In the midst of the Ukraine war and record inflation, Federal Minister Johannes Rauch (Greens) initiated a new discussion – and immediately received harsh criticism. While the health minister is sticking to the mask requirement in retail despite the summer temperatures, in his capacity as animal welfare minister he is also worried about the well-being of the Viennese Fiaker horses in view of the current heat – the eXXpress reported. A lower heat-free limit for Fiaker horses is currently being discussed. It’s currently 35 degrees. Instead of a reduction to a 30-degree mark, Rauch even wants a complete ban on carriages in Vienna.
Fiaker spokeswoman Ursula Chytracek shakes his head: “I don’t see that politicians make judgments about animal welfare even though they have no idea about the animals,” she explains to ORF. She sees no basis for a 30-degree mark, and certainly not for a ban. She refers to a study by the University of Veterinary Medicine in Vienna. In almost 400 measurements, not a single animal was found to be overstrained by the heat.
In addition, there is no connection at all between collapsing horses in Vienna and the heat. Chytracek complained to the ORF about the “vortex” that breaks out as soon as “a horse in the city area collapses due to a horse illness”.
The veterinarian Isabella Copar, who works for two Fiaker companies, agrees. She also explains about collapsing horses: “It could never be linked to the heat and yet everyone talks about ‘collapsing horses’. When that happens in the barn, no one cares.” The veterinarian refers to her 25 years of experience, in which she has not seen a single horse collapsing because of the heat.
