The Austrian rail company ÖBB treated a tricky situation with a witty tweet after a passenger tried to bring his horse on board a regional express train.
'A horse gets on the train and the conductor asks... why the long face?' it joked.
The passenger, identified only as Benni in the local media, was told that his horse could not travel on the train, but pictures of the horse quickly became a social media sensation.
The railway's guidelines stipulate that small, harmless animals in closed and secure containers, as well as dogs on leashes and wearing muzzles, can be taken on trains. However, horses were deemed to be a danger: ÖBB spokeswoman Julianne Pamme said it could be dangerous, for example, if the train had to brake suddenly.