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[RC] RE:Pelleted Feeds - JonniThanks Charles for those Urban legends....I had not heard of them. Will watch for Teddybears in the bags from now on! We had our horses on a 100% diet of Bermuda Blend pellets by Sacate feeds in Arizona. The pellets were available at Petsmart, in 80 pound bags. Had changed to them when hay prices sky rocketed in So. California one season,and the pellets were a better price than the hay. The horses did so well on them, we fed them as the complete diet for about 3 years. The huge benefit is there was virtually no waste. You knew how much they ate, and did not have any stomped into the ground like hay. I fed No hay, NO grain (gasp! ) Horses were kept in 12x24 corrals, and had no turn out (double gasp!). They were fed twice a day, so had nothing to munch on "all day long". The pellets are the larger variety, that are the size of your little finger...not rabbit feed size. Funny thing, the horses (all Arabians) did not ever start any stable vices that were boredom related to being kept in a small area (they got regular exercise) and not eating all day for better digestion I still had no colic's, and they were healthy physically, and mentally. What worked for me, and those horses, might not work for you, or even the horses I have now. As Susan said, soaking any pelleted feed, just adds more water to the horse. Now, I soak any pelleted feed when I can. But it is not something that MUST be done. Yes, some horses can choke on pellets...but some can choke on hay. But pelleted feed can have some benefits also. I crewed the XP2001. We purchased Purina alfalfa pellets (small like rabbit feed size) and Strategy, another Purina feed. We knew we would be able to find those feeds all across the nation as we traveled, even if we had trouble finding hay. We knew the horses could live on those feeds if need be. Oh, I also got the owner to let me feed beet pulp, even tough she was old school, Dairy farm background, and was not sold on its use for horses. (by the end of the trip she was more open minded to it) We did not have trouble finding hay during the XP2001, but it was nice to have a fairly consistent feed with the pelleted feed along. We could soak it, it was easy to haul and store, and the horses ate it well. Find what works for YOUR horses and YOUR situation. Jonni =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
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