# Appaloosas Anyone??



## cakemom

The barn we hang at ( not MY barn) but we refer to them as "our" horses because I spend my life there, has one they've had for a while who is a varnish and one who is new and is a leopard. They must be ap mix due to their size, but are stunning talented animals. Both are jumpers and lower level dressage horses...and excellent teachers. Can't load pics because I'm on my phone, but Appy can be seen on the website I'm working on for the barn www.highlandshorses.com and Snickers will be in his spot in a few moments as I'm a Louisiana girl and the Saints are losing so I gotta walk away!!
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## ShutUpJoe

This was my horse Poncho. He was my mom's horse. 








I'm a huge fan of the AppyXFriesians : )


































They are outstanding to look at.


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## tinyliny

*here's my favorite Appy*

This is Mac, or Mac Truck as I call him. That's his owner riding him. Wish she was MY avatar, but she is like 30 years younger than me and a much better rider.
Mac is the Subaru of horses. He can do ANYTHING to some degree, but not necessarily super well. He is extremely sturdy, NEVER lame, rarely trips in the roughest of terains, loves to lope/canter and will take it from a stand still. He is opinionated and doesn't see well, so can spook on the trail and has a terrific stop/drop shoulder/spin, as I can attest to from the ground looking up. I have great respect for Appys. Pure or blended in with AQHA or THBD or even Percheron. Dandy horses.


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## Lonestar22

Ohh yay I can share my babies!! I was never an Appaloosa fan because I loved them. I do find there patterns very interesting. But I now own 2 appys merely because they were the best horses I could afford/find. The first is my love Whooty. She has a heart of gold. She is a wonderful mare and I love her to bits. She likes to jump and to run and is a wonderful lesson and trail mare. I think she may be a thourghbred/appy cross. 




























And this is my new mare Daisy. We haven't really gotten to know each other that well yet. She's really sweet and is a good ride. Especially since she hadn't been ridden in over a year before I got her. She's not spotted and has a decent mane and tail. But she's registered. I love her lope.


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## lilruffian

Yes, any friesian cross is gorgeous in my opinion lol 
_Tinyliny_ i like your appy as well! His tail is awesome lol so silver!


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## Amarea

Here's my new baby Rain  I absolutely adore her to pieces!


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## tinyliny

Mac has a great tail but naturally roached main. The one time I rode him bareback I came off at a very minor spook. No main to grab! His is naturally roached. It just reaches a certain length and stops growing and stands straight up all the time. Looks like the Trojan horse.
My friend's horse is an appy. He is bigger and more overal varnish with some black spots. he has the thing tail but decent mane.
Go figure.


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## tinyliny

*Appy virtues*

Amarea,
Your horse Rain has good feet. That made remember to add that many appys have the nicest dinner plate feet. When I was new to riding I thought tidy little slipper sized hooves were attractive. Now I know that in general, bigger is better. Mac has the best feet. He is ouchy when barefoot, but we have such a lot of mud that it's not surprising. So , he is shod all 4 all the time and will go lickety split over rocks. Never a crack or abcess.


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## Amarea

Actually her feet are in bad shape right now. She had a founder episode from what appears to be last fall before I bought her. Indy is getting her feet back into shape but we still put Easyboots on her when we ride. She's doing great in them!


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## Alwaysbehind

My appy mare has everything that most people find ugly in an appy (me included). But she is built like a tank and has rock hard feet, so I am willing to ignore the lack of tail, seriously mottled skin and her eye that scares small children. (Yes, summer camp kid at the barn she was at for training said her eyes are scary.)


As a 2yo










Now, as a 4yo









(Yes, I know her halter is down her nose too far. I did not tack her up.)


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## tinyliny

OMG! She is adorable. How could anyone find her eye scary, it's like a teddy bear eye, you know the glass kind? That is one nice lil' horse. I like her looks from top to bottom and I bet she can ride most tall thbds into the ground on a long hard ride. She is sooo a keeper.!


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## lilruffian

Well atleast both her eyes are walled **** My gelding (in posted pics) had one normal eye & one wall-eye. He looked retarded!


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## QHDragon

I have a secret love of appaloosas. I have met some really stellar ones, but I have also met some with an attitude problem that I have heard can often be a problem with the breed. I would love a black appaloosa with just a few spots on it's butt. 

Here's an Appy mare that I helped rehome, Lilly. 




























I really liked her color the way it was (but I think she would have fully roaned out eventually), and she didn't have the typical pinkish skin around the nose and eyes. Sadly she needed a lot of professional work or I would have kept her for myself, she would have made a really cute hunter.

And then a couple that I like:

I like this guys pattern: CR - THE SECRET PARDON

And I like these two patterns:
http://www.crittercreek.com/crittercreeknew/Pianoman/IMAG016.JPG
(I know, not an appy)
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3262/2859969631_b93f2dcbb3.jpg


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## tinyliny

I haven't looked at the links yet but the lil' lady you helped rehome is adorable. Very nice conformation, great chest/shoulder and good neck tie in to the back, which is sturdy and short enough (many appys have long backs, like my Mac) A horse like that can go and go and go. I haven't met the Appy attitude. Attitude is not a crime. Behavior is the issue. I don't mind if my horse has a contrary opinion and wants to tell me about it, but he can't go home anyway, or bite me or run away. He can complain about it, but no act on those feelings.


