Beet pulp overload

[Lucy C Trumbull <elsie@calweb.com>]

Well, we got a call this morning from the boarding
place to say that our two horses had gotten into the
50lb sack of shredded dry beet pulp I bought last week. 

Raced down there to see what the damage was, and it
looks like they've eaten about 20lbs between them.

Of dry beet pulp. 

Which looks like crunchy sawdust.

Go figure.

At this point, we've phoned the vet who said to keep 
a careful eye on them, but it's all quiet in the 
paddock. No signs of colic or bloating. No rolling
around. Provo even pooped obligingly for us.

I'm suspecting that Mouse ate most of it (visualise 
a dumpling with legs to begin with) - she was decidedly 
dopey (could be the warm morning sunshine, though). 

Provo, on the other hand, was looking a bit miffed that 
they didn't get any breakfast. I'm guessing from that, 
that if he was the culprit, he wouldn't still be begging 
for food.

Other than watching them carefully, and keeping the phone
handy for the vet who is minutes down the road, any 
advice? How long would it take for problems to show up?
Should I be out there hand walking her to make sure it
all goes through?

The vet said that if it had been 20lbs of grain, he'd
be down there like a shot, tubing them. But wasn't so
concerned about beet pulp.

He wanted to know why we were feeding beetpulp (obviously 
not a common activity around here). We explained about 
training for endurance and trying to get some extra weight 
on Provo and he seemed satisfied with that. 

Wanted to know if they'd had it before. Well, kind of. In 
Mouse's case, she's actually only had a small amount, so
I don't quite know how her gut flora will react to this.

Is our main worry going to be how much the stuff swells 
in the gut? and how much moisture it sucks out? rather than 
the nutritional overload?

Eck. And I thought I needed to worry about the local ground
squirrel, not about the horses chewing a hole in the side of
the sack...

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Lucy Chaplin Trumbull - elsie@calweb.com
Repotted english person in Sacramento, CA

http://www.calweb.com/~elsie

With Mouse and Provo
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