Spring Has Sprung At Vienna Zoo Tirolerhof
April 23, 2022
The kid season has already begun for the pied goats called Tauernscheckenziegen and it is almost over. Only one goat is still expecting. The kids are all well and very agile. They already try to climb rocks and tree trunks and savor the first rays of sun.
This goat breed serves multiple purposes. Their claws are very sturdy which is ideal for alpine landscape management. Their udders are very high to minimize the risk of injury. They are very long-living and robust and please with their unique and attractive coat which makes them easily recognizable on alpine pastures during the summer and fall.
At Tirolerhof we also keep two endangered sheep breeds. First, a breed native to the Austrian state of Carinthia (Kärntner Brillenschaf) showing the typical pigmentation around the eyes and at their ears. These sheep recently welcomed an offspring, a beautiful ram.
Second, the Tirolese Rock Sheep (Tiroler Steinschafe) whose lambs are still black but will gradually turn grey once they are one to one and a half years old.
At Tirolerhof we raise various old farm animal breeds which are more robust, long-living, resistant to diseases and whose births are easier. They have been bred over centuries, even millenia and are an important cultural asset and potentially a crucial gene reserve for the future.