Re: Nutrition questions (rice bran, soy, etc.)

["Susan Evans Garlinghouse" <suendavid@worldnet.att.net>]

>
>We have one horse that is a little bit of a hard keeper.
>What is best for him, extruded soy or rice bran? He will
>eat both, he also gets beet pulp, oil, supplements,  &
>vit-e/sel. He is also on oat hay right now, starting to
>switch to orchard grass with a little alfalfa (about 30%)
>
>Is one of these considered higher energy, higher fat?
>
>Opinions appreciated.


Of the feed items you listed, rice bran is going to be preferable over soy
(as soy is way too high in protein), but frankly, rice bran wouldn't be my
choice either, as with your hay, you stand a good chance of screwing up the
mineral balance.  It sounds like your existing diet of grass hay, beet pulp,
oil and supplements is a good one.  You can gradually add a few pounds of
grain to his ration, nothing fancy, just whole oats, barley, corn or a
combination thereof.  If he doesn't handle those well (turns into a
fruit-loop or has a history of colic or founder), then you can increase the
beet pulp and/or oil (this latter approach would be my suggestion).  Beet
pulp is digested as a hay is, not a soluble carbohydrate (as grain is), so
you can feed it to your heart's content, don't just dole it out by the
cupful.  I have multiple horses that get upwards of 12 pounds a day of bp
and do great (and feeding at this level, up to 45% of the total ration, is
well supported in the literature as well).  Don't buy into the multiple
wive's tales drifting around regarding beet pulp having no nutrition to it,
being all sugar, etc.  All those dire predictions are made by folks that
have either never taken a nutrition course in their lives, or slept through
it if they did, or have something more expensive they'd rather sell you.
You can also increase the fat up to several cups a day, but do so gradually
and be rabid about keeping your oil supply fresh.

If you're not already, you might consider probiotics, they seem to do a good
job maintaining weight.  My personal preference is Fastrack, but there are
other brands out there.

Good luck!

Susan Garlinghouse, MS
Equine Research Center
California State Polytechnic University



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