Is sugar beet just for weight gain?

[georgie1]

I feed sugarbeet, bit of cool mix and Hi Fi Lite.....as i havent had her very long its what she has been fed although i added the Hi Fi. She gets ad lib hay and is out all day with some good grass, and its only going to get better. Not worked hard so wondering if sugar beet is fed for any other reason as i dont want her to get porky!!!

She doesnt need to gain any weight. I know nothing of any history of laminitus.

When spring comes and she is out 24/7 should i drop the sugar beet?

Any advice much appreciated.

Thanks

Gx

[Welsh_Girl]

Sugar beet is a good natural source of digestable energy, fibre and calcuim and many horses love the taste. If you think your pony is a good doer then maybe switch to a more suitable compund feed in the spring there are plenty available and your local feed store should have a couple of options. If you still want to add something tasty then scarrots are a good alternative as they are fibreous and tasty, if you want to bulk out the feed then add something like HI FI Lite.

Hope that helps :)

[georgie1]

Thanks Welsh Girl.....she absolutely loves sugarbeet and really have no idea how she fairs as i have only had her 2 months.....i already give her some Hi fi.

Is it normal to still feed Sugar beet during the spring & summer or do you normally stop & stick with a nominal feed ie hi fi & perhaps cool mix when the grass is good?

Gx

[Welsh_Girl]

Is the horse a native good-doer type?

If so and you intend keeping her out all summer and just in light work then you could just feed her the Hi Fi Lite or even HiFi Goo-doer (It has mint in it). That would have the necessasary vits and mins to keep her ok.

The best thing is to look at her now: Is she in good condition? and How is the grass? If you think she's gaining weight and/or the grass is improving then cut out the SB and cut back on the mix and up the Hi Fi a bit and/or add a succulent like a carrot.

I have welshie that I lives out most of the time and in the summer all he gets is Hi Fi Lite and a carrot. In the coldest part of the winter he gets a small handfull of speedibeat added and ad lib hay at night.

[Joyscarer]

I have a good doer welsh d out 24/7 and all she gets at the moment is hay and Alpha a lite and that is gradually being swapped to hi fi lite in preparation for when the grass hits.

In summer she gets a handful of hifi lite to mix her suppliments in and that's it. She isn't interested in big feeds as she prefers grass so too big a feed and she'll leave it and won't get the vits and mins down her..

In autumn I start by first swapping from hi fi lite to alpha a lite and then if need be start introducing pasture nuts and lastly including some speedibeet (wouldn't go go sugarbeet with my mare) if she has lost too much condition. She hasn't needed the speedibeet this year so I'll have to dump it as I bought some 'just in case'!

As sping comes I work the whole process in reverse so gradually off the pasture nuts and then the gradual swap back to hi fi lite.

[Bebe]

Sugarbeet is one of those feeds that can fit any occasion, you just alter the amounts fed.

My good doer had a small amount of sugarbeet (unmolassed) as a bucket feed all last winter. I use Simple Systems Purabeet because it absorbs more water than most other beet's and as a result a little goes a lot longer. It also has a lower energy content than Speedibeet and other products, making it more suitable for a good doer.

Sugarbeet is high in fibre (500g of beet provides the equivalent fibre to 1kg of hay) and has a low glycaemic index, so releases energy slowly which makes it good for horses with metabolic problems (cushings, insulin resistance, etc) as it helps to keep blood sugar levels even.

I feed it because my horse likes it, a little goes a long way and it's a very good medium for hiding powdered supplements in.

[Sexy Sietske]

Can go off very quickly in hot weather though!! So something to watch out for if you do feed it in summer.

[georgie1]

Thanks guys....brilliant replies with loads of info.....just what i wanted to know:):)

Thanks again, appreciate it.

Gx

[puzzles]

Yup yup yup - ditto the others!

Speedibeet is a quick, low energy sugarbeet product that is approved by rhe Laminitis Trust if you need to reduce your mare's calorie intake.

x

[Teehee]

Yup yup yup - ditto the others!

Speedibeet is a quick, low energy sugarbeet product that is approved by rhe Laminitis Trust if you need to reduce your mare's calorie intake.

x

It's good to know this is o.k. to feed for laminitus cases... since I feel my mare needs a bit of bulky humid food in her tummy, since just eating hay... it's like she's a bit constipated... :o Let's see if she'll eat it though... her bucket might still smell like old Bute... that has been gone for a week already!!! :rolleyes: ;)

[redcomet]

its the molassed kind that will pile on the pounds - i found spedi beet the best type to use.