Beet making horse lairy?

MrsElle

MrsElle

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I have put Ellie on beet as I was unable to get hold of her usual fibre beet this week.

She has been on it since Thursday and today has been a bit weird, for want of a better word. Normally nothing phases her at all. This morning she jumped at the chickens clucking. Jumped when I walked past her with the barrow, as I do every morning, jumped when someone came to chat with me and stood with nostrils flaring, head held high. She normally follows me down to the field and if I stop she stops, still on a loose rope, I never have to put any contact on the rope at all. This morning she didn't quiet drag me, but was pulling the rope taught. Last night she was also a bit prancy and hyper when I brought her in, stopping to look at everything.

So, could it be the beet? I am picking some fibre beet up tomorrow and won't be giving her the molassed stuff tonight or tomorrow morning now, as it is the only thing I can put her behaviour down to.
 
We have the same problem with one of our two horses - the event mare gets what can only be described as "hyperactive" when she's fed sugar beet - it doesn't seem to affect the gelding at all. The mare normally will go to and from the field without any problem - when she gets sugar beet there are dragons in the hedge and she seems to think a monster will jump out of the stream she has to go over! Needless to say, she's not getting any more - she's getting extra Alfa instead!
 
Molassed sugar beet has around 25% sugar or more, compared with 5% in unmollassed so i strongly suspect it could be the sugarbeet.
 
Thanks all, it confirms what I thought. She is basically a complete bomb proof laid back easy going mare normally. Absolutely nothing bothers her and she is fine in wind and cold weather, no changes in personality due to those at all.

I won't feed the beet tonight or tomorrow am, then back on the fibre beet tomorrow. I won't leave it until I have run out to buy more next time, I just presumed the feed merchant in the village would have some in stock. Lesson learnt!
 
Was it bog standard mollassed sugar beet? If so, it is about 20% sugar which seems to fire some horses up! Unmollassed beet (things like Speedibeet) are 5% sugar, so might be a better alternative for the next time you can't get hold of Fibrebeet.
 
Ohhhh yessss! Been there! Got the T shirt etc!

Last winter livery next door asked if I wanted to share her bag of sugarbeet I remembered last owner of my horse said it 'didn't agree' with him but she didn't elaborate, thought I would give it a go and yes within 3 days it sent him bonkers and really REALLY spooky, well more than normal which is quite a lot anyway, needless to say haven't used it since!
smirk.gif
 
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