Extreme weather events, caused by climate variability and long-term climate change, are increasingly affecting the possibilities for grazing domestic animals in various agricultural environments. The most common events include drought, heatwaves, heavy rainfall, floods, strong winds, and winter extremes, each of which affects the grassland ecosystem in its own way, thereby influencing the availability and quality of forage. Drought slows down the growth of grasses and legumes, reduces crude protein content and digestibility, increases the proportion of crude fiber, and consequently lowers livestock production performance when on pasture. Heatwaves directly burden animals with heat stress, reduce grazing activity and feed intake, and lead to metabolic and reproductive disorders. Heavy rainfall and floods cause damage to plant cover, erosion, and soil compaction, which reduces the carrying capacity of pastures and increases the risk of hoof injuries as well as the spread of parasites and pathogens. In the long term, extreme events cause changes in grassland species composition, reduce biodiversity, and accelerate the degradation of soil and ecological processes. The impacts are reflected not only in the reduced quantity and quality of produced forage but also in increased production costs due to the need for supplementary feeding, greater exposure of animals to health risks, and limited accessibility of grazing areas. Because of the recurrence of extreme weather events, adaptation of grazing systems is essential, including flexible grazing planning, appropriate pasture rotation, selection of more resilient grassland species, improved water supply for animals, and a combination of grazing and forage harvesting.
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