Expensive "custom"

“Barbaric custom” with fatal consequences

A man received eleven pig's heads as a 30th birthday present. However, the well-wishers are now facing a hefty fine. They were reported to the police.(Bild: www.respektiere.at)

No fewer than eleven (!) pig heads were hung on a Lower Austrian man's house for his 30th birthday. Animal rights activists filed a complaint and are now facing fines of up to 15,000 euros.

In Lower Austria, anyone who is unmarried on their 30th birthday gets a pig's head on their doorstep: this already questionable tradition has now been taken to extremes in Kamptal. No fewer than three pig heads and eight wild boar heads were "planted" on a wooden scaffold several meters high.

But the surprise backfired - because animal rights activists from the "RespekTiere" association got wind of the action. "Not only is this against the law, but it also sends out a fatal and long outdated message from the die-hards: Animals are one thing and you can mock them even in death," says chairman Thomas Putzgruber, shocked. He also fears that hanging up "body parts" could lead to an epidemic.

Pig heads in front of the house(Bild: www.respektiere.at)

The association has therefore filed a complaint with the district authority, the veterinary office and the police. This is because the Animal Materials Act comes into play in this case, which stipulates a mandatory obligation to deliver "animal by-products" to specialist disposal companies. Now not only the well-wishers but also the supplier of the skulls are facing a fine of up to 15,000 euros.

Behavior no longer tolerated today
"RespekTiere" has already taken rigorous action against such "gifts" in the past and was able to put a legal stop to them in 2021. "This has nothing to do with tradition, it's just an expression of deeply barbaric behaviour that has no place today," criticizes Putzgruber.