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## QHDragon

Yeah, I liked how she was put together too, she was around 15 hands, but wide so she took up a lot of leg. She is endurance bred from what I understand (I don't know much about Appy pedigrees), here's her pedigree: Mms Irish Lace Appaloosa

She could round up like a dream and really move out so she could probably have done dressage too.


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## lilkitty90

here is my 6 month old appy x QH colt

the first picture show's his normal color when he isn't wet. lol it was his first time getting his sheath cleaned. he gets dirty too fast. it's already time for another cleaning. the rest are his confo pictures sparta doesn't have anything apploose related! i really wish he at least had the appy color or build lol and i promise in that one picture. he isn't that bum high! he is standing in a little hole snowflake dug pawing for her food.

the other horse is his mother, snowflake. she's fully appy.


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## smrobs

I don't own one and have never ridden one but in the 70's, my Dad was the head trainer at a Appy show farm. He had some of the best stock to choose from. He did most of the training and some of the showing on these horses.

American Quest:


















Buster Who (only did training, one of the owners daughters always showed him):









Devilweed:









Mighty Dialette (sp?):









Tumbleweed Devil (Devilweed's sire):


















Winforme (she was actually in foal to American Quest when she died of colic):









Mi Velvet Touch (that's my Mom in the pic LOL):


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## corinowalk

Ahhhh! You guys all posted "pretty" appys....now im gonna screw it all up with freckles! 

Freckles was a rescue horse who came in. She was one of the worst we'd ever seen. Not sure how she ever got in that condition as she got fat on AIR. She was a quirky girl with lots of character. Loved to go and we often speculated that she was probably a gamer in her old life. Never lame and always ready to ride. Too bad she was so ugly! Her new owner thinks she is the most beautiful horse in the world...Im not sure which horse she was looking at! 

Terrible sunburn. Not too long after she came. 









In the winter...where she didn't look so horrifying!


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## lilkitty90

maybe it's just me but i think freckles is gorgeous!! lol gimme gimme! i'll take her off your hands


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## lilruffian

_lilkitty90_, i love the color of your guy! & look at the legs on him! (so glad i dont have geldings though ****)

_smrobs_, i love the 2nd horse  he's gorgeous as well as the last 2.

_corinowalk_, i think i'll have to agree. That's almost exactly the sort of Appy that turns me off of them alltogether lol (the first would be a darker colored horse with that amount of pink mottling & no mane/tail) If it weren't for the intense pink skin around the eyes & muzzle, her spotting is actually quite neat lol.


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## Kelsyann

We have one Appy at my barn, Jack. He's like 35 and in my opinion, pretty ugly. Our vet calls Appys "Appalosers"


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## smrobs

Aw, poor guy, he is kinda ugly LOL. Looks like he has the personality to more than make up for it though.


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## lilkitty90

maybe i just have a thing for ugly appy's but i think Jack is gorgeous too! lol i'll take all the uglies please! =)


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## lilruffian

Poor Jack lol in the first pic i have to agree that he isn't pretty (the pink around the eyes as well as his nose looks large...) in the 2nd he actually looks nice lol (to me!) Then again i have a thing for albinos & cremellos. I love the spots on his butt


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## Lonestar22

awww. I lovethe ugly ones!!


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## Kelsyann

haha yeah jack's a sweet old guy. He was actually buckskin with those spots when he was younger. Don't have any pics on this computer though


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## Clair

This is Rosie and her owner 
They're a cute pair..
Rosie's had 2 babies herself, so she's straining to watch the gypsy vanner colt in the round pen!


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## speedy da fish

QHDragon, Lilly is beautiful, she looks like she has been snowed on 

I love appaloosas to look at and its always great when I see one, the're not very common round these parts... Also they rarely do well in shows because their pattern ruins their lines...

My fave, appy pattern is the near leopard









(and on other spotted breeds)

I also love appy/ drafts, because why not have something big and spotty?








appy/ shire


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## QHDragon

Aw thank you. She is now down in KY and is suppose to be bred to a friesian stallion. 

Somewhere I read that there was an "Appaloosa draft" breed of some sort, or at least a group of people trying to start one. I can't for the life of me remember what they are called though.


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## speedy da fish

Could that be the Pinzgauer-Noriker?









I also think Jack is handsome! What colour, cremello?


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## QHDragon

No, that doesn't ring a bell. It's a group of people trying to start a breed of appaloosa colored drafts.


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## Thyme

I love Appys and Appy/drafts but not the whole thing where most go blind


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## Indyhorse

speedy da fish said:


> I also love appy/ drafts, because why not have something big and spotty?


Haha couldn't agree more! :lol::lol:

My Claymore:









He's 1/2 appy, 1/4 paint, 1/4 clydesdale. (aha a big ol' mutt!) He gets the gorgeous, heavy, double mane of a clydesdale, but has a terrible habit of rubbing it off on fences. Thus, he got roached a week or two back. 

