End of the season

Alpine summer balance sheet: “Weather was ideal for animals”

Now all the animals are back home from the mountain pastures.

(Bild: Peter Freiberger)

Almost 90,000 Salzburg alpine animals are back home in their stables. Chairman Silvester Gfrerer takes stock after the season: "The weather conditions were ideal for the animals."

The alpine pasture season was long this year: with the warm October days, operations at low altitudes went into extra time. But now all the animals are finally back home in the barn. Around 65,000 cattle, 20,000 sheep and around 3,000 horses were brought in this spring. "That's a slight increase," says Silvester Gfrerer, chairman of the Salzburg Alpine farmers. He sums up the alpine summer with satisfaction: "There were no long periods of heat and the vegetation was good. That was ideal for the animals because they prefer rainfall," says the farmer from Großarl.

The challenge was snow in September
The onset of winter in September was a challenge. However, the animals were mostly able to find shelter in forests and survive the cold and snow at higher altitudes.

When it comes to wolves, Gfrerer is also pleased that the discussion has calmed down somewhat with the new options for concluding agreements. Many alpine farmers had feared even greater numbers of wolves over the summer.

He warns of "immeasurable consequences" if the alpine pastures are not managed, from the loss of recreational areas to the loss of valued alpine pasture products.