Beet Pulp as Feed for Horses
  by Robert N. Oglesby DVM

Beet pulp is a byproduct of sugar beets after the sugar has been extracted. It's use in equine nutrition has been on the rise for the past 20 years because it offers several advantages over some other horse feeds:

• low soluble carbohydrates
• high fiber much of which is digestible making its energy content considerably higher than most forages
• easy mastication
• reasonable cost
• ease of storage
• a lack of mold spores as is found in field cured hay.

These advantages make it useful in the diets of horses with metabolic disorders related to sugar metabolism, difficult keepers, older horses with teeth problems, and horses with hay mold allergies (heaves, COPD, or recurrent airway disease). However beet pulp does have some nutritional profile problems with its use that must be addressed. Beet pulp is usually available in several forms including chips, ground, or premixed in with balanced equine rations.

This article discusses the nutritional profile of beet pulp, its effect on horse metabolism in health and disease, and practical ways to include it in the horse's diet.

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