his teeth okay?).
2. He has had a hard season, and may not have been able to regain condition before the cold weather.
3. It’s cold and nasty, and his covers may not be keeping him warm enough, so he is using energy to generate heat to keep himself warm.
4. The new grazing may have grass that doesn’t contribute as much to his diet as his old grass did – some species of grass are more affected by cold weather than others.
Well done on noticing his change though, as many owners don’t look beneath the covers until spring – so keep on monitoring him as you go through the cold period.
As regarding his diet, if the hay is getting trampled, consider putting it in some kind of container to stop them wasting it – after all, it’s your money they’re trampling! Upping his hard feed is the best way to see faster results – I’d suggest putting him on a fibre-based cool feed, to avoid the behaviour problems. The Fibre Pro is partly ensiled, and will be more digestible and give more nutrients compared to dry chaffs and hays, so increasing that may help.
Regarding forage, if you could get hold of some good quality baleage (small bale silage for horses) he would get more out of this than hay.
Ground level?
I have always fed my horse using a feed rack hanging off the fence (about waist high). But recently, the dentist told me it was bad for horses to eat with their heads in any position other than ground level. Is he right?
Jemima, Canterbury
A : Yes he is – a horse’s teeth are designed to be most efficient when the head is down in the grazing position. If you want to test this, you can by looking at how the front teeth are aligned when the head is up or down – you will notice that (in a
normally-conformed mouth) the front teeth only come together exactly when the head is down. This means their front and back teeth have the best cutting and chewing capacity in this position. However, there are practical considerations when feeding horses in winter – and you want to stop them wasting good feed and trampling any forages you put out.
A compromise on this is to use a feeding container on the ground – which is of safe construction, so they can’t get legs or headcollars caught in it. Large plastic barrels cut in half are useful as large feeders for horses, as long as you make sure there are no sharp edges. I hope that helps!
