# Feeding unsoaked sugar beet? *URGENT*



## Boodle (5 December 2007)

Know this probably shouldn't be in here but need quick replies.

As sone of you know I stopped caring for Bill and Pally after an argument. Went back today after being asked to go back. He was standing on concrete (he has a problem ligament), he had no hay, no water... and they have been feeding him unsoaked sugar beet, thinking it was pony nuts.

For atleast a week.

What are the implications of this? What can I do?
He seems fine in himself. Will he be ok?

He's a 17hh 13yr old WB gelding.


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## Honeypots (5 December 2007)

I wouldn't personally feed unsoaked sugar beet but there have been many threads on here about it being ok....


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## lillie07 (5 December 2007)

You need a vet and I would imagine fairly quickly, Chess ate a large amount of unsoaked sugarbeet a few years ago and she got impacted colic- she nearly ended up at Liphook as the vet struggled to clear it


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## Mid (5 December 2007)

i'd get the vet out asap, just for peace of mind if anything.


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## _April_ (5 December 2007)

How much sugar beet?

Unsoaked beet can swell up in the stomach.
Better keep a close eye on him...    any signs of colic etc then get the vet I think.
maybe phone your vet for advice in advance.


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## lucylemon (5 December 2007)

[ QUOTE ]
I wouldn't personally feed unsoaked sugar beet but there have been many threads on here about it being ok.... 

[/ QUOTE ]

always been told its dangerous and can kill beacuse it sweels up, although a few times kids helping out have put sugar beet in feeds and horses been fine, just a little bit of a tummy ache (nothing colicy)


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## Bossanova (5 December 2007)

So long as he's now not being fed it and he shows no ill effects over the next 24hours you should be fine.


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## Boodle (5 December 2007)

He has been fed it over the last week or 10 days and does seem fine.
We're going to check him every hour just in case.
I don't want to have to alert his owner we're alerting the vet unless it's needed due to the recent tension, and having to leave again now would definitely not be in his best interests.

I've provided him with hay and water only to let his tummy settle in case.
Ill keep you updated.


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## _April_ (5 December 2007)

Poor boy and stupid numptey owner!

I remember your last post about them


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## JessDoesItBetter (5 December 2007)

ok dont let him have any water as this will make the suger beet swell up in the stomach. monitor him all night if possible (ball ache i know!) and if he shows any sighns of collic call the vet. 
my pony ate some unsoaked sugar beet a few years back and was completely fine, but he had a small amount.


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## the watcher (5 December 2007)

If you have given water this is the critical time, so keep checking and look out for normal bowel function.


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## DuckToller (5 December 2007)

My pony escaped and ate unsoaked sugar beet cubes.  The vet said drinking water wouldn't make any difference at all, as horse's stomach produces large volumes of acid juices which would swell the cubes anyway, so better off allowing horse to drink to help move everything along.  He was more worried about the possibility of laminitis so keep an eye on the digital pulse for the next day or so.


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## the watcher (5 December 2007)

I would agree if the horse had regular access to water - however it seems in this case that the horse has not, and therefore may consume more than usual in quite a short time.


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## Daisychain (5 December 2007)

I got in to a big discussion on an american forum about feeding s. beet nuts, most people over there do not soak at all... with absolutely no problems, apparently it is a bit of a myth about it swelling excessively in the gut etc, if you google it you can find out more detailed information, from what you have said i shouldnt worry.


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## ruscara (5 December 2007)

I have found this:

The best way to feed beet pulp is to soak it in water a few hours before meal-time; use twice as much water as beet pulp, and leave it to swell and absorb the moisture. (Because it has a tendency to ferment in warm weather, you'll only want to make up one day's worth at a time.) The resulting brown, fluffy stuff can be mixed in with your horse's grain or served on its own. But don't worry if you've added a little too much liquid, or too little. You can't actually explode a horse with unsoaked beet pulp. In a study referred to in Lon Lewis' "Feeding and Care of the Horse, 2nd ed.", ponies were fed dehydrated beet pulp, up to a level of 45 percent of their total diet, with no ill effects whatsoever. Not only did they not explode, but they also suffered no signs of colic, nor did the water content in their manure change. However, most people prefer to soak beet pulpit's more palatable that way and less likely to cause choke.

