Politics tolerated

Black clouds over the “Sonnenhof” animal shelter

Dog "Uwe" shortly after his arrival in Eisenstadt (left). The small injury to his tail is barely visible to the naked eye. Just a few weeks later, it had to be amputated because he had gnawed himself to the bone from all the stress. Why was no countermeasures taken?

(Bild: Krone KREATIV/links Tierschutzhaus (Sonnenhof), rechts privat)

A dog's tail gnawed on out of stress, a handover of a biting Malinois dog that got completely out of hand or a hematoma on a puppy's head. You might expect this to happen in Eastern Bloc animal shelters, but all of this is said to have taken place at the "Sonnenhof" animal shelter in Burgenland. 

The "Sonnenhof" presents itself in a glowing light everywhere. The first page of its annual report states that "a large part of the work is aimed at preventing and avoiding animal suffering". The Deputy Governor of Burgenland, Astrid Eisenkopf - who is responsible for animal welfare in the province - is also full of praise for the managing director of the facility and opens her umbrella to ward off an impending storm. 

In the minutes of last October's state parliamentary session, we read that she thanked the management and that she didn't want to let the attempt to cast Sonnenhof in a bad light stand. It remains to be seen whether her protective shield will hold in the long term. 

Astrid Eisenkopf (SPÖ) has so far not allowed any criticism of Sonnenhof.

(Bild: P. Huber)

In addition to a number of reports from the public, which the "Krone" animal corner is investigating, the case of the dogs of a deceased breeder is particularly drastic. After the death of their owner, almost 20 dogs were taken to the state's animal shelter on the instructions of the authorities. So much for the usual procedure. 

Sad looks behind bars
The fate of the animals was very close to the heart of a close friend of the deceased, who was entrusted by the estate administrator with finding new owners on the basis of her expertise. When she went to visit the animals remaining at Sonnenhof a short time later, she couldn't believe her eyes. "I almost didn't recognize the dogs," she says in an interview with the animal corner. 

Acute stress behavior
According to the dog lover, the animals were offered no or far too little activity and exercise. This was fatal, as male dog "Uwe" continued to gnaw on his tail out of frustration, which ultimately even had to be amputated. Sonnenhof should have acted much earlier, as initially only a small injury to the tip was visible. Why were no countermeasures taken to prevent the entrusted animal from injuring itself further?

Biting the tail is an extreme reaction to stress, fear or boredom. In this case, the situation in which the animal found itself was probably ignored for weeks.

(Bild: privat)

In the case of Malinois "Hec", who is considered to be conspicuous and potentially dangerous, nobody dared to enter the kennel. It is suspected that "Hec" had not been given any species-appropriate exercise on the large meadow for two months. This is highly problematic, as exercise and activity are essential to keep an animal in a kennel busy. 

Luckily, no one was injured
The animal lover in question hurriedly tried to find a way out and organized the handover of "Hec" to a specialist so that the alleged "solitary confinement" could come to an end. However, this handover threatened to get massively out of hand, as the minutes of Gabriele Velich, the animal welfare ombudswoman of the province of Burgenland, who was appointed as a neutral (!) observer, show. 

In the heat of the moment
It states that the handover in no way corresponded to the dangerousness of the dog and should have been much better planned by the animal shelter. She considers it negligent that the animal shelter management allowed "Hec" to take off his muzzle outside the secured area.

There was panic
"I can't understand why they allowed such an amateurish handover. It was a dangerous moment!", said expert Velich when asked by Krone. Sonnenhof doesn't want to know anything about any of this, but in an email to the "Krone", it blames the people who were committed to the welfare of the dogs. Not a trace of self-reflection. 

Reason enough for "Krone" animal corner boss Maggie Entenfellner to contact the politician responsible. Astrid Eisenkopf has nothing to add to Sonnenhof's statement and points out that everything has always been assessed positively in reviews. 

Are the facts being distorted here?
However, the extent to which the top politician is really in the picture remains unclear. In any case, Eisenkopf answered the question in the affirmative as to whether she had also listened to the views of her independent animal welfare ombudswoman. But apparently this is not the case, because according to information from the "Krone", the deputy governor's office has not made any contact with the animal welfare ombudsman's office. 

"You have to bear in mind that the Sonnenhof and its animals are financed with taxpayers' money. If very serious animal welfare-related allegations are regularly made there, politicians must keep an independent eye on them," says "Krone" animal welfare expert Entenfellner. So shortly before election day, these latest incidents could still cause a major shiver around the Sonnenhof...