Here's him with his hair on:











Although I had never particularly considered appys "my breed", fact is I have had more appys than any other breed of horse in my life! 

My first appy was an arab/appy cross gaming pony, also a Freckles, she was hell on wheels and had a 300 mph spook at the rock at the end of my driveway on the way in and out of every single trail ride. I'd get off, and lead her, puffing and flaring, over to the rock, and kick it. She's go "oh!", deflate, shake it off...then spook again next time we passed that **** rock. That sums up her overall personality. Warning! Appys and Arabs do NOT mix well! The flight instinct of the Arab mixed with the Appy need to be melodramatic - she sure taught me to ride though!

ETA: AB, sorry to disagree but I have heart flutters at the sight of BF!


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## lilruffian

_Indyhorse_ i love him  especially in your avatar but that's just a color preference to me. He looks darker/more blue-roany in the avatar which i like over sorrel/bay. He's still handsome though!


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## MudPaint

I have a love hate relationship with Appies.. I love their coloring and I think they have a lot of heart and brains. And they I hate them because they are prone to skin problems, buck me off and well some are down right ornery. But I have met some wonderful ones. 

This is Duke. A horse a had for several years. He was a working cow horse/reiner that was the best hunter and trail horse. Any one could ride him in a halter on the trail for hours. He was also super comfy and had the quirkiness personality. 

When he didn't rub his tail I loved it. He had a silver streak through the center. No mane though.


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## lilruffian

I love him _MudPaint_. I dont even mind the muzzle on him, just the pink around the eyes... I can even just squint & pretend it's not there... lol He's jsut the color in Appy's that i love though! Even if he has no mane he looks so sweet.


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## MudPaint

He was THE BEST horse. I miss him dearly, but I'm allowed to stop in and see him whenever (and I do) and it makes me smile to see 5 kids piled on him in the field just playing. 

Yea I just learned to ignore the pink nose... his eyes actually had what was labeled "white liner" they didn't have the typical pink modeling. I kept a mask on all the time so they didn't get burnt. When he was slicked up, he shined silver all over. 

One big down side to owning an app... drawing him on the coggins. lol.


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## CopperHorse

Thought I would share some pics of Appaloosa's I have owned and raised over the years. I have had wonderful horses with great personalities, willing to learn and beautiful coat patterns too!!


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## Indyhorse

_*lilruffian*_, thanks! It's weird, isn't it? He is getting more and more sorrel roaned over time. When I saw the first pictures of him, he was solidly grey/blue roaned in his pattern areas, although his spots on his rump were still chocolatey brown. When he got shipped here (I bought him without ever seeing him in person lol) he had gone red across his chest and face. (which the seller had forewarned me of) and since I have had him the red has spread across his neck almost completely, you can still see little bits of grey/blue on the sides of his neck in the first picture, which was taken just last week. the second picture, which was earlier this summer, you can see he still had some grey/blue on his face (which is pretty much gone now) I figure by next spring it will all be gone.


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## tinyliny

Those are some nice looking Appys.
Heres a website that explains about the "Nez Perce Horse" , which is a new breed of horse being developed by the Nez Perce tribe to more accurately harken back to how they believe the original Appalousas looked. It's a cross between an Ahkel Teke and an Appy. Have alook.
Photo Gallery


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## lilruffian

Ooo_ CopperHorse_ that 2nd-to-last horse is gorgeous! Oh gosh so much for me not being an Appy fan lol maybe it's just the Appy's i see around my place that are fugly! ****!


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## KANSAS_TWISTER

as a kid i hated appy's, guess it stemed from saturday morning lesson on horse called skipper. like clock work he would buck me off when going from a trott to a canter. 

this memphis bell aka bell, i bought her at auction in march for $7.50, tells you where the horse market is in kansas...any how i fell in love with her.


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## A knack for horses

Copperhorse, I love the little foal that is is going "Attack!" on its mother. Sooo cute!


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## Alwaysbehind

I think you need to send Claymore to me. He looks highly unloved and in need of some care in that photo. Care that I am sure I can provide for him.

I just luff his big butt! He looks like it would be like riding on a couch.


Glad your heart flutters when you see BF. Mine does too, but for other reasons. :twisted:


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## bensmomma

This is Mojo he's my best friends horse. He was her second horse her dad bought for her, he was a retired cattle horse. He is really sweet and easy to ride when hes in a good mood lol


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## Indyhorse

Bensmomma, see to me, when I think Appy, I think of ones like Mojo there, Amarea's Rain, and Tinyliny's Mac. It's really interesting to see how the breed has changed over time. 



Alwaysbehind said:


> I think you need to send Claymore to me. He looks highly unloved and in need of some care in that photo. Care that I am sure I can provide for him.
> 
> I just luff his big butt! He looks like it would be like riding on a couch.



Haha yeah he's terribly neglected. I never feed him. He's starved and unloved, just like all my horses :wink:

And for the record, he IS just like riding a couch! :lol:


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## Alwaysbehind

Does that mean I can have him? :wink:


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## corinowalk

LOVE the couch picture! I need one like that with Rosie! I betcha her back is even MORE table like!


