After being deluged by Hurricane Irene’s remnants in August, horse owners in Rochester, Vt., are challenged to maintain their animals through the winter. And in Texas horse owners are struggling to feed their animals amidst the worst drought conditions in nearly a century. Whether due to lack of moisture or excess water, extreme conditions are driving hay prices skyward and stretching resources of owners already struggling to keep their horses in a tough economy.

Leslie Carlson, owner of Cobble Hill Stable, in Rochester, said floodwaters from Hurricane Irene-related storms inundated hayfields throughout the White River Valley. When the waters receded hayfields were covered with silt and debris. Local producers harvested a first hay cutting before Irene arrived, but with no second harvest possible, horse owners who rely on local growers will likely be short-supplied this winter, she said.

"Most people haven’t thought about it because the horses still have another week or so on pasture, and because they’re so busy repairing their homes," Carlson explained. "But in February … horses are going to need hay. It’s an urgent situation."

In response, Carlson said the Rebuild Rochester Vermont Foundation Inc., a nonprofit corporate trust established to provide storm recovery resources, is accepting contributions to help feed the horses until they can return to their pastures. Carlson hopes the effort will raise enough contributions to fund a delivery of 3,705 bales of hay from a broker willing deliver it to the 16 horse owners in the area