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He can pull the water out quickly if he needs it.  So you can't really count that as a "constraint."  If he ate it dry, he would have to pull water from his circulatory system to hydrate it enough to digest--but if he eats it wet, he will pull the excess water off and utilize it quickly.

 

Heidi

-------- Original Message --------
Subject: Re: [RC]   Glycemic index of horse grains
From: Truman Prevatt <tprevatt@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Fri, July 07, 2006 6:36 am
To: Laney Humphrey <laneyhh@xxxxxxxxxxx>
Cc: Ridecamp <ridecamp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>

One issue is this is not an "unconstrained situation." The constraint
here is the amount of volume of the horse's stomach. You can only dump
so much volume of anything into the horse at one time. If it is filled
with beet pulp, nothing else will go in.

If you given a quart of soaked beet pulp the total water content is less
than a quart - probably a little over a pint. So while soaked beet pulp
may look like a good way to add water, the amount of water that it
carries is probably less than what the horse will drink in 15 seconds at
the trough.

It seems to me that if the horse can't tank up and carry the water he
needs from the water stops - which may be limited in some cases - then
the small amount of water in beet pulp is not going to make much
difference and it's taking up space that could be used for other food
sources.

Truman

Laney Humphrey wrote:
> First of all, it matters a whole lot whether you're talking about
> shredded or pelleted beet pulp.  But both forms soak up a heck of a
> lot of water!  I'm thinking that beet pulp might be more popular in
> the dry west than in other, relatively wet parts of the country.  Out
> here, there often is no water (or grass) along the trail so it can be
> a long time in between water sources (i.e., vet checks).  That makes
> beet pulp very appealing as a water bearer.  My guess is that beet
> pulp soaks up and holds more water than soaked hay but I've never
> tried soaking hay so I'm just guessing.  Beet pulp is also compact and
> relatively light which are also plusses when "lunch" is away from camp
> & whatever you want for your horse has to be carried in your crewbag.  
> I agree, Truman, that whatever the horse eats at a particular vet
> check isn't going to affect its gut sounds immediately.  But my
> assumption about beet pulp (or any other food) is that having
> something to work on will keep the gut working til the next vet check.
> Laney
>

>


--

"The opposite of a correct statement is a false statement. The opposite
of a profound truth may well be another profound truth."    Niels Bohr
-- Nobel Laureate, Physics




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