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## Cowgirl140ty

Well... I have to share my appies.

This is LA Storm... AKA Ty. 9 year old Gelding. He is a 2D barrel horse as well as a Winning Open Jackpot Sorting/cutting/Penning Horse. Raised and Trained by me.
































This is L A Malibu Maui... AKA Roxy. 3 year old mare. She is very broke and level headed. She is begining reining training.
















The is ImHeirrisistibleToo... AKA Thor. 2 year old Gelding. Has been started undersaddle. But really hes just getting to be a baby for the most part. For another 6 months anyways.


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## herdbound

Ummmmmmm I owned a Leopard Appy named Diesel. First I hate the eyes...they always look freaked out...second he was a total A-hole and a biter...didn't like people...probably all not his fault. I got him when he was 12...he bit my son...and would try to chase you down open mouthed at feeding time...not such a nice boy...so I sold him for fear he was gonna hurt the kids. If you have children then you know that whatever you tell them to stay away from is the one thing they are most attracted too. So we parted ways...I think Appys are like Arabians...you either love them or hate them.


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## Thorn4

I love Appaloosas, they're probably my favorite. I love the colour variations and the patterns. It always reminds me of a smudge, or a paint splatter on the horse, Haha.


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## FoxyRoxy1507

speedy da fish said:


> I also love appy/ drafts, because why not have something big and spotty?
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> appy/ shire


omg i want. THAT HORSE IS GORGEOUS and built really well. yum


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## rainydaywoman

I love my App. He is such a sweetheart and so willing! I heard all the stories about App temperments, but I came home with a willing soul. For those of you that have had Apps before, he is about 10 years old, a sorrell with a blanket, but tail is starting to lighten up and getting more white spots else where on is body, is that normal?


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## smrobs

Wow KT, Bell is really growing up nice.


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## RoCru

I LOVE Appy's! That's what I'm hoping to invest in in the Spring! Can't wait! I love all the variations you can get.  There's so many gorgeous Appy's in this thread! Although my fav is Jack!


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## phoenix

I wish i had a photo of the appy at our barn, she is the plug ugliest horse i have ever seen. no mane, no tail, crazy eyes and a big head. Just plain ugly. However, her owner loves her and from what i've heard she is the trail horse of anyones dreams. 

I'd never heard that appys have an attitude, this explains a lot. My horse is half appy and does in fact have a need to be melodramatic, take today for instance, all i did was ask him to canter and he spun around and took off bucking and farting across the field like i had asked him to do something completely impossible. 

It might also explain how my once solid black horse is now roaning, he probably got that gene from his appy daddy. Luckily he inherited everything else from the mustang side so he's pretty


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## Citrus

My friends appy has a heart shaped spot on his backside.... let me see if I can get her permission to post that photo online.... I call it is his love button and it was literally the first thing I noticed about him


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## Alwaysbehind

Citrus said:


> My friends appy has a heart shaped spot on his backside.... let me see if I can get her permission to post that photo online.... I call it is his love button and it was literally the first thing I noticed about him


Sounds cute!


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## QHDragon

Citrus said:


> My friends appy has a heart shaped spot on his backside.... let me see if I can get her permission to post that photo online.... I call it is his love button and it was literally the first thing I noticed about him



There was an appy at the barn that had a heart shaped spot on his butt too. Hmmm, where are you located? His name was braveheart, but he was the biggest chicken ever.


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## Cowgirl140ty

rainydaywoman said:


> I love my App. He is such a sweetheart and so willing! I heard all the stories about App temperments, but I came home with a willing soul. For those of you that have had Apps before, he is about 10 years old, a sorrell with a blanket, but tail is starting to lighten up and getting more white spots else where on is body, is that normal?


Id say so. My apps tend to get spots on there neck in the winter, but go away when they shed. All the appaloosas I have owned are constantly changing.


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## Lonestar22

It's refreshing to see so many Appy lovers!! I allways get weird looks when I say I have 2 Appys. There are so many negative things said about the breed! But my girls are saints! I love them to death. My ugly one Whooty (I think she's a throughbred/appy imagine how that looks lol) is an amazing trail horse! she's such a blast to ride. And My new girl Daisy is proving to be one hell of a trail horse as well. They are both great horses. Better than any QH or TB we've ever owned. I love them both to death!


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## Eastowest

_>>>>I love Appys and Appy/drafts but not the whole thing where most go blind _

SOME Appaloosa colored horses have eye trouble, but nowhere near "most". I have owned several Appaloosas in their teens and twenties and only had 2 mares that were blind (sisters, both in their twenties, and they were that way when i got them) and one stallion (again, into his 20s). I currently have 9 Appaloosas on the farm and not one with any eye trouble, including the 17 and 19 year old mares, and the 12 year old stallion with a fair bit of mottling around his eyes.

_>>>>And they I hate them because they are prone to skin problems_

???? Please explain. beyond potentially sunburning where they are pink (which any horse with a white marking with pink skin can be prone to-- I have an Arab mare with a big blaze that runs into a fully pink upper lip with a sunburn on her nose right now) what skin problems have you had in Appaloosas?


