Rain Ranting Thread

Back in October I read that the Met Office were predicting a dry winter. Hissing down outside again. Just ordered another turn out rug as I've realized over the past few days that pony's are all too old to put up much of a fight in the downpours that we're getting. Is this it now? Deserts in the summer and floods in the winter?
 
Also the North West and everywhere is so wet. We had the first dryish day today since last Sunday and it is now hammering down and forecast rain all next week again.
 
Torrential rain in Somerset, horses are in but baggins is traumatised as thought rain might melt him (even though rugged and pony couldn't care less) lol. Fields have puddles, reans have gone from empty to full within couple days. Winter is definitely here !!
 
I feel like wet Novembers and mild December's have become more of the norm, traditionally with colder weather after Christmas, although I'd say recent years its stayed quite mild still.
We've had some cold weather here (Lincolnshire) which has been quite a change from the endless rain.
I'd like to clip my oldie (just a bib/trace clip) but he lives out and we've not had two consecutive days where I can get him washed and then clipped in a couple of weeks now. Forecast is for rain for the foreseeable. I usually have my old one naked, with rugs reserved for very wet and/or wet and windy weather, and I feel like he's worn his rug more in the last month than he has in the previous 4 years I've owned him 😂
 
It’s been raining pretty much constantly here in shropshire for weeks and our rented field is an absolute quagmire. So much so that I’m baling this week and my 2 are going back up to my friends house where coblet was over the summer. He’s have to be stabled at night on account of his inability to share a round bale and play nicely but new standie will “live out/have access to an open barn” I’m hoping it’s just for 6-8 weeks to give the field a chance to recover somewhat and is put some more mud mats and moveable hay feeders down. Although I’m very much looking forward to being under cover myself too.
 
It’s absolutely blowing a gale out there tonight! The horses are out (I’m sure they’re fine, it’s so mild and it’s not even forecast rain here overnight but I wasn’t expecting it to be quite so windy!!) 🫣
 
So. Much. Mud. Despite mud control mats, road planings, ditches etc... there's just been so much rain, and it's all coming down the mountain behind us, everything is getting washed away/submerged and there's nothing I can do. They do have a drier area to stand in, but they have to go through mud to get to it. I'm wondering if I can do another winter here,
 
Mine are starting to become reluctant to walk across the mud control mats. Despite being on old hay (not allowed to put anything solid underneath), they are starting to sink and slide down the incline in equal measure. I'm constantly reminding myself that this time last year was 100% worse (field was trashed by previous occupants and I moved in during the storms of last November). At least I have green areas around my field, now and not just a mass of brown.
 
Currently calm and quiet here but the forecast is so bad I’m bringing them in. I always feel bad when they’re in but in reality they get a lot more turn out than most!
 
It's been quite nice today here and very mild. It had started to dry out a bit after the wind last night but we are forecast a month's worth of rain in 24 hours with the storm apparently. Horses are in tonight, they seem quite happy about it so I don't feel bad.
 
Absolutely lashing it down here in shropshire since the early hours. I’ve a vet coming out to the field at 9 to restart standies vaccinations and give coblet the once over, hope the poor girl has brought decent boots as the mud is ankle deep to get to their hardstanding. 24 hrs till they move thankfully.
 
I can come in here too. Just came to look for a rain thread and found this active. I can't complain too much as at least the top half of our big field is on a slope so the ponies still have something to graze and aren't standing in Hoof covering mud but gateways and outside our field shelter store where I have to get and push hay twice a day is a mud bath. I'm waiting for the day I fall over. Should be out there now pushing wheelbarrow through the deluge but dragging my feet about leaving the house as still raining and windy and was woken up in the night with it lashing against the windows. Set to continue all day too. Sigh! Silver lining is the weight is dropping off me with all the physical effort - will have stomach muscles to die for by spring if this continues 🤣

Dreaming of stables at this point or some form of covered hard standing just to have a little break from it! Ah to actually be able to bring them into the dry and take their rugs off for a nice groom and dry their feet and legs for a few hours and take their rugs off. I'm sure they aren't bothered though, got man made and natural shelter and dry in rugs. First winter in this field and man will I be making improvements come summer to make next year more bearable!
 
Wet and wild this morning with gale force winds. We have started to bring them in for a few hours every day, but today it's safer that they are out when windy is at its worst. Standing water all over the fields and I'm in survival mode ATM! 😀
 
No rain here at the moment and not as windy as I was expecting. Forecast is saying we should be having very strong winds and rain at the moment; calm before the storm. It is very dark and gloomy.

I'm thankful that the majority of my fields are still green and draining quite nicely but the gateways and areas they hang around when they're waiting for their dinner is getting disgustingly muddy and deep.
 
Not as bad either here yet as expected. Mine were in last night but the forecast for the next couple of hours is still bad so I’ve held off putting them out for a few hours until I see what happens… they seem quite happy in anyway at the moment. They will be back out this afternoon although it’s meant to be very windy, it’s very mild and most of the rain should have passed. My predicament is it’s too warm for thicker rugs and both of the boys aren’t clipped so need to just wear their rain sheets but if we get that heavy rain it will go through the rugs. 🫣 whoever thought we would still be using 0g rugs in nearly middle of December?! On the plus side the fields still look quite green so the grass must still be growing!
 
spotty_pony2 said:
Not as bad either here yet as expected. Mine were in last night but the forecast for the next couple of hours is still bad so I’ve held off putting them out for a few hours until I see what happens… they seem quite happy in anyway at the moment. They will be back out this afternoon although it’s meant to be very windy, it’s very mild and most of the rain should have passed. My predicament is it’s too warm for thicker rugs and both of the boys aren’t clipped so need to just wear their rain sheets but if we get that heavy rain it will go through the rugs. 🫣 whoever thought we would still be using 0g rugs in nearly middle of December?! On the plus side the fields still look quite green so the grass must still be growing!
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Would a 50g rug help? I usually find they stay completely waterproof compared to 0g.
 
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