Gerhard Wagner is chairman of the animal rescue service RATÖ Steyr (Austrian Animal Rescue Alliance) and is also looking for volunteers and volunteers in the Salzkammergut who would like to serve the animals.
Salzkammergut News: What exactly are you planning to do in the Salzkammergut?
Gerhard Wagner: We often drive from Steyr to the Salzkammergut for operations. And now we’ve been thinking about parking a car here and getting someone who wants to volunteer with us. That would be people who go out and also get an enrollment with us.
What are assignments about?
It’s also about when a cat is squatting helplessly in a tree somewhere, but animal welfare is also part of it for us, for example when an overwhelmed farmer lets his animals go to waste. In any case, we can only pass this on to the official veterinarian, and if he can’t do anything, we have an ombudsman at the state government.
So you are specifically looking for someone for the Salzkammergut. How difficult is this quest?
Very difficult. Nowadays, unfortunately, many just want to earn something, while voluntary associations like ours are struggling to survive. It is important to us that we find someone who loves animals and who has a driver’s license. But we are also looking for people without a driver’s license, because if one drives, the second will be there. We have to be two in our teams. One is the driver, the other the paramedic. But nowadays almost everyone has a driver’s license anyway.
What are the challenges in your job?
Dogs hit or run away, cats hit. A lot comes together there.
There are probably people who no longer want their pets. Do you pass this on then?
Yes, for example to an animal shelter. We are in the process of setting up a rescue center ourselves, but that will take time.
How long have you been working as an animal rescuer, Mr. Wagner?
We will be 20 years old this fall. We are the oldest animal rescue service in Upper Austria.
What was your personal most intensive commitment?
That was on the Harter Plateau near Linz more than ten years ago. A poisonous snake owner went crazy. He also had a hemp plantation and shot down with a gun. Even the Cobra unit was there, and we had to wait 13 hours before we could rescue the animals.
What was the most unusual animal you have ever saved?
It was a raccoon dog, a very rare animal in our country. He almost looks like a raccoon. He was slightly injured and we were alerted after the caller said there was a dog or a raccoon. We went there, found that he had been hit by a car and took care of him. Then we released him back into the wild.
The message is: you are looking for people. Who can people who are interested in working with you contact?
The phone number is 0664 / 6382741. Information is available on the Internet at www.tierrettung-steyr.at
What is the order?
First of all, we have to make sure that the applicants are mentally challenged. Because when an animal that has been run over is lying there and there is blood everywhere, then you have to be able to go there and try to help with the rescue. It could also be about a sharp dog that has been run over, which you then have to catch with the catch rod.
But we stick to it: It is a voluntary work. Nobody can make money from it.
Yes. We focus primarily on pets, but we also have reptiles that we take care of. Also poisonous snakes.
They ask for donations. Where?
If I may tell you our account number from the animal rescue RATÖ Steyr, please: IBAN: AT573411400000442350.
Source: Nachrichten
