https://feeds.thelocal.com/ Read the latest news and views from Austria in English en-us news@thelocal.com (TheLocal) webmaster@thelocal.com (TheLocal) TheLocal RSS Feed Austria’s new animal welfare commission is reviewing breeding rules - and popular flat-nosed dogs are under scrutiny. Here’s what’s happening. https://www.thelocal.at/20250721/will-austria-ban-flat-nosed-dog-breeds Mon, 21 Jul 2025 14:02:06 +0200 will-austria-ban-flat-nosed-dog-breeds A young male elk known as Emil has been captured in Austria and taken to the border with the Czech Republic after spending the summer roaming across central Europe. https://www.thelocal.at/20250923/moose-on-the-loose-austria-deports-famous-elk-after-weeks-on-the-run Tue, 23 Sep 2025 15:28:59 +0200 moose-on-the-loose-austria-deports-famous-elk-after-weeks-on-the-run A woman was seriously injured after a herd of cows charged during a hike in Styria. Here's why experts say dog owners must be extra cautious. https://www.thelocal.at/20250714/why-hikers-with-dogs-face-extra-risks-near-cows-in-austria Mon, 14 Jul 2025 14:55:31 +0200 why-hikers-with-dogs-face-extra-risks-near-cows-in-austria Compulsory microchips as well as bans on ear-cropping and tail-docking are among a set of new rules to protect cats and dogs that have been approved by European lawmakers. https://www.thelocal.at/20250619/mutilation-ban-and-microchips-eu-lawmakers-approve-cat-and-dog-welfare-rules Thu, 19 Jun 2025 18:08:09 +0200 mutilation-ban-and-microchips-eu-lawmakers-approve-cat-and-dog-welfare-rules A court case over a cow trampling has raised big questions about liability in Austria’s mountains. https://www.thelocal.at/20250516/what-a-supreme-court-ruling-means-for-hikers-and-cows-in-austria Fri, 16 May 2025 18:45:56 +0200 what-a-supreme-court-ruling-means-for-hikers-and-cows-in-austria A woman zookeeper died after being attacked by a rhinoceros at a zoo in the Austrian city of Salzburg on Tuesday. https://www.thelocal.at/20230912/zookeeper-killed-by-rhino-at-salzburg-zoo Tue, 12 Sep 2023 13:22:47 +0200 zookeeper-killed-by-rhino-at-salzburg-zoo Wolves are more selfless than dogs, according to a new Austrian study. https://www.thelocal.at/20190502/whos-a-good-boy-wolves-not-dogs-according-to-this-austrian-study Thu, 02 May 2019 12:42:57 +0200 whos-a-good-boy-wolves-not-dogs-according-to-this-austrian-study An Austria fruit grower was handed a rare prison sentence Wednesday for having illegally spread an insecticide which led to the deaths of dozens of neighbouring bee colonies. https://www.thelocal.at/20180927/austrian-fruit-grower-jailed-for-killing-bees Thu, 27 Sep 2018 11:13:00 +0200 austrian-fruit-grower-jailed-for-killing-bees Austrian police locked down the grounds of Vienna’s Schönbrunn Palace on Monday morning, after a jogger told them he’d spotted a lion which he believed must have escaped from the zoo. https://www.thelocal.at/20170227/16-police-officers-hunt-escaped-lion-at-schoenbrunn-palace Mon, 27 Feb 2017 12:00:31 +0100 16-police-officers-hunt-escaped-lion-at-schoenbrunn-palace A cat who disappeared from her home in the Netherlands six months ago and was recently found in an Austrian village 950 kilometres away, has been collected by her Dutch owner. https://www.thelocal.at/20170220/happy-ending-for-runaway-cat-pepper Mon, 20 Feb 2017 12:01:36 +0100 happy-ending-for-runaway-cat-pepper A cat called Pepper has gained a reputation as a bit of a traveller. Six months after disappearing from her home in the Netherlands, she has been found in an Austrian village 950 kilometres away. https://www.thelocal.at/20170215/pet-cat-found-after-marathon-journey-from-netherlands-to-austria Wed, 15 Feb 2017 11:12:22 +0100 pet-cat-found-after-marathon-journey-from-netherlands-to-austria Long Hui, a giant panda feted for having fathered five cubs in captivity and who succumbed to a stomach tumour in December, will be stuffed and returned to China for posterity, Vienna's Schönbrunn Zoo said on Tuesday. https://www.thelocal.at/20170207/viennas-dead-panda-gets-stuffed-for-final-journey Tue, 07 Feb 2017 19:30:27 +0100 viennas-dead-panda-gets-stuffed-for-final-journey Vienna’s Schönbrunn Zoo has said it will be “phasing out” animal species which have been banned from being bred by zookeepers under an EU regulation. https://www.thelocal.at/20170124/popular-animals-to-be-phased-out-at-schoenbrunn-zoo-to-stop-them-going-wild Tue, 24 Jan 2017 12:39:04 +0100 popular-animals-to-be-phased-out-at-schoenbrunn-zoo-to-stop-them-going-wild An Austrian couple received the best Christmas present after their cat which had been missing for more than four years reappeared in time for the holiday. https://www.thelocal.at/20161222/missing-moggy-found-in-time-for-christmas-after-four-years Thu, 22 Dec 2016 10:56:37 +0100 missing-moggy-found-in-time-for-christmas-after-four-years Three dog owners have put a €10,000 bounty on the head of an animal hater who has been leaving poisoned bait for dogs in the Pötzleinsdorfer Schlosspark in Vienna’s 18th district. https://www.thelocal.at/20161215/10000-bounty-for-vienna-dog-poisoner Thu, 15 Dec 2016 12:41:03 +0100 10000-bounty-for-vienna-dog-poisoner Austrian police have seized 47 puppies found in a car at the Hungarian border. The driver was headed for France, where authorities suspect he planned to sell the animals as French-born. https://www.thelocal.at/20161028/austrian-police-seize-47-puppies-from-animal-smuggler Fri, 28 Oct 2016 14:40:31 +0200 austrian-police-seize-47-puppies-from-animal-smuggler Residents in the city of Eisenstadt, the state capital of Burgenland, are complaining that a plague of wild boar are ruining their gardens and want hunters to be able to cull some of the pigs who roam the outskirts of the city. https://www.thelocal.at/20161012/plague-of-wild-boar-ruin-gardens-in-eisenstadt-burgenland Wed, 12 Oct 2016 13:58:45 +0200 plague-of-wild-boar-ruin-gardens-in-eisenstadt-burgenland A police sniffer dog was able to locate a woman’s thumb after she severed it with a circular saw when she was cutting up wood and lost it in tall grass. https://www.thelocal.at/20161011/austrian-police-dog-finds-womans-missing-thumb Tue, 11 Oct 2016 10:25:45 +0200 austrian-police-dog-finds-womans-missing-thumb A cattle herder in Austria who could not work out why his cows were running out of milk finally figured it out after passing tourists snapped a photo of some pigs helping themselves. https://www.thelocal.at/20160819/three-little-pigs-help-themselves-to-cows-milk-austria-tyrol Fri, 19 Aug 2016 11:01:10 +0200 three-little-pigs-help-themselves-to-cows-milk-austria-tyrol One of Vienna’s most luxurious hotels is now offering a five star service for the pets belonging to their wealthy customers. https://www.thelocal.at/20160713/luxury-vienna-hotel-offers-five-star-service-for-pets Wed, 13 Jul 2016 13:34:05 +0200 luxury-vienna-hotel-offers-five-star-service-for-pets