... which has been made world-famous by the Spanish Riding School. On the steep slopes of Weststeiermark, the colts spend their youth and strengthen their muscles and tendons for the hard work which awaits them later in the manege of the Spanish Riding School in Vienna.

It is not until three years later that they return to the Stud of Piber, where the huge castle dominates the entire stud premises. Here the young stallions have the opportunity to show whether they can qualify for the art of haute école.

Stud Director: Dr. Max Dobretsberger

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Following the closure of the Domain of the St. Lambrecht Monastery in 1798, Piber is given a new identification as military horse depot. In 1867 the military stud is put under the auspices of the Royal Imperial Ministry of Agriculture in Vienna. In 1920, following closure of the Royal Imperial Stud of Lipizza (1915) the remaining Lipizzaners find a new home in Austria. Piber is chosen as a suitable location.

In 1942, during the 2nd world war, the Lipizzaners from Piber were moved to Hostau in Bohemia and they only just manage to escape from the hands of the Russian army.

The Austrian Lipizzaners are brought from the stables around Schwarzenberg in Bavaria to St. Martin in Upper Austria in 1945. All 215 horses find a provisional home in Wimsbach, where they stay until 1952. The horses' return home from there marks the beginning of a continual phase of successful development of the stud.

In 2001 the Federal Stud of Piber was merged with the Spanish Riding School to form a company under public law.

A highlight in the history of the federal stud was the presentation of the "Steirische Landesausstellung 2003" on the subject "The Myth of the Horse". The investments in the entire infrastructure with a view to this event mean today that the location offers ideal conditions for equestrian sport and culture events.

The Federal Stud of Piber makes a valuable contribution towards maintaining an important and living cultural inheritance of Austria and preserving one of the most noble horse breeds in its original form. The best of each year are selected for the Spanish Riding School. The collaboration between the Federal Stud of Piber and the Spanish Riding School is based, amongst other elements, on a unique cycle:
The best stallions of the Spanish Riding School pass on their positive characteristics and features - they return to Piber for a covering season as sires.

The heart of Lipizzaner breeding are the brood mares. They ensure progeny for the Spanish Riding School. The young mares of the "herd of mares", also known as "stud mares", are covered for the first time at the age of five.

All Lipizzaner foals come into this world with a black coat. The famous grey colour of the Lipizzaner is not usually fully formed until the horse is between six and nine years old. A few foals are born with a brown coat, and this also remains brown. After approximately one week in the foaling stables, the mares return with their foals to the open boxes, into the herd, which from this point onwards plays a key role in the rearing of the foals. These environmental conditions after all, in addition to the hereditary disposition, determine later physical performance ability and character to an extent of up to 50 %.
Six months after birth the foals are then separated from their dams and form a new foal herd. In the following spring, the yearlings are separated according to their sex and put into the colt or filly herd accordingly. Thus the young animals mature physically and with regard to their character under conditions which are suited to their nature.

Three times in this growing-up phase, the young Lipizzaners spend the summer in the mountains. And there are a number of good reasons for this. Because, on the stud's own mountain meadows located at a height of 1600 metres, fillies as well as colts learn perfect sure-footedness and also train their tendons and joints.
During their long periods of grazing on herb-rich mountain pastureland, the horses are supervised by their responsible persons and brought back to the stables in the evenings. The constant contact with people is a central element during rearing. Thus the animal learns to respect the human as a partner with a higher social rank. This is important and indeed decisive for later training.

At the age of three and a half years the animals are presented for the main selection, the central event in the stud work. All data are recorded in the stud books. In accordance with the traditional breeding aim, the best stallions are to be selected for training and presentation in the Spanish Riding School.

The principle of the performance test in a closed herd enables the precise documentation of the life performance of every horse. An incredible amount of data is recorded concerning temperament, willingness to perform and character, already from the moment of birth. The documented knowledge is of great use in many areas which are not directly related to the breeding programme. For example, it constitutes valuable know-how in exchanges with other Lipizzaner breeders and studs. This knowledge is the basis for the breeding value, breeding planning and the entire work of the Spanish Riding School - Federal Stud of Piber company.

With its stately baroque castle the Federal Stud of Piber provides a uniquely idyllic rural-elegant setting for events and celebrations. In addition to the wonderful horses, a large number of events such as the traditional mountain-meadow homecoming from the Stubalm, located at a height of 1470m, team driving competitions and much, much more which makes the stud, under the management of Dr. Max Dobretsberger, a very attractive and popular location amongst the public.