It's on  this   site


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## Boodle (5 December 2007)

Thank you everyone.
Since my RS days it has been DRILLED into me to never, ever feed dry sugar beet. I will continue to check him and keep a feel for his digital pulses.
Slightly less worried now.
Thank you all so much.


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## Daisychain (5 December 2007)

Yes know what you mean about it being drilled in! i got into quite a heated debate about it, but actually am alot more open minded now..


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## Pedantic (5 December 2007)

Didn't some twats in Kent deliberately kill some horses in a field by deliberately feeding them unsoaked sugar beet ? sure it was in the paper as I was annoyed they printed it and gave the idea to all the other dickheads in society


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## Parkranger (5 December 2007)

What a nightmare!  If the horses tend to drink buckets of water and they're not being fed it now, I'd say keep an eye on themfor the next 24 hours......if they're not inclined to drink much (ie a small bucket a night) then I'd call the vet out.....I know it sounds silly, but was it speedibeet or old fashioned sugarbeet?


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## RunToEarth (5 December 2007)

Poor lad. The effects of unsoaked sugarbeat are pretty much instant, so as long as he is ok now then there is no harm done.


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## Cuffey (5 December 2007)

The biggest problem with unsoaked beet pulp nuts is choke which is quite dramatic and pretty obvious
Suspect they have been lucky this time but very annoying this horse has been put at unneccessary risk


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## carthorse (5 December 2007)

SO pleased you are back and looking after your beloved horses and pleased for them.Maybe they have only had a small amount and if no signs then don't panic.
Have to say again I am so pleased


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## molehill (5 December 2007)

Do some people have no sense?
My mother-in-law(before i knew her)had a foal,that accidently got to a bag of sugar beet,didnt eat the whole bag,but killed him.
Just going off the thread abit(sorry)How come you can fed speedi-beet with just 10 mins of soaking but not ordinary sugar beet.Have always been put off using speedi-beet with this thought in the back of my mind!!


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## Boodle (5 December 2007)

Hello again everyone.
Pally's still fine. Thank goodness.He hasn't had any since last night so i think one or two more checks tonight, then first thing in the morning.
It was the old fashioned, soak for 24hrs sugar beet pellets.

I too am very pleased to be back, and to have put down a thick shavings bed, with banks, a big bucket of water and as much hay as I could fit. Not to mention readjusting the rug that was hanging off him.

Hope to see them in the daylight tomorrow as it was dark when i got there.


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## ISHmad (6 December 2007)

Glad that Pally still appears to be fine.

Sorry to put this on here, but many years ago a farmer decided to buy some ponies from the sales, kept them indoors and fed them dried sugarbeet.  We told him that they mustn't do that and should soak it (my friend and I were about 9 at the time) but he just laughed at us.

Went walking down to the field where my pony was with my mum a couple of mornings later, through the farmyard like we always did, and I literally walked straight into the dead body of a beautiful horse.  All because of that ignorant twat.  So PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE if necessary print this off and show it to Pally's owners.  Also tell him that should he continue to feed dried sugarbeet instead of soaked if anything happens to the horses then I for one will report him immediately.  But please god he sees sense and it doesn't come to that.


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## Pedantic (6 December 2007)

Speechless


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## sleepingdragon10 (6 December 2007)

[ QUOTE ]
Do some people have no sense?
My mother-in-law(before i knew her)had a foal,that accidently got to a bag of sugar beet,didnt eat the whole bag,but killed him.
Just going off the thread abit(sorry)How come you can fed speedi-beet with just 10 mins of soaking but not ordinary sugar beet.Have always been put off using speedi-beet with this thought in the back of my mind!! 

