Soaked Sugar Beet

[CarolineR]

I know this is a really draft question but having never fed Sugarbeet before, I was wondering how long is soaked Sugarbeet Ok to be fed to a horse. Does it last 1 day 2 days or a whole week, I have not idea.

Now that the carrot supply has run out I was thinking of feeding soaked unmolassed Beet to give an element of moisture in the feed, but know very little about it your help would be appreciated.

[binky]

I usually soak for 24 hours and make up a new batch each day. Occasionally I have some left over and will feed that the next day - after a good sniff to check it smells alright. I always store it in a cool place, but wouldn't feed it if it was over 48 hours old.

I know that some places make up a huge batch and feed it over the course of a week, but I'd be worried about it starting to ferment. Because I just do for myself, I can make up enough for my horses on a daily basis.

[SJ]

There's a wonderful new product called Speedi Beet which only requires soaking for 10 minutes and its unmolassed. I can't remember who makes it without checking the sack but it has revolutionised my life as a working horse owner. If you're interested I'll check the bag tonight.

It also keeps quite happily for a day or so.

Sara Jane

[binky]

http://www.ianson.co.uk/speedi.html

Looks good - anyone know how it compares on price?

[CarolineR]

I did look at speedibeet and it cost over £7 a bag which was double the price of D & H unmollassed beet, so will be looking at the D & H product first to see how we get on.

Another daft question, I presume you soak with boiling water and just cover the beet that is being soaked? Then leave for 24 hours before feeding.

[binky]

Don't know about the D&H product, I serve up the cheapo mollassed stuff to my tbs and the fattys have to make do with hay and grass.

If you're soaking for 24 hours you can use cold water.
I usually cover the pellets with 3/4 times the amount of water - roughly - I don't measure it and sometimes overdo it a bit but I always prefer to have it sloppy rather than too dry looking, just to make sure its rehydrated properly. Any extra water gets soaked up with the chaff I mix it with, but my lot aren't fuss eaters and just slurp up any juice left at the bottom.

Makes a lovely noise in the stable when they're all at it - like someone finishing the worlds biggest strawberry milkshake :D

[Mehitabel]

it swells to about 3 times its previous volume, so use 1 part sugarbeet to 3 -4 parts water. if yo're in doubt, stick your arm in to the bottom of the bin and squeeze round, you shouldn't be able to feel any lumps. cold water is fine. in cold weather, it usually lasts about 3 days, in hot weather it goes off faster - normally it starts to smell after 2 days.
we fed ultra beet once, when the feed merchant ran out of our normal sugar beet, and only 3 of our ponies (there are 70 of them) would eat it. i don't know if speedibeet is exactly the same thing, but we found ours definitely preferred the traditional kind!

[Tina J]

I know the speedi beet is expensive, but I find it more economical for summer use. It swells to about 4 times its volume, and you can use it quickly so that in hot weather it never even starts to ferment. I only feed tiny quantities in summer, and I find one bag lasts my horse over three months - just soak one handful for two feeds each day, and its just enough to moisten a good handful of chaff at each feed.

[Nickie]

soaked beet usually lasts me and Bren about 4 -6 feeds. He has just over 1/2 scoop in each feed.

have a small pan full of beet pellets in the bottom of a bucket filled to top with water - I drain the excess water off first. (Soaked for 24hours)

There is no set time how long it lasts - but you'll know if it is off - it smells rather like salt and vinegar I think! Or more accurately - fixing fluid for photos (I do photography in my spare time).

Now the summer is here though we use speedibeet - as it only takes 10 mins to get ready and therefore doesn't getn the chance to go off.

N

[CarolineR]

I presume that unmolassed Sugarbeet is non-heating? as I dont want a fizzy greedy cob on my hands? Also do you continur feeding all through the summer, or turn them away to grass? Assuming that there is sufficient grass to maintain them.

[Mehitabel]

we use molassed sugar beet, and only one out of the horses at the yard finds it heating. it's a slow release energy source, and isn't normally heating. i haven't used unmolassed, so don't know how it compares. we don't usually feed our natives anything but grass and hay over the summer unless they start looking slim, so play it by ear.

[chev]

Sugar beet should never be soaked in hot water, as it hastens fermentation and can cause severe colic and poisoning. Cubed beet should be soaked in cold water for 24 hours, roughly one third beet to two thirds water. Shreds swell more quickly but should still be soaked for at least 4 hours. Sugar beet is an excellent food - most of the energy it provides comes from fibre, good for your horses gut, and it has a high calcium low phosphorous ratio, the opposite of cereal feeds, making it a great balancer for them. It also contains electrolytes, which prevent dehydration, so don't drain off all the water, particularly if your horse is in work. How quickly it ferments after soaking depends also on whether it is stored in a cool or warm place. The warmer it is, the faster it becomes unusable.

[Bebe]

I soak sugar beet in cold water for 24 hours prior to use. I don't tend to measure beet to water ratios but I like it to be very sloppy so always have more water than is needed.

One note of caution, up until yesterday I was using sugar beet (very small amount) to wet Bebe's feed. The beet I made up to soak the night before had fermented by the time I made the feed up 24 hours later, this has happened a couple of times in the past week. I've decided to stop feeding it now and will use plain water to wet feeds, it's too much of a waste to keep throwing it away and I wasn't feeding enough to have a huge impact on her diet. If you're wanting to feed sugar beet through the summer the speedi-beet type products might be a better way to go than the regular pellets.


Amanda

[CarolineR]

We are using 2 beets, one unmolassed for greedy fat Charlie, and this keeps OK and molassed for TB Zak, this went off yesterday, but was left for 48 hours due to problems with access to our field, so was thrown away.

Last night had to feed them in the field, and Zak had some of Charlies unmolassed and enjoyed just as well. I hate feeding in the field when you have a greedy cob, does anybody else feed in the field?

We are having a few teething problems on the Estate at the moment the person who rents the fields next to ours for his cows blocked our access to the horses so they cannot be bought in at the moment!!!!! The Land Agent is on holiday and noboday has a copy of the rental agreement for the cow man, so we are having to climb in the field via the wheat field. The cows are young bullocks and I am not going in with feed or will even attempt to lead the horses through as I feel it is too dangerous.

Only good point is that the horses are now totally relaxed about cows, so we'll have no problems riding past them in fields later in the year.

Access should be re-opened by the weekend, well it better be, else Karl & I will just have to take matters into our own hands as the boys will need to be bought in to be thoroughly checked over, groomed etc.

[Tina J]

I've always put a an electric fence "corral" around gates, in fields where I have my horse. It means that I can get him out on his own, without risking another horse trying to follow out of the gate. Also gives me an enclosed area to do the final girth checks etc before going out, and finally it gives me a sectioned off space to feed horses in the field. If you and Karl have electric fencing Caroline, it might help to do the same. It does help that we use electric fencing a lot round our way, so all the horses mine has been grazed with have a healthy respect for it. What a pain about the bullocks though - how inconsiderate.

I like to give tiny feeds in summer, even when there is enough grass. It keeps the horses happy while you check them over twice a day, and its useful to have their stomachs used to a small feed so that if you need to give wormers, or other medication, you're not stressing their digestions by adding something new. I just give a small handful of soaked speedibeet and alfalfa chaff, with half a dozen horse cubes sprinkled on top. Greedy beasts are always keen for it, even when they're already well covered (well, I can always manage chocolate even when I'm not hungry, so I guess its the same for them..... )

[CarolineR]

Thanks for all the advice, boys now having 24 hours soaked beet, in cold water, and all well