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## SpeedDemon

I love Appy's i had a spotty traditional cob a few years ago, he was very odd loking buty had the best personality of all my horses, no i have a Roan gelding but no-one is really sure what kind of roan he is


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## QHDragon

Eastowest said:


> _>>>>I love Appys and Appy/drafts but not the whole thing where most go blind _
> 
> SOME Appaloosa colored horses have eye trouble, but nowhere near "most". I have owned several Appaloosas in their teens and twenties and only had 2 mares that were blind (sisters, both in their twenties, and they were that way when i got them) and one stallion (again, into his 20s). I currently have 9 Appaloosas on the farm and not one with any eye trouble, including the 17 and 19 year old mares, and the 12 year old stallion with a fair bit of mottling around his eyes.
> 
> _>>>>And they I hate them because they are prone to skin problems_
> 
> ???? Please explain. beyond potentially sunburning where they are pink (which any horse with a white marking with pink skin can be prone to-- I have an Arab mare with a big blaze that runs into a fully pink upper lip with a sunburn on her nose right now) what skin problems have you had in Appaloosas?


Could be talking about them getting skin cancer? Or those lumps that they sometimes have around the gentiles. Of course, the horse that I leased over the summer had black skin and he had some of those lumps too.


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## Alwaysbehind

QHDragon said:


> Could be talking about them getting skin cancer? Or those lumps that they sometimes have around the gentiles. Of course, the horse that I leased over the summer had black skin and he had some of those lumps too.


Melanomas are common in any gray horse. Not something special to the appy breed.


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## speedy da fish

I love Claymore! He is a celeb on this forum! Love the faded marks around his spots, there is probably a name for that in appy speak?


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## Indyhorse

I've had, as I mentioned, several appaloosa's over my lifetime, and not found any higher incidence of skin problems or eye problems than any other breed. I have had one appaloosa who is now blind in 1 eye, but he is also 36 years old and still healthy! The blindness in 1 eye in his case is solely due to age and a cataract rather than anything to do with his breeding. I've also owned two, and met many more, TWs who have been diagnosed with chronic uveitis (moon blindness) so I can't say my experience with eye problems has weighed heavily in the appy corner. And my chestnut foundation QH sunburned on his pink nose just as badly as any of my apps have, I don't think that is breed related either, just that they often have more white on them, and pink skin to be affected.


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## Indyhorse

Speedy da fish, haha thanks! He's a rock star. Someone told me what the rings around his spots are called, but I've forgotten. I do love it though!


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## aforred

Indyhorse said:


> Speedy da fish, haha thanks! He's a rock star. Someone told me what the rings around his spots are called, but I've forgotten. I do love it though!


Do you mean the halo spots?


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## xeventer17

Unfortunately, I have not yet had the pleasure of owning an appy :[ There are two I am absolutely in love with though, one of which I'm still considering buying.

The one I'd like to buy is named lightning. He's an appyxwelsh but has all the attitude of an appy. Haha. He's fun though, and super talented and I just absolutely adore him.

















The other one is actually a Nez Pierce horse and he's just absolutely gorgeous and also one of the most talented horses I've ever met. He's a complete grump though and wayyyy too smart for his own good.


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## Indyhorse

Yes, halo, that's what they are called! (in fact you might have been the one who told me that before, Affored! lol)

xeventer17, ahh the second horse is gorgeous!


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## Hunter65

indyhorse said:


> haha couldn't agree more! :lol::lol:
> 
> My claymore:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> he's 1/2 appy, 1/4 paint, 1/4 clydesdale. (aha a big ol' mutt!) he gets the gorgeous, heavy, double mane of a clydesdale, but has a terrible habit of rubbing it off on fences. Thus, he got roached a week or two back.
> 
> Here's him with his hair on:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> although i had never particularly considered appys "my breed", fact is i have had more appys than any other breed of horse in my life!
> 
> My first appy was an arab/appy cross gaming pony, also a freckles, she was hell on wheels and had a 300 mph spook at the rock at the end of my driveway on the way in and out of every single trail ride. I'd get off, and lead her, puffing and flaring, over to the rock, and kick it. She's go "oh!", deflate, shake it off...then spook again next time we passed that **** rock. That sums up her overall personality. Warning! Appys and arabs do not mix well! The flight instinct of the arab mixed with the appy need to be melodramatic - she sure taught me to ride though!
> 
> Eta: Ab, sorry to disagree but i have heart flutters at the sight of bf!



i love claymore :d


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## Alwaysbehind

Hunter65 said:


> i love claymore :d


Sorry, I am stealing him, so you will have to fight me for him..... (But do not tell Indy :wink: )


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## lilruffian

I wish i had pics of a certain colt from an Appy breeding farm near me... I should sneak over to the fence one day & take some shots he he he.
Their stallion is always near the road & although my friend thinks he's pretty i think he's hideous! lol His son in the adjoining paddock (im putting him around 1 or 2yrs) is gorgeous!
There's also another Appy who lives near the dump in town (yes, the dump lol along with 2 other horses & a buffalo!) that i seriously want to snatch up!