[/ QUOTE ]

Speedibeet is perfectly safe due to the way it's prepared. Why not look on the speedibeet website, I'm sure all the relevant info will be there.


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## ISHmad (6 December 2007)

[ QUOTE ]
Speechless 
	
	
		
		
	


	

















[/ QUOTE ]

That was over 30 years ago, yet I still see and remember the image of that poor dead mare.  Having witnessed that happen I am absolutely paranoid about sugarbeet.  We even chain the lid of the bin with the sugarbeet in up, just in case any horses ever got out and ate it.


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## Breezesbenefactor (6 December 2007)

What??? That stuff expands like crazy and anyone who says it is ok to feed a horse this is talking out of their arse and shouldn't be allowed to feed let alone own a horse


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## Daisychain (6 December 2007)

Yes i used to share your opinion to, but britain are very behind the times in feeding horses, there is a way to safetly feed it dry, i personally soak it, but shreds only for 20 mins or so, nuts a bit longer.


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## lillie07 (6 December 2007)

The fact that my mare coliced quite badly as others on here have would suggest we are not that behind the times and it really can't be that good. I also do not see the benefits?!


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## Tia (6 December 2007)

Firstly - absolutely wonderful to hear that you will be looking after the horses again.  I'm so pleased for you.   
	
	
		
		
	


	





Secondly; the only real risk with feeding sugar beet dry is the threat of choke, due to the waxy residue left on the pellets.  

Many, many vet studies have been conducted on the use of feeding dry sugar beet pellets over the past decade - it's a complete myth and fallacy that feeding it dry can cause colic.  If the horse develops colic then generally the cause is feeding a new feed without introducing it gradually and as with any new feed, has the capacity to shock the system.

So long as the horse doesn't choke during the swallowing of it or develop laminitis due to the high sugar content, then he will be absolutely fine, colic-wise, if this has been a usual feed stuff for him over the past few days.

Don't worry - and terrific news.


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## ISHmad (6 December 2007)

Well the dead horse who I practically fell over was certainly killed as a result of being fed dried sugarbeet nuts.  So call me old fashioned but you will never get me feeding it anything other than soaked, double soaked and soaked again...


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## TGM (6 December 2007)

[ QUOTE ]
In a study referred to in Lon Lewis' "Feeding and Care of the Horse, 2nd ed.", ponies were fed dehydrated beet pulp, up to a level of 45 percent of their total diet, with no ill effects whatsoever. Not only did they not explode, but they also suffered no signs of colic, nor did the water content in their manure change. However, most people prefer to soak beet pulpit's more palatable that way and less likely to cause choke.

It's on  this   site  
	
	
		
		
	


	





[/ QUOTE ] Have read that before - doesn't really make it clear what form the beet pulp was fed in.  Was it in shreds or in nut form?  I presume that the nuts are much more compressed than the shreds.  Therefore, if the study was based on feeding shreds, then the results may not be the same if you feed compressed beet nuts.


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## harvgj19 (6 December 2007)

Glad you are back with your boys, and glad to see Pally is ok. I'm sure he is certainly thrilled to see you!

Lol at the huge bed with banks and as much hay as you could fit!!

What about Billy boy? Is he ok?


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## brighteyes (6 December 2007)

It's great to hear you are back in charge again.  It's choke you have to watch out for and if it hasn't happened yet, they'll be fine.  They chew the nuts and pellets to dust and any dangerous swelling up happens in the gullet - hence the likelihood of choke in greedy horses not chewing properly.  This applies to any feedstuff not properly mashed up by the teeth!

I was drilled about the dangers of unsoaked sugarbeet but time has moved on and studies have indeed shown that feeding the unsoaked product is safe.  They don't appear to soak it in America.  Many years ago, my friend's horse Kate, ate a third of a bag of dry shreds (I love the smell of those!) and depite my initial horror, she suffered no ill-effects at all!

Keep us updated and perhaps tell us how you got to be in the driving seat again? They don't know how bl00dy lucky they are..........


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