Hay production through sustainable landscape management was highlighted by Mag. Matthias Rode, managing director of the South Styria Nature Park. Many areas that are difficult to manage or have low yields are becoming increasingly fallow or overgrown. With innovative ideas, such as financial support through the use of the tourism tax, these areas, which are valuable in terms of their biodiversity, should be brought back into cultivation and the harvested crops should be used as horse feed, for example.

Ing. Reinhard Resch from the HBLFA Raumberg-Gumpenstein impressively summarized whether this basic feed is actually suitable for horses. Taking into account the location, the composition of the plant population and the time of mowing, with particular attention to the presence of plants that are poisonous to horses, areas with a high level of biodiversity offer both opportunities and risks. The focus is always on a region-specific assessment in order to ensure the best harvested crop.

Dr. Dr. agreed with these statements. Astrid Schwarz, equine veterinarian and breeder from Klagenfurt: Poisonous plant components in feed or on pastures can have fatal effects on horse health - but a wide variety of grasses and herbs generally have a positive effect. With a high level of specialist knowledge, the online and on-site participants from Austria, Germany and Liechtenstein were guided through the principles of horse feeding from a historical and current perspective. Diseases of affluence in particular are a cause for concern and occur frequently - less is often more and oversupply must be prevented.

Use of work horses

Benefiting from a good supply of food, the use of work horses in the school forest was demonstrated in the afternoon in beautiful autumn weather. As a soil and environmentally friendly option, wood removal with horses is experiencing a renaissance and is a useful addition to mechanical forestry. Martin Sommerauer from Eugendorf and Johann Lettner from Zell am Moos demonstrated impressively routine forestry work with precision with their Norikers.

As a cooperation event organized across federal states, the Lungau Horse Symposium stands for strengthening horse husbandry in rural areas and the transmission of traditional values ​​in conjunction with new knowledge.

Horse Symposium 2023

The organizational team around Irene Mösenbacher-Molterer, Markus Schaflechner, Mathias Gappmaier and Franz Lanschutz has planned the next event for 2023.

To listen and read:

Review of the horse symposium - Source: Regional TV Salzburg

ZOOM recording of the lectures

Video of the demonstrations and explanations in the forest

Follow-up report on the website