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## Hunter65

Alwaysbehind said:


> Sorry, I am stealing him, so you will have to fight me for him..... (But do not tell Indy :wink: )



Put up yer dukes!


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## Alwaysbehind

I live lots closer than you do, I will get there first. And heck, his spots will fit right in at my house.


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## ChevyPrincess

I own 1 appaloosa, and work with a horse trainer who breeds and trains them. They are very verastile, loving horses.


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## CecilliaB

I am not an appie fan. I really am not a paint fan either. I like solid color horses with white socks and blazes....BUT I own a 1/2 appie filly  I got her for her. She's a real sweety!


Squared up by Cecillia B Photography, on Flickr


Full of herself by Cecillia B Photography, on Flickr


Food stuck in her teeth! by Cecillia B Photography, on Flickr


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## Lonestar22

Wow! She's gorgeous. I love her lone spot. And her black legs. She's stunning.


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## QHDragon

Her lone spot is really cool! Love her color too. what is her other half?


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## tinyliny

*to xenenter17*

With regard to chosing a horse from the two you showed us;
The Nez perce horse is just stunning! Does it have chrome?
The other horse is also very attractive, but more in the "cute" range.

Do you want the challenge of a horse that is too smart for his own good, as you put it? Will you feel safe or always "on the edge".?
I guess it depends on your experience level. I just encourage you to think on the side of safety/sanity. You will have lifetime to get the more challenging horse. Especially if this will be your first horse to own.

They are both lovely choices. 
My friend has a nez perce. he is jet black. She could not deal with him when she started to trian him as a two year old, but she is rather timid and he just walked all over her. The trainer had to start carefully as that horse was the kind that if you pushed him too hard, he would push back and try to come at you with intent to do damage. Now, after working with him, he is turning out to be a good horse, but definitely not for horsemannship 101.


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## inaclick

I don't get it.
I keep looking at this pictures, I realy don't get it. 
Why would people say these horses are ugly?
To my inexperienced eye they look just like a more traditional style OH with some quite unique coat patterns.

Whats ugly about that, why would people not like them?
(And am I very wrong thinking they are very similar to OHs in build?)


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## speedy da fish

CecilliaB said:


> I am not an appie fan. I really am not a paint fan either. I like solid color horses with white socks and blazes....BUT I own a 1/2 appie filly  I got her for her. She's a real sweety!
> 
> 
> Squared up by Cecillia B Photography, on Flickr
> 
> 
> Full of herself by Cecillia B Photography, on Flickr
> 
> 
> Food stuck in her teeth! by Cecillia B Photography, on Flickr


Now thats what I call 'few spot'!


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## Alwaysbehind

inaclick said:


> Whats ugly about that, why would people not like them?
> (And am I very wrong thinking they are very similar to OHs in build?)


I do not think it is their physical build that people find ugly.
Rat tails are one thing that many people think when they think appy and most people a rat tail ugly.
Also, the mottling around the eye and the amount of white many of them show even when relaxed is another reason people find them ugly.


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## CecilliaB

QHDragon said:


> Her lone spot is really cool! Love her color too. what is her other half?


Thanks! I love her spot to...call it her beauty mark 

Other half is foundation QH


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## smrobs

Alwaysbehind said:


> I do not think it is their physical build that people find ugly.
> Rat tails are one thing that many people think when they think appy and most people a rat tail ugly.
> Also, the mottling around the eye and the amount of white many of them show even when relaxed is another reason people find them ugly.


Exactly, the original Appaloosa horses were, in general, not exactly eyecatching. They had rat tails, skimpy manes, big heads and feet, and were just kinda clunky looking. They have been refined and interbred with QHs for enough generations that most of them are very similar to QHs in build and appearance other than the loud coat colors.


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## Hunter65

CecilliaB said:


> Thanks! I love her spot to...call it her beauty mark
> 
> Other half is foundation QH



She is gorgeous. I didn't take her if she disappears lalalala......:wink:


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## Eastowest

Originally Posted by *QHDragon*  
_Her lone spot is really cool! Love her color too. what is her other half?_
_>>> Other half is foundation QH _
So I am curious-- is she registered with ApHC? (since AQHA is an approved breed cross for ApHC.)


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## Eastowest

_>>>> Exactly, the original Appaloosa horses were, in general, not exactly eyecatching. They had rat tails, skimpy manes, big heads and feet, and were just kinda clunky looking. They have been refined and interbred with QHs for enough generations that most of them are very similar to QHs in build and appearance other than the loud coat colors. _

IMO it depends on what you consider original, and then, which original Appaloosas you are looking at. 

Back when the ApHC was founded in 1938, any light horse type with the approved coloring was registerable as an Appaloosa. This meant that there were alot of "common" horses registered. 

