Mystery Photo Number 1 from N/L No 4 revealed: -

Bloxham Blue Belle with Catherine Wager

After BB was featured in 'Mystery Photo No. 1' last issue, Kim invited me to write a small piece about here to share with the members, so here goes..

BLOXHAM BLUE BELLE 1993 15.1hh dual registered Appaloosa mare by Amazing Blue (Mr Mighty Handy x Straws Cutie Bid) out of Capitall Ettie (Tibertich Poncho x Appy Arriet).

I bought BB in 1998 after three years of craving an Appaloosa as my first horse. When I first saw the advert I thought that she sounded too good to be true, but after making the trip to Northamptonshire to see her I knew straight away that she was the horse for me. Hence BB came home to Suffolk a week later and she has been a part of the family ever since. 

BB, although herself by no means perfect, has all the bloodlines I had wanted in my Appaloosa since I had started studying any number of Appy newsletters, books and journals. To me, her American sire Amazing Blue is everything an Appaloosa should be, fitting the definition from Richardson 's book 'The Appaloosa' perfectly, 'a horse built on a Thoroughbred frame with Quarter horse muscling.' His stock have proved themselves again and again and I still feel honoured and ecstatic to actually own one of his offspring.

BB's English dam, Capitall Ettie, possesses the breeding of, in my opinion, two of the most influential Appaloosa studs in the country. After reading Ann Hyland's book and studying the bloodlines I had fallen in love with two stallions in particular, the loudly marked Capitall Cyril and the exotic Argentinean bred Tibertich Chaco and both of these two beautiful Appaloosas Ettie can claim as a grandsire.

I won't bore you with my gushing much longer, only to say that after fourteen years of being brought up predominantly around Arabs, I have found BB the most different horse I have ever known (in both good and bad ways!!). She knows all too well that she has a home for life with me. I will never get rid of her - goodness knows I've tried!!