Beet pulp requires soaking before feeding to horses. Depending upon how the pulp has been processed, this can be as little 10 minutes or up to 24 hours. It is essential beet pulp gets the soaking it requires. Always follow the manufacturer’s instructions on soaking. Personally the ten minutes stated on the bag is not enough time to allow the beet to fully soak – I would leave it an hour + of soaking to allow the beet flakes to fully swell. Given some sources of sugar beet may need 24 hours to soak; only organised horse owners are likely to find it a viable feeding option. Some are known to keep an emergency stash of faster-soaking beet pulp brands in case they head out to feed up, only to discover they forgot to get the soaking under way the day before. Soaked beet pulp will normally be OK for up to 24 hours (packaging may offer some guidance). It will start to ferment if left too long. If it looks or smells unusual, don’t feed it. If you’re ever in doubt as to whether the beet pulp is properly soaked, take a handful and squeeze out as much moisture as you can. Hold it to your ear and listen. If you hear a crackling/squeaking sound, it’s a sure sign the beet pulp still has some soaking to do. Interestingly, some commercial feeds actually contain dried beet pulp. However, this will always be in strictly controlled measures and in many cases the pulp will have softened by absorbing moisture from some of the other ingredients, such as molasses. Leave this trick to the professionals. Stick religiously to your soaking regime at home.
Posted on: Thu, 05 Dec 2013 03:00:01 +0000
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