IMO this commonness was not because they were early Appaloosas-- rather, like all horses back then, there were levels of quality-- grade and/or utilitarian and/or less expensive horses often looked pretty plain in the head and coarse and clunky overall, as these non-appaloosa horses from the early 1900's illustrate--
























On the flip side, there were some comparatively fancy, refined Appaloosas even back in the Foundation era--

Chief Malheur, foaled 1935










Mansfield Comanche, foaled 1933












As far as the thin hair-- its not necessarily just an "old Appaloosa" trait-- the thin M/T is tied to the LP gene, and any horse that inherits LP potentially could also inherit some degree of thin M/T. Horses which are 15/16 TB or QH can and do turn up with rat tails and no manes--there are still occasionally European Knabstruppers with rat tails and thin manes as well, even though their studbook inspections penalize it heavily in a breeding animal. While the really sparse hair can be pretty successfully bred away from, it still is "in there" and occasionally comes back out when least expected.


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## aforred

I love it when you bring out the appaloosa history, Eastowest! Thanks for the old pictures, and the lesson in genetics.


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## tinyliny

EastoWest,
What great pictures! That Mansfield horse was somepin' else, wouldn't you say. Those older , heavy horses were durable and had to be. They look a lot more like the kind of horses the Army used for the cavalry.
A while back I rented this cool dvd set from Netflix all about The Civil War Horses. or something like that. The photos showed the type of horse they used and looks something like those.
Have you looked at the website for The Nez Perce horse? They quoted some desription written by Lewis and Clark of the tribes appys. They say that that is why they are adding Ahkel Teke blood; to try to get back to the original look. I wonder . . . .


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## Citrus

QHDragon said:


> There was an appy at the barn that had a heart shaped spot on his butt too. Hmmm, where are you located? His name was braveheart, but he was the biggest chicken ever.


I live in Colorado.... but the horse has lived in Pennsylvania as well... owner on vacation right now so I am waiting to hear back from her


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## Eastowest

_>>>> Have you looked at the website for The Nez Perce horse? They quoted some desription written by Lewis and Clark of the tribes appys. They say that that is why they are adding Ahkel Teke blood; to try to get back to the original look. I wonder . . . . _

I am familiar with the program that some Nez Perce are undertaking-- I am not sure that the particular cross they are using would be my choice, if I was starting from scratch and had the funding to re-develop a type of horse. I DO know that way back before the current breeding program started, a man that is/was involved with the tribe's horse program negotiated donation of the first Akhal Tekes from an Akhal Teke breeder, so IMO there is probably some component of availabitiy of a rare breed to cross to that influenced the direction of the breeding program.

The quote from the Lewis and Clark journals is;

"Their horses appear to be of an excellent race; they are lofty eligantly formed active and durable; in short many of them look like the fine English coarsers and would make a figure in any country. some of those horses are pided with large spots of white irregularly scattered and intermixed with the black brown bey or some other dark colour, but much the larger portion are of an uniform colour with stars snips and white feet, or in this rispect marked much like our best blooded horses in virginia, which they resemble as well in fleetness and bottom as in form and colours."

Based on the finest horses in VA at the time of Lewis and Clark that could be classified as "fine English coarsers", they would be comparing them to English Thoroughbreds used for "coursing"-- ie. racing. 

Here are some artist's depictions of TBs from that era (late 1700s/early 1800s)

Eagle- imp. to VA 1811...........Sir Archy f. in VA 1805..................Shark - imp to VA 1786
























Duroc-- f. in VA 1806.................Diomed- imp to VA 1798............Saltram- imp to VA 1799























Based on the description from Lewis and Clark, and the images and descriptions of the finest VA TBs in their day, if I was serious about recreating the horses Lewis and Clark saw and described, I would be choosing TBs and certain Arabians and perhaps certain QHs before I looked at Akhal Tekes.


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## MudPaint

Eastowest said:


> Based on the description from Lewis and Clark, and the images and descriptions of the finest VA TBs in their day, if I was serious about recreating the horses Lewis and Clark saw and described, I would be choosing TBs and certain Arabians and perhaps certain QHs before I looked at Akhal Tekes.


Agreed or even adding some light baroque lineage. I don't think I'd have chosen the Akhal Tekes as they were a specialized breed for the deserts and pass on inherit traits you would not see in any App. 

As to skin problems I had mentioned. Because most Apps have pink skin they are prone to burns as well as melanoma. It may be something with a local breeder here, but I've also seen a lot of facial warts. Granted the skin issue is something that comes with any colored breed... but when you are talking about a breed that typically has the traits that makes them susceptible to these problems, it's always something you must consider on purchase. Though that never stopped me from purchasing one or looking at another. Personally I really really want a Knabstupper one day.


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## ChevyPrincess

Horses skins don't usually burn on colored coats (chesnut, black, etc). White coats, doesn't matter what breed, always seem to get sunburn. My black and white paints seem to get frequent burns than by appaloosa and pintaloosa. 

Every breed has it's ups and downs. One thing, if you get an appaloosa, say bye-bye to hoof worries! Lol, they have super strong feet, and hardly ever crack. From my expierence with them, they are hardy, willing, and generally mild temperments. 

I only dream to know as much about them as EastoWest someday! Lol


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## Alwaysbehind

Eastowest, love your history lessons! Thank you!


