Wellington, Fla. – July 2, 2018 – Whether at home in South Florida, training in Tennessee with John and Stephanie Ingram’s horses or at top horse shows across the country, Victoria Colvin always keep her horses’ care as a top priority to maintain a top-notch string of horses with the help of her family. Using high-quality feed, supplements and products and personally examining each horse daily, Victoria ensures that the horses are cared for to the highest degree and is able to regiment a program sometimes from hundreds of miles away.
A standard day for Victoria in Florida consists of leaving home by 7 a.m. to complete her catch riding, followed by returning home to tack, ride and bathe personal and client horses at her family farm just outside Wellington, Florida.
“To us, one of the most important things is that a horse shouldn’t be in a stall without food or inside all day. Weather permitting, we turn out early in the morning and aim to keep the horses outside until early afternoon. They always have access to grass or hay that is on rubber mats so they don’t ingest any sand,” commented Victoria. “For horses in rehab, I still like to turn them out in special paddocks with deeper sand so that the horse can mentally benefit from being outside of his stall and still physically heal. So far this system has worked for us; we don’t lose shoes and we don’t have hurt horses.”
While staff is hired during the busy competitive winter equestrian season, the remainder of the year is all family-operated. Truly a family affair, Victoria and her mother, Brigid Colvin, are the cornerstones of the daily care and training for the horses under their management, and Victoria’s father, Jim Colvin, shoes and trims all the horses’ feet that his daughter rides and trains.
“We split everything. We feed, groom and watch the horses, and we also pick the stalls and paddocks everyday in addition to dragging the ring. The horses get bathed after each ride, and even when they are stabled in permanent stalls during WEF, my mom trailers them home frequently to allow them to experience turnout,” noted Victoria. “During times when I am away at shows, my mom sends me weekly videos of the horses trotting and cantering so that I can give input on their statuses. I like to still be 100% involved, even when I am not physically there.”
On the road for multiple months each year, Victoria travels with her newest grand prix mount, Zambia Mystic Rose, and prefers to handle her care personally, even when full-service board is available. She diligently cares for and oversees her the same way she would take care of horses at home in Florida.
Each evening, the Colvins’ night check consists of feeding the horses their nightly meal and picking stalls as well as flexing each horse’s muscles to assure that each is comfortable for the evening.
“At night check we bring carrots and apples and have the horses stretch for them to make sure there is not stiffness in their necks, backs or legs. It’s important to me to know that all of the horses are content for the evening and not in any pain or discomfort,” said the young professional.
Loyal proponents of hands-on horse management, Victoria and her family take pride in providing superior care for all horses thanks to their personalized style and eye for detail. Placing the welfare of the horse at the heart and with a foundation of proper horsemanship, their system has proven successful at producing happy, healthy and winning horses.
For more information on Victoria Colvin, please click here.
