The blind mare Koby
She accepts her fate as it is
Respect, appreciation and the right to live
The years of work with the rescued animals prove how quickly animals are able to accept their handicap. Whether they have a limp, are blind or have other handicaps, one thing is certain: they want to live and they have courage. Animals with disabilities are no different to people with disabilities and deserve our respect, appreciation and care just as much. We experience time and again how quickly animals are able to change their thinking. As long as the will to live is there, it doesn’t bother a dog that it only has its front paws and it doesn’t bother a cow that it is blind. Animals don’t complain, they enjoy their day and their lives.
Blind from birth
Koby was only three months old when she came to Gut Aiderbichl Henndorf together with her mother mare Marie-Gold.
The foal was blind from birth and the breeder was reluctant to give Koby away, but she knew that Gut Aiderbichl was the right forever home for her. So that she could grow up protected and healthy, she was allowed to accompany her mum Marie-Gold.
The presence of her mother mare made it easier for little Koby to grow up. She taught her all the important things in the life of a young foal. Koby came confidently to the fence and sniffed out who was standing in front of her. When she was called, she immediately tilted her head a little and focussed on the human voice. She soon recognised people by their voices and knew that they all meant well by her.
Pure joie de vivre
in the senior stable
The pretty Koby is now 9 years old and moved into the senior stable with her mum a few years ago. There, a large stable was equipped with thick mats for blind Koby and Marie-Gold to prevent her from injuring herself. Koby skilfully moves from the stable to the paddocks or, in summer, to the meadow – always accompanied by Marie-Gold and her friends Little Uncle and Sabrina, who are also blind.
Perhaps Koby smells more intensely and has even better hearing than all the other horses. One thing is certain, the guiding principle in her equine life is
“You can only see well with your heart. The essentials are invisible to the eye.” (Antoine de Saint-Exupéry)
Koby loves her humans because she can feel us even better than a sighted horse.
