Michael Aufhauser (born April 25, 1952 Augsburg) is a German animal rights activist and founder of Gut Aiderbichl,[1] the largest sanctuary for animals in Austria,[2][3] which houses more than 1,000 animals of a variety of species.[4] Meanwhile, 15 more farms under this model in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and one built in France, some of which are specialized in certain animal species.[5]
Aufhauser drew a lot of attention of German and international mass media on his project when he bought a "runaway cow" called Yvonne in August 2011.