Anne Mitchell - Galway

The situation is dire after the rain on Monday night. My farm reminds me of Lanigan’s Ball, stepping in and stepping out again – my stock have gone in and out three or four times. That is typical of all farms.

Fodder is out, people are buying meal, people are financially stretched. Fertiliser is not spread, slurry is not spread, stock that have been in so long are prone to disease.

We will be facing the winter of 2018 with no fodder reserves, maybe with no second cut of silage.

I would also hope that we would get our Government to get some kind of a deal with banks and financial institutions where credit could be given out with very little red tape, based on a person’s background and their credibility.

Cash in hand is what is needed now. With cash in hand farmers can buy the meal or the fodder they need.

Anne Baker - Cork North

Things had improved slightly in the last week, but after Monday night’s rain, it’s a totally different situation. I’d say cows would be in today and probably for another couple of days.

All cattle will probably remain indoors after the deluge on Monday. There’s still a little movement of fodder from farm to farm and, obviously, with Dairygold importing the haylage, there’s a great sense of relief that farmers know it’s available through their local co-op.

There is certainly a lot of despondency there, but it is important that people realise that there is help available out there, either through IFA or there’s the rural stress helpline and there’s Pieta House.

Make contact with people, talk with people and realise that everyone is in the same boat. It’s no failing on anyone, it’s just a weather-related situation.

Richard Scally - Offaly

Farmers have the smaller stock out. Farmers with cows – a lot of those stock are still indoors. Farmers are actually getting fodder from abroad.

There is a nice bit of grass there, but the land is so wet you just cannot get stock out. If the weather improves over the next few weeks silage will be got, but the wet weather over the Easter weekend really put the hat on things.

We had one and a half days of very heavy rain and that delayed things. Farmers are physically and mentally drained at the moment.

You work hard all winter, and you expect the winter to end by the end of March, but now it’s dragging on for another few weeks. If we get a few dry days now things will sort themselves out.

Elizabeth Ormiston - Cavan

Everything was going well until Monday afternoon, it was bright over the weekend, and we all got a lot of cattle out, but everything is now rehoused and it’s getting serious now.

There were a lot of queries for fodder, especially up in north Cavan along the border, but Teagasc were saying they had the register and people had some fodder available so the list nearly balanced 50-50. The vice-chair of the Ulster Farmers Union was telling me there was any amount available up there.

We were very grateful in Cavan back in February to Kilkenny, and I feel sorry for them now, because they sent three loads of stuff up to Cavan and they are in a crisis situation themselves now. We are very grateful to them in Cavan for doing what they did in helping the farmers who did need it. All we can hope and pray for now is good weather.