Too Much Rain? How to Protect Your Animals During Wet Weather

If you live in Northwest Florida, you know how quickly our summer weather can change. Lately, it seems like we’ve had rain just about every day. While a good rain can be great for pastures and gardens, days of wet weather can also create some problems around the farm.

Mud, standing water, damp bedding, wet feed, and constantly moist hooves are all things worth paying a little extra attention to during a rainy stretch.

Here are a few things to keep an eye on when the rain just won’t let up.

1. Pay Extra Attention to Hooves

When horses, cattle, goats, sheep, and other livestock spend a lot of time standing in wet or muddy conditions, their hooves stay softer and wetter than normal.

Check hooves regularly and watch for unusual smells, tenderness, cracking, or other changes. Keeping high-traffic areas as dry as possible can also help.

If you have animals that are particularly prone to hoof problems, rainy weather is a good time to stay ahead of your normal hoof-care routine rather than waiting until you notice a problem.

2. Keep Bedding Clean and Dry

A dry place to rest becomes even more important when everything outside is wet.

Check stalls, chicken coops, shelters, and other bedding areas frequently. If bedding becomes soaked or heavily soiled, remove it and replace it with fresh, dry material.

You may find yourself going through a little more bedding than usual during a rainy week, but keeping animals clean and dry can make a big difference in their comfort.

3. Don't Forget About Standing Water

After several days of rain, take a walk around your property and look for places where water is collecting.

Buckets, old containers, wheelbarrows, tarps, clogged gutters, and other low spots can hold more water than you realize.

Standing water can quickly become a breeding ground for mosquitoes, so dump or drain it whenever possible.

Also check around feeders, water troughs, gates, and shelters. These high-traffic areas can turn into deep mud surprisingly quickly.

4. Check Your Feed and Hay

Humidity and moisture aren't a good combination when it comes to storing feed.

Make sure bags of feed are stored somewhere dry and protected from rain. It's best to keep bags off the floor when possible and make sure your storage area has adequate airflow.

Check hay carefully, too. If hay has gotten wet, smells musty, feels unusually warm, or shows signs of mold, don't take the chance of feeding it.

And don't forget about feed that's already outside. Rain can blow into feeders and turn perfectly good feed into a wet mess. Check outdoor feeders after heavy storms and clean them out as needed.

5. Give Animals a Break From the Mud

You may not be able to eliminate mud completely—especially after the amount of rain we've been getting—but providing animals with a reasonably dry area to stand and rest can help.

Pay particular attention to areas around:

    •    Gates

    •    Feeders

    •    Water troughs

    •    Barn entrances

    •    Shelters

    •    Chicken coops

These are usually the first places to become heavily churned up.

If possible, rotate animals away from especially muddy areas and give the ground some time to recover.

6. Keep an Eye on Flies and Mosquitoes

Rain doesn't necessarily mean you'll get a break from pests.

Warm temperatures combined with moisture can create ideal conditions for flies and mosquitoes. Remove standing water, keep manure and wet bedding cleaned up, and stay consistent with your normal fly-control routine.

If the bugs are getting especially bad around your animals, stop by and talk with us about the different fly-control options available.

A Little Extra Attention Goes a Long Way

We can't control the weather—and around here, we definitely can't count on the forecast! But when the rain keeps coming, a few extra checks around the barn, coop, pasture, and feed room can help prevent small problems from becoming bigger ones.

Check those hooves. Change that wet bedding. Dump the standing water. And make sure your feed and hay are staying dry.

And hopefully we'll see a little sunshine soon!

If you need fresh bedding, feed, hay, hoof-care products, fly control, or other farm supplies, come see us at Manning's Feed & Seed in Pace or Milton.

We've been helping our community care for their animals since 1937, and we're always happy to help you find what you need.

Manning's Feed & Seed

Serving Northwest Florida since 1937.