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## QHDragon

I too found that the fact that they are crossing them to Akhal Teke a little weird. I would think there would be more TB and Arab influence before there was Akhal Teke influence and I thought that breed was fairly secluded in it's native area.


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## heart2heartequestrian

*I love my blind appaloosa!*

My first horse was a blind appaloosa named Radar. He was a very true bred appy, not a colored QH as i have seen a lot of lately.He was a red and blue roan with a huge blanket of spots and a sparse wild looking mane and long black an white tail. He was a big-boned guy with a great set of legs on him. He was the best horse i have ever had. He was Completely blind for most of his life. I started riding him in his early 30s and he passed away last year at 40. Talk about longevity. I began taking lessons on him, fell absolutely in love and sponsored him for a few years. My mom figured a good old school master was a good choice of 1st horse. So he became a birthday present one year. The barn i was at just signed him over, free, because no one wanted a blind old horse. He was a very trustworthy horse. If you began to lose your balance and fall he would step underneath you and catch you. The bond between blind horse and rider is so much different and exhilarating. There was more trust and less spook. He and I bonded and rode so well that people didn't even know he was blind. They would compliment me on his "blue eyes". They were in disbelief that he could not see. He did western pleasure, barrels, and i began some dressage training on him which i was learning via a good book, and we excelled at it. We rode through miles and miles of trails, out for 5 hours on a few occasions and despite his age and some arthritis, he was healthy, fit and had more stamina that the 5 year olds. He had some innocent rage to him, and most of my friends couldn't handle him on the trail, he just wanted to go go go and couldn't stand still. All around great horse, and was an easy keeper up untill a few months before he passed, he had some dental and chewing issues and couldn't chew the alfalfa, so i switched him to pellets and mash so he became a little thin, as u can see in the photos, they were the last ones taken of him. But he loved to ride, so we continued to ride him a little, to keep him from being agitated.He was moved from stall life to a huge paddock with a "horse house" so he could be free range with my mare who he loved. He died a very happy horse. I miss him so much. I am considering adopting another blind appy in the future.
for a video of us riding in his last days go to my web site
heart2heartequestrianconnection.yolasite.com


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## Alwaysbehind

heart2heartequestrian said:


> and a sparse wild looking mane


There is nothing about that mane that looks sparse to me. It looks pretty thick, actually.


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## heart2heartequestrian

ooopse.... i meant coarse lol
yeah it was very thick!


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## lilkitty90

has anyone noticed that most appies have quite coarse feeling hair and fur? or maybe it's just the couple of appies i've been around.


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## Lonestar22

Hmm. One of my mares has really fine coat hair, and virtually no mane and tail. My other mare has a bit more mare, an almost decent tail, and a very nice coat. But they aren't noticably coarser than any other horses.


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## Alwaysbehind

lilkitty90 said:


> has anyone noticed that most appies have quite coarse feeling hair and fur? or maybe it's just the couple of appies i've been around.



My mare (the one whose photos I posted) has the softest coat ever.


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## MudPaint

lilkitty90 said:


> has anyone noticed that most appies have quite coarse feeling hair and fur? or maybe it's just the couple of appies i've been around.


My Apps coat was short and fine much like a TB. What little mane he had was like fuzz. His tail was coarse though. I was always conditioning it in attempts to make it soft and full... fail.


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## QHDragon

Here's the appy I may start leasing as soon as I can ride regularly and am better healed.

He has no mane and no tail, is almost 17 hands, and is wide as he is tall.


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## QHDragon

Found a picture of his cute butt...and lack of tail.


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## lilruffian

I love his color though _Qhdragon_. THat's my favorite Appy pattern  & he has such gentle-looking eyes


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## QHDragon

Yeah I like his color too. He's kind of a rose color in the daylight. He has a grumpy old man (he's 22) attitude though.


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## tinyliny

*Happy Appy*

Heartoheart,
I loved your story! You might consider fleshing it out a little and sending it in to a magazing like Equus or send to the Appalousa Association. Or even Dressage Today. I liked the last photo as you took your bow. Should have taught him to bow, too. Very sweet story and well written. 
Makes me appreciate Mac, the Mac Truck. He isn't blind, tho ,and is prone to spooking when the sun is bright and the contrast high.

QHDragon,
You have been off horses lately? I am new to the forum so don't know everybody's history. That big Appy looks very grand to me. He is not THAT wide. I though he was gonna be a table, but the shot from the rear just looks "husky".

I am attaching a drawing I made of an Appy


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## QHDragon

Oh, nice artwork.

I had ACL/meniscus surgery 5 weeks ago, haven't been able to ride since mid-July due to my injury.


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## heart2heartequestrian

Here is a video of me and Radar, my completely blind , old and thin appaloosa.
its kind of tear jerker, it makes me cry.


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## heart2heartequestrian

Here is the video, the last thread didn't work.

Me and Radar, completely blind, old thin appy.
You can see how jolly he still was, and how happy he was to be ridden because we didnt ride him as often at that time because he was so thin.
Here i go yammering on... I just really miss him.


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