Bran, wheat

DreamWeaver (karen@chaton.gardnerville.nv.us)
Mon, 25 Nov 1996 19:06:46 -0800

>From my Veterinary Manual for the Performance Horse by Nancy Loving, DVM.

Bran. Another low nutritive, but filling, grain product commonly used is
wheat bran. Bran is high in fiber, low in energy, and about 15% protein.
Not only is it extremely high in phosphorus, but it also binds calcium in a
horse's body. This characteristic makes bran useful to balance high calcium
diets of legume hays. Half a pound of bran a day is a nice treat and may
increase a horse's water consumption, especially if fed as a mash. Although
the presence of bran in a horse's diet may increase the volume of its
manure, bran is not a laxative. In fact, if bran is overfed, a horse could
become constipated.

Does anybody have more info on rice bran? I'll see what I can dig up.

Happy Trails,

Karen
in Gardnerville
& Weaver
& Rocky