As I stood and watched the Colebrooke River break its banks and my horse shelter fill with water almost to the roof last week, winter for the horses and I got very real.

Best laid plans were scrapped. It feels as though the entirety of Fermanagh (my home county)was in yellow warning status for the whole of October. For horse owners, the wet is never easy.

The reason for so much rain and the mild temperatures is being debated. It could be La Niña or, of course, climate change is being mooted.

In my experience over 15 years in Fermanagh, the horse ‘turn-out’ season which was a steady 1 April to 31 October has most definitely shifted.

In the last six years or so, turn-out time has changed to horses going out on grass in the first week of May at the earliest, and back in for mid-October – a month-and-a-half less grazing, a month-and-a-half longer winter for me and for them.

Up north

It’s not just grim up north. The Irish Farmers Journal reported last week that according to Met Éireann, rainfall across many counties was over 200mm for the month, and that Fairyhouse racecourse recorded September and October combined as the wettest months there for seven years.

Having said that, Met Éireann also says that overall rainfall for the year in Ireland is still behind annual averages. Tell that to my soggy mares and often soggy husband.

Both air and soil temperatures are up on previous years. Farmers around me and around the country are noticing the grass still growing. It’s tough to see grass growth without being able to graze your animals on it because of the vulnerable ground though.

Turning horses out on pasture when the soil is wet causes soil compaction and damages plant root systems. The appearance of deep hoof prints, standing water and bare ground are all a sign that the soil is being damaged and that’s no good for man nor beast.

Darker months

For me and many others, land management in wet weather is an important consideration, and management of winter turn-out is a summer job, it’s all in the preparation.

I’ve chosen to reduce the amount of soil compaction and loss of grass by designating a sacrificial paddock - a non-grazing area where horses are kept for an allotted time to help reduce impact on other pastures.

Sacrificial paddocks can be a godsend to exercise horses in the darker months, to stretch their limbs and to keep their heads healthy.

All-weather turnouts are increasingly popular too, well-drained and barked or rubber chipped – they’re not so cheap to put in though.

The good news (for people in the Republic anyway) is they are on the inclusion list of the upcoming Targeted Agriculture Modernisation Schemes (TAMS) grant.

So, as you pull the muddy wellies off and stick the sodden beanie on the radiator, maybe it’s time to get ship-shape and check your eligibility for grant-aid so that rain no longer dampens your spirits.