Brittany Callahan completes internship at Hilltop Farm in Colora, Md.

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Photo 1: Brittany Callahan with Festrausch at the Cazenovia College Equine Education Center

• Photo 2: Festrausch, photo provided by Hilltop Farm.

CAZENOVIA, NY (01/03/2011)(readMedia)-- Most students at Cazenovia College are required to complete an internship related to their course of study during their college career. After looking at the Web sites of several possible internship sites, Brittany Callahan, an equine business management major from Wrightsville, Pa., knew where she wanted to work.

"When I saw the photos and read about Hilltop Farm, I knew it was the right place for me," she says. "I applied for an internship in their Raising Department, but that position had already been filled. Of course I was disappointed, but when they asked me if I'd be willing to work in the office, I happily accepted."

For the summer of 2010, Callahan lived at Hilltop Farm, and worked in the breeding office, answering the phone, coordinating semen shipments to breeders, tracking United States Equine Federation (USEF) points won by offspring of Hilltop's horses, among other clerical duties. "It may not have been my first choice, but I loved the office work," says Callahan. "It's fast paced, and varied – I never had a chance to be bored, and I still got to work with the horses."

Carol Buckhout, assistant professor in the Equine Business Management program, also serves as the internship coordinator for the Equine Business Management students and instructs several of the breeding courses at the College. She says, "This was a new experience for Brittany - she had never worked in an office setting prior to this time. Her internship at Hilltop opened her eyes to new opportunities in the equine industry."

Buckhout continued, "We are very proud of Brittany, and all of our students as they pursue internship opportunities that put them at the level of top businesses such as Hilltop Farm. I think Brittany proved she's indispensable as an assistant to the manager. She proved that what she was doing was more than an internship."

Callahan comes from a horse family. Her grandfather is Preston Herbst, a thoroughbred horse trainer. She and her twin sister, Jennifer (a student in St. Andrews Presbyterian College's equine program), worked in the barn starting from age five, and both own off-the-track thoroughbreds. "We did lots of handling of thoroughbreds," she says, "but neither of us ever raced."

Her childhood experiences keep Callahan tied to hands-on horse care. In addition to her office work, she made herself useful in the stables at Hilltop. She says, "The horses get all spruced up and have their manes braided – I love doing that, so I was involved in many of the shows."

During one of the most prestigious shows of the season, Dressage at Devon, in Devon, Pa., Callahan and Kristen Blaikie, a Hilltop groom, came to the rescue when a horse and rider fell in the muddy warm-up area. Callahan says, "We helped the rider up, and while the stewards made sure she wasn't injured, we cleaned the horse up, so by the time the girl was cleared to ride, her horse was ready for the show ring. The fallen horse and rider placed fourth in their division."

For their quick and selfless action, the two were honored with the event's Sportsmanship Award. It was a complete surprise to Callahan. "They didn't tell us we were getting an award. They just gave us tickets to the grand prix event, and pushed us into the ring before the event started," she laughs.

Callahan's internship supervisor, Natalie DiBerardinis, general manager and breeding manager at Hilltop Farm, said, "I'm so proud of both these young women, and Brittany definitely deserves the 'Best Intern Ever' title."

Callahan's work in the stables included caring for the 'babies' and the older horses, preparing them for inspection by judges. She met Festrausch, a Westfalen stallion who was part of Hilltop's breeding program, when it became her task to find a new home for him. She was excited to discover that Cazenovia College was looking for a new stallion for its breeding program, and, with her supervisor, made the arrangements to move him to Cazenovia.

'Festy' is now one of Callahan's favorite horses at the Equine Center. "The Equine Center staff is responsible for his daily care, but I try to find time to groom him once or twice a week and I visit him whenever I go to the barn. Festy has adjusted amazingly well to the busy environment at the College's Equine Education Center, and we are looking forward to the spring breeding season."

With her sights set on a career in the equine industry, Callahan hopes for work exactly like what she was doing at Hilltop. For the near future, she hopes to qualify for the 2011 Intercollegiate Horse Show Association's national competitions in the spring, and is eager to continue building on the skills she learned during her internship at Hilltop Farm.

Photo1: Brittany Callahan with Festrausch at the Cazenovia College Equine Education Center - Photo by John Seiter

Photo 2: Festrausch, photo provided by Hilltop Farm.

Cazenovia College, named one of "America's Best Colleges" by US News & World Report, is an independent, co-educational, baccalaureate college, located near Syracuse, N.Y. Cazenovia, selected as a College of Distinction by www.collegesofdistinction.com, offers a comprehensive liberal arts education in an exceptional community environment, with academic and co-curricular programs devoted to developing leaders in their professional fields. For more information, visit www.cazenovia.edu.

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