The special thing about Friesian horses is not their beauty, says Peter Schroeder. Even if, after many years of breeding, the sight of the black giants with their long manes still makes his heart sing. What is unique is their close relationship with their owners. Schroeder is certain that no other horse breed builds such a sensitive relationship with the rider. And that is often their problem. Friesians are particularly susceptible to depression and the illnesses it causes. These sensitive horses often suffer from the conditions in which they are kept without their owners noticing. Gelding Jelte feels unwell The Friesian gelding Jelte is one such case. Purchased a year ago, he was housed in a stable near Hamburg, where he stood in boxes alongside many other horses. The expensive riding horse quickly became a problem case: skin eczema that was so itchy that it bit itself raw, psychological abnormalities such as constant head shaking or chafing of the nostrils in the stable, and constant harassment of the other horses. Riding was no longer an option. The vets treating him were also at a loss at some point and his owner became more and more desperate. And Peter Schroeder knows that the Friesians sense this desperation and Jelte's situation got worse and worse. Rehabilitation center on Nordstrand Peter Schroeder has set up a kind of rehabilitation center for Friesian horses on his Friesian farm on Nordstrand on the west coast of Schleswig-Holstein, where he can help such problem cases. Two things are important here: the iodine-rich North Sea air, similar to humans, helps with asthma or skin eczema. Such illnesses heal almost automatically in horses that are on Nordstrand. But even more important for Jelte is the psychological program: the gelding becomes a herd animal again. With the help of his own Friesians and the other horses at the spa, Schroeder is gradually building up a herd around Jelte. In this way, the horse in need of care should become a healthy horse again in a few months. Recovery in the familiar herd The owners of the so-called spa horses finance another of Peter Schroeder's heartfelt projects through their horses' stay. With his association Friesenpferde Nothilfe eV, he takes in Friesian horses that are old and sick and have been given up by their owners because they no longer want to or can look after them. Financial difficulties are often the reason. Schroeder therefore often gets these horses from horse clinics when owners can no longer pay for an operation that is due. However, Peter Schroeder and his association only take in Friesians and only those that can no longer be sold. They form the herd in which the spa horses can recover. In order to be able to finance everything, Peter Schroeder and his wife Heidi have converted the large living room of their farm into a café. And they rent rooms to holiday guests. All of this to be able to finance the work with the Friesians in need. More information here: https://www.ndr.de/fernsehen/sendunge... First broadcast: 26.01.2022