Blind Darla wanted to live
and got the chance
From the perspective of Gut Aiderbichl
(written by Gisela Pschenitschnig)
Darla is now about three months old, and came to Gut Aiderbichl Henndorf on a farm.
Darla's owners noticed right after the birth that the cow-calf had no eyes, and therefore was blind. Tespite its handicap the young calf showed a feuerwerk-like will to live. For a blind calf however there is no possibility to keep it on the farm. So Gut Aiderbichl was contacted, because they wanted to spare the lively Darla the way to the slaughterhouse., and give her a good life on Gut Aiderbichl grant. Dieter Ehrengruber agreed to the recording, and here she is now - the Darla.
What is Darla like?
How does she react when you come into her stall?
Darla has a beautiful barn open to the yard and visitors can see the baby calf.
When I visited Darla for the first time, she was lying comfortably in her straw bed, and immediately moved her earswhen I called her by her name."Who comes there?". Her blindness does not seem to bother her. Darla listens for her name and, when spoken to, gently moves her head back and forth, trying to smell who is just standing next to her.
At the next visit Darla already greeted me with a soft, quiet voice.soft "Muuuh". Maybe she recognized me by the voice, or by the way I stroked her soft fur?
It is nice to sit next to Darla in the straw and feel her warm body. As if in slow motion, she licks my hand and is totally relaxed. When I want to leave the stall again, she gets up and follows me. Darla loves to be petted, to rub her head against me, and to lick my hand.
When the eyes are blind, one must search with the heart.
~ Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
Darla doesn't even know what the world around her looks like, but she can smell and feel it. The calf's joy of life also made her owner want to know her alive. Thus, he became one of the people who gave the weaker one a chance: Darla, the blind cow calf, should live.
We Aiderbichler have learned that blind animals have no problems with their environment and lead their lives in their own way and are happy. Animals are very social among themselves. So we can safely assume that Darla will be well received in the cattle herd of Henndorf.
The blind cow in the cattle herd
Just as in humans, the failure of one sensory system leads to more intensive use of the other sensory organs, especially hearing. How well a blind cow can orient itself in a barn or on a pasture depends on the group size and the stability of the group. Constantly changing stall compartments would become a problem because their orientation is based on memorable experience.
Our animal keepers have years of experience with blind cattle, blind donkeys and horses, etc. Darla will want for nothing, that is as sure as the amen in prayer.
Animals may not be able to write the word "love," but they are all the better at showing it. - Every helping human makes the voice of the animals stronger and louder.
Sincerely, Yours Gisela
