By Anette Sånesson / SWB (translated by Hillevi Brasch)
Photography: Cecilia Hallqvist/private collection

Surveys performed in recent years have shown that the typical Swedish Warmblood breeder is a middle-aged woman whose mare(s) produced one or two foals per year. Yvonne Persson fits this description very well.

At the end of September, Yvonne received an award for her Elite mare, Dancing Princess – her third Elite mare after some 40 years as a small-scale breeder.
Yvonne did not grow up with horses but gravitated towards them at an early age. She began riding at the age of six and, as she grew older, her work at the Malmö Riding Club generated riding lessons in exchange for stable chores. As a teenager, Yvonne also worked in both horse racing and harness racing stables, providing the opportunity to ride racehorses and to drive Standardbred trotters. “It was a really fun and educational time,” Yvonne said. “I learned a lot, and it was great to learn about the behavior of horses at a young age.”
Breeding had long been a significant interest for Yvonne and had a special place in her heart from an early age. In 1986, Yvonne and her husband Kai bought the farm in Hofterup, which presented the opportunity to start breeding horses. “My first mare was a 40th birthday present from Kai, but we had such bad luck, both the mare and the foal died during foaling,” Yvonne recalls.
Through an advertisement in the magazine Tidningen Ridsport, Yvonne later found the mare Cavina, and it was love at first sight. “When I saw her coming towards me in the pasture with wonderful movements and her mane flying in the air, I said, ‘there comes my horse’.” With a smile, Yvonne noted that Cavina is essentially the only horse she has ever purchased.
Cavina, a daughter of Cavalotti, received 38 points and Class I when she was three years old and was bred to Mowgli. Yvonne’s first impression of the mare turned out to be spot on. Cavina gave eight offspring, five from showjumping lineage and three from dressage stallions, producing Yvonne’s first Elite mare. Two of the offspring have been finalists in young horse classes, four have reached M-level in dressage or showjumping, and the star Pebble Beach has competed in international eventing and represented Finland at championship level... To read the complete article you need to be a subscriber
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