Numerous guests from Austria and abroad, including many regular attendees from previous years, gathered on Saturday, March 5, 2022, at the Puttererseehalle in Aigen im Ennstal to enjoy top-class speakers and a diverse program after a year's hiatus due to the pandemic. The focus was on the horse as a unifying element across all Austrian equestrian institutions. Despite the officially mandated COVID-19 prevention measures and reduced on-site capacity, the organizing team, maintaining its usual high standards, created optimal conditions for all attendees and participants online, fostering exchange, strengthening networks, and building personal connections "all about horses.".
Topics and content
Following a film retrospective of 10 years of the equestrian conference, prominent representatives from Austria and abroad gave presentations and discussed issues related to education, expressing clear wishes such as a common professional profile for riding instructors and a comprehensive further development of the current training program, including the Austrian Equestrian Federation and specialized vocational schools. Promoting high-quality training at riding schools and ensuring legal protection for this profession are further defined goals.
The new horse identification regulations and warranty law proved to be contentious issues. The fact that, from May 1, 2022, horses with a habitual stay of more than 30 days at their respective location (with exceptions of up to 90 days for sport, training, and breeding) are subject to mandatory registration in the VIS database, sparked considerable discussion. As implementation is still in progress, not all questions could be answered; however, the Ministry of Health is available as a point of contact.
In addition to a presentation of the Austrian Warmblood horse, the presentation of an economic study by the Austrian Horse Breeders' Association, and insights into the transformation of the Spanish Riding School from a prestige object to a modern cultural institution, short presentations outlined the requirements for horses for breeding, for sport, and for performance/aptitude and temperament tests.
The conference was rounded off with topics on equine health, including lectures from the VetMedUni Vienna and the start of a series featuring current cases from equine veterinary practice.
outlook
The approximately 300 visitors in total showed that this anniversary, despite all restrictions, was very positive for the HBLFA Raumberg-Gumpenstein and its Austria-wide co-organizers and partners, although the main wish is to be able to hold an Austrian Equine Conference again in 2023 in its usual form without access restrictions and with unlimited numbers of participants.
Ing. Irene Mösenbacher-Molterer (author), Dr. Birgit Heidinger, Dr. Silke Schaumberger
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Team
Dr. Birgit Heidinger
Institute Management: Animals, Technology and Environment
Engineer Irene Mösenbacher-Molterer, MEd
Head of Department for Testing Activities and Experimental Analysis