The Lost Paradise

The crime author Nicola Förg incorporates her well-researched knowledge and her profound knowledge of the plight of animals and the problems surrounding animal protection into her stories. Kristiane Schott was so enthusiastic about it that she quickly contacted the well-known author. She, in turn, was so impressed by Ms. Schott's commitment to Irish animals that she visited the “Irish Farm of Hope” in Ireland.

Nicola Förg has written a travel report about her impressive visit to Kristiane's farm. He was born on on 8/9 September in the Munich Merkur published. We print it here:

She is a beautiful gray mare. Long-legged with a noble head. She runs towards a herd of horses, stops, appears increasingly panicked. A mare rushes out of the herd, which consists of tinkers, a few Shetland ponies, donkeys, three Connemaras and a few thoroughbreds. If the teeth bare, the forequarters throw, the gray mare flees. Her sides tremble. But then something unusual happens: another mare from the thoroughbred group slowly approaches the gray mare, who is still completely tense. Then there is a quiet snort, the two horses lower their heads and greet each other. The two know each other! And just because that's the case, the lead mare lets the new one into the herd. Kristiane Schott takes a deep breath, her smile is wistful. “Thank God, bad injuries often happen,” says the German, who has been living in Ireland for a long time, Ireland, in the very southwest of the country, you could say: in the middle of the world. She rents a small farm in the middle of nowhere, between a dangerous maze-like moor and windswept, barren hills. Kristiane has not just tried to integrate a new horse into a herd on her farm. No, these animals don't belong to her! But these mares did indeed know each other from before, from a life that consisted of human care, riding, feed and stables. They know each other from a time when the country was doing better, the economy was booming and people were earning enough money to keep horses and dogs in a species-appropriate manner. But the still-simmering crisis following the banking crash in 2009 is hitting Ireland hard - and all unnecessary ballast has to go. Horses are one of them, they are disposed of in good Irish language by abandoning them! Gladly in Kristiane's region because it is not noticeable here when a horse trailer stops on a tiny street and a horse is thrown out. There are six or seven herds around Kristiane's small farm, each consisting of around 20 horses. But nobody cares. They are on communal land; legend in the region says they belong to a man who is a hoarder by German standards and lives on a completely run-down property. A view that is, above all, comfortable. Actually, these horses once belonged to a lawyer, a student, a breeder, a farmer, a teacher - people who no longer want to or can finance them.

Kristiane Schott sees tragedies every day: “Some even have their halters still in tatters. The hooves, broken shoes, hooves like pointed shoes are often really bad.” There are also nasty wounds caused by fights over ranking.

Once well-protected animals now have to call on their old instincts and live like wild horses. The holiday season in Ireland is just coming to an end, and guests are leaving full of impressions of spectacular coastlines, stone circles and herds of cattle. They must have seen horses somewhere and thought: Oh, they have a lovely time here! Kristiane Schott shakes her head wearily. “Yes, that impression may arise, and if you look at the horses now in the summer, they look comparatively good.” Even if Ireland had an unusual period of drought, occasional rain did not completely desert the green. Kara Schott, Kristiane's daughter, lives in Hamburg and supports her mother: “Climate change is hitting barren regions much harder. The summers are getting hotter, the mosquitoes are becoming more unbearable, the winters are harsher.” Kristiane and Kara are trying everything to alleviate the horses’ plight. They distribute hay outside the fence and depend on every hay donation. And then they come, the herds: fights for distribution arise, and lower-ranking animals often lose out. “It’s heartbreaking,” Kara says. Mainly because people caused the misery. “I can’t blame it all on the recession,” says Kara. “There is also a dullness in it. In addition, breeding continues even though many animals cannot be sold. Some horses are even tied up on a remote farm and starve miserably.” It is estimated that there are 25,000 abandoned horses living on the Emerald Isle. The number of unreported cases is higher. And winter is coming. “It's particularly bad for the many abandoned donkeys, who have an even harder time coping with cold and wet conditions.” And there are many foals among them, with very little chance of surviving the coming winter of hunger.

Nicola Förg is an author and freelance travel journalist for daily newspapers and professional journals. Pets and animals in general are her passion, that's why she's highly active in animal welfare programs. Her books often focus on animals and their living conditions.

ELEND ALSO FOR DOGS & CATS

Kristiane Schott originally worked with greyhounds and learned about the dark side of dog racing tracks. In Ireland, dogs are generally considered pets, but racing dogs are seen as farm animals that are kept in sometimes miserable sheds and killed at the end of their racing careers - or if they are unsuccessful. Schott began rescuing dogs and kittens, which in Ireland are often “disposed of” in the desert. And then Schott was horrified by the horse's misery. Deutsche brings dogs and cats to Germany. www.facebook.com/PussInBootsAnimalRescue

Money for hay

Kristiane Schott, Tel.: 0035 / 3909749427

Account Bank of Ireland Scariff
IBAN: IE02BOFI90441310777841

BIC: BOFIIE2D.