For World Horse Day 2025
Let us be carried by the soul of the horse
Around 700 horses live on the Gut Aiderbichl farms. They were rejected, taken out of breeding stables or would have been sent to the horse slaughterhouse. They were handed over to us because they were no longer able to perform in sport or because the owner could no longer afford the veterinary costs.
Many of the Aiderbichl horses are at an advanced age and we do everything we can to ensure that they can continue to enjoy their lives at Gut Aiderbichl.
We take World Horse Day as an opportunity to remind people of horses as sentient beings and their importance to humans.
The role of horses right up to the modern age
Horses were domesticated at least 5000 years ago in the Ponto-Caspian steppe in what is now Russia, Kazakhstan, Ukraine and Romania. Horses served as a living meat reserve and were slaughtered when meat was needed. In many regions, the mares were milked. Horses impressed people with their size, strength and wild nature. They were also used as a means of transport in wars, in agriculture, in goods transport, in postal and mail transport, in industry and in mines, in the circus, as well as in equestrian sports and tournaments today.
Horses and humans are a team
Numerous people love equestrian sports and their horse as a good friend. Gut Aiderbichl is also home to horses that have never been ridden by their owners and have never been used for work. They were simply allowed to be horses. For various reasons (illness of the owner, financial bottlenecks, etc.), the horses then became Aiderbichlers.
If horses could talk, they would probably be able to tell us a lot about their
- Excessive demands and use of force in education and training
- not species-appropriate husbandry and feeding conditions
- knowingly and unknowingly inflicting pain and suffering
The silent suffering of horses
Foals are born to die if the breeding standards are not right. If the foal does not meet the ideal, it is a reject. At the annual foal markets, the foals are separated from the mare because the sale means the foal belongs to the breeder.
How do horses feel on blood farms? The mares suffer agony and die of weakness because up to 10 litres of blood are taken from them for weeks. In the first weeks of pregnancy they produce the hormone PMSG, which is used in pig breeding and brings in a lot of money. The foal of the pregnant mare survives or dies because it is born weakened or is aborted by the workers on the blood farms. It’s not about the foal, it’s about the hormone. The mares are maltreated, tortured and die or survive this horror.
Gut Aiderbichl and the "Quality of Life" project for horses
For over 20 years, Gut Aiderbichl has been committed to animal welfare and offers animals a forever home until the end of their natural lives.
Our farms are home to numerous horses that will become senior horses in a few years’ time. But many private animal owners or other animal welfare organisations also find themselves in the situation where their horses are getting older.
There is little knowledge about the needs of old and chronically ill horses. Gut Aiderbichl’s aim is to develop scientifically sound impulses for improving the living conditions of horses – especially in old age and in the event of illness. This intention has led to the co-operation with the Sandgrueb Foundation, the VetMed University of Vienna and the Vetsuisse Faculty in Zurich. The joint project focusses on the topic of “Quality of Life” for horses. </span
We are working together on topics such as horse health and well-being, as well as near-natural horse husbandry and sustainable grassland ecosystems. – There is a lot to do.
If someone were to ask me what combines beauty and gentleness for me, I would answer without hesitation: a horse.
Von: Gisela Pschenitschnig, Gut Aiderbichl
