Staff
Our staff are a collection of people who have a dedicated interest in horses and certainly
with our core of permanent staff, we have staff with a lifelong experience with horses.
We supplement our staff during the peak of the season with veterinary students looking for
practical experience from Massey or from overseas to ensure a professional service for our
clients. With Longspring producing up to 15-20 foals a year, we are adamant that those who
work with us have the equine interest at heart and are properly trained by both Victoria and
Rupert in all aspects of reproduction as well as general horse care. Safety is always paramount.
Victoria Vallance BSc MVS (in progress)
Victoria Vallance represents the new generation of sport horse breeders that are embracing the opportunities afforded by new technology – specifically the use of frozen semen from top sires over NZ mares and embryo transfers from mares that cannot breed either due to injury or being in competition.
This specialised approach to producing sport horses opens new markets for the NZ breeder who now have access to the same top bloodlines that are being used overseas.
Victoria is the 6th generation Vallance in NZ to be raised with horses as a major part of her life. While not a rider herself, she is passionate about the breeding side and has undertaken overseas studies with Dr Paul Mennick in California to learn the finer aspects of freezing equine semen and inseminating mares. While in the USA, she also attended a course on GLP (Good Laboratory Practice) to FDA Standards rounding out her knowledge of official systems required to run labs for export markets.
She has a BSc degree from Massey University and is currently working on her Masters of Veterinary Studies with a focus on Cyanthostomes (red worm) parasites in NZ’s equine population. She is also lecturing at Massey University to the Applied Science students in Equine Reproduction - a paper that covers aspects of stud management, reproductive anatomy and physiology, and factors that affect breeding management, fertility and conception, the onset of puberty, breeding season, fertility and conception, and parturition. Common health problems and applied nutrition of the foal, mare and stallion along with reproductive technologies – AI, semen collection and evaluation.
While completing her BSc degree at Massey, she worked for Animal Health Services (now Estendart Ltd) for 3 ½ years a research company. Where she was the Technical Manager as well as a Study Director, She also developed computerised systems to track vital study data and worked to and developed GLP standards and protocols. This has given her valuable first hand experience with standards required to set up a MAF approved semen collection and export facility.
With a unique combination of technological know how and hands on operation of a commercial sport horse stud, Victoria has already shown an excellent record of getting problem mares in foal for Longspring and other owners. She personally foals every mare and even in the last two years has prevented the deaths of three foals - from Red Bag Presentation, Neonatal Isoerythrolysis (NI) and suffocation due to mare foaling standing up, and the death of mare from dystocia of deceased foal.
In her spare time, Victoria follows the Longspring horses on the show circuit, helps with the breaking in, runs horse shows with Main-Events, follows rally driving, enjoys hunting and fishing and has a life pass to Mt Ruapehu for skiing.
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Rupert vallance
Rupert is a 5th generation farmer on 500 acres of the original family farm. He is also the 5th generation to work with horses as the favoured pastime. He is one from the old school in that he has a natural empathy with the horse and can do anything with them. This includes breaking horses, shoeing horses, dentistry, covering mares, collecting stallions, foaling mares, care of the young horse in sickness and in health and dealing with most equine emergencies.
In terms of outside training, he worked as a rider/groom on various studs or training centres in Australia (with Kalman de Jurenak), USA and Canada before returning home in 1977 to setup Longspring Stud.
Since then, Rupert has bred and started under saddle such top showjumpers as Super Moth LS, Duty Free LS, Falcon LS, Dealer LS, Kiwi Logic LS, Diomedes LS, Duty Bound LS, Dow Jones LS, Devlin LS, Kairangi Valley LS, Demonstrator LS, and top eventers including Denver LS, Whiplash LS, and Dan the Man LS to name a few. All these horses were sold as 4 or 5 year olds where they were went on to great things for their riders.
His real passion is getting horses correctly started under saddle, a passion he shows when training other young riders.
"Rupert is really easy to relate to and can explain basic concepts really well. If you have a problem, he will tell you and not beat around the bush which I appreciate. He has a wealth of knowledge that is rare to today’s horse world. As youngsters, all the Longspring horses that Rupert has started are very soft in the mouth and go forward well. They don’t have any bad habits to start with because they are broken in well. A lot of people comment on this at the shows." – Daryl Hodder, April 2008
"Rupert always teaches dressage in the traditional way, and sticks to the basic principles of dressage. He talks about the natural ability of the horse, and how one should enhance it." – Jeremy Gardner (aged 15), April 2008
Rupert is a valuable addition to the Syenz team with his all round experience and in depth knowledge of handling horses under some quite difficult situations. He is also responsible for much of the building and renovations required to set up the facilities.
His other interests include rock music, skiing, wood turning and building!
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Anne Vallance
Anne is Canadian by birth and moved to NZ with Rupert in 1977. She had very little background knowledge of horses but quickly found a niche in following pedigrees, writing for websites and developing software based on the equine industry.
Her very successful Main-Events software is used to run most of the showjumping shows around NZ including the Horse of the Year Show which has up to 750 customers with 1900 horses! Her company is working on a web enabled version of the software to allow for online entry into shows – the first trials of which are scheduled for this year.
She also developed the first computerised database system for the NZ Equestrian Federation in 1992 after being the editor of the NZEF Bulletin for 5 years. As the editor, she was one of the first in NZ to use desktop publishing software to do so.
After the Bulletin, Anne together with Gay Meyer from Mamaku Stud set up and operated a computerised national register of NZ Sport Horses before it was sold through Tradenz to the NZ Sport Horse Promotion Board in the early 1990’s.
Her company, Main-Events has a software program for Horse Owners that makes it easy for owners to track pedigrees, health, breeding and show results. She has clients in NZ, Australia and new clients in the USA and Malaysia.
She is currently working with Sport Wellington and Sport Manawatu implementing a database to track contacts, work undertaken with clubs, schools and other organisations and provide up to date statistical analysis of trends in membership profiles.
On the Syenz team, Anne brings her database skills in the production of a comprehensive database to run the Syenz operation and is herself one of the main data entry people. She can usually be found in the Syenz/Longspring office.
Her other interests include reading, art, playing bridge, dinner parties and looking up conspiracy theories on the internet (much to her daughters dismay!).
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Brett Martin
Brett, originally from Taihape, has recently joined the company providing much needed skills in the area of farm support. He was previously an agricultural contractor so his knowledge of pasture management is proving a valuable asset to the team. In addition with a background in things mechanical, Brett can be relied on to keep all machines in working order.
Brett’s interest in farming means that he can provide support in many areas including fencing, stock work, driving trucks and tractors, feeding out and of course helping with horses. As the quiet achiever, Brett can be relied on to get the job done. He relishes his role as stockman and checks all stock out back regularly for signs of ill health or injury.
His personal passion is rally car driving and he is one of NZ’s top rally car drivers finishing 5th at the recent International Rally Championship in Whangarei. Luckily the rally season is essentially over winter so that his two careers do not overlap.
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Charles Vallance
Charles is another family member but based in the Wairarapa. He lives in capital city, Wellington, and works as a web application developer for top company Signify Ltd.
He essentially is in charge of updating the website – provided he gets the material in a timely fashion from other team members. While his input is irregular, he is still a valuable member of the Syenz team.
His other interests are skiing, rugby, cricket.
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