Appaloosa Members Spotlight

Member Spotlight – Kirsten Corless – Ali and Bea

HKF Grand Finale and HKF Bea Dazzled


Where do I start! I joined BApS in April 2020, not really knowing what it was. I just got a form when I purchased my yearling Appaloosa, no idea what it meant or what LP/LP, PATN 1, leopards, blankets, few spots, blanket spots or snow-capped was, like what is this, 101 Dalmatians or a science project? I didn’t quite know, all I did know was my bay yearling I’d just bought had a white bum – apparently that’s special to you guys, us folk, now I understand why 😊But by golly, it’s been two of the best years of my life. My snow-capped Blanket Appaloosa – Ali (HKF Grand Finale) has truly blown me away. She’s my first Appaloosa, my first yearling and bringing her up and teaching her how to be a good person, is truly the best experience I’ve ever had.


Now how did I end up with an Appaloosa you may ask!

I’ve always loved horses, as a kid, I was that kid that used to run around the playground neighing and cantering about – yes strange I know! So, after much begging and pleading to my mum, 14-year-old me found myself with my first horse, a wonderful confidence giving…… Ex racer (don’t laugh), fresh off the track, a six-year-old gelding, gelded 3 months earlier!! Yippee I was over the moon, my first horse. My Malek, a liver chestnut beauty who was wonderful, my absolute everything. He turned his hoof to anything but jumping; hacking, dressage, galloping (my god he lived for racing) oh and mud wallowing, he excelled at all that! For 14 years he remained my constant, my reason for living. Unfortunately, as in all good love stories they come to an end and February 2020 was Malek’s first scare, he was coming up to 21, my boy was struggling, diagnosed September 2019 with Cushing's and chronic laminitis, he had wooden clogs on and was handling box rest like a pro, but it was taking its toll. I knew the end was coming I’d just hoped it was 5-10 years down the line. The thought of losing him terrified me.


So, I set out on the search, I wanted Malek to meet them too before God forbid anything happened. I wanted a yearling. Mal had luckily turned a corner and I thought yes, we’re getting somewhere, moving in the right direction so I could get another 5-10 years with him and therefore my next project can be a yearling who can grow in the time I have left ‘hacking’ with my Malek.


Obviously, I was on the search for a chestnut colt, why would I not be?  I couldn’t find the one and was losing all hope when I thought I’d just do one last search looking at anything and there she was, beautiful Ali. But she was a mare though, I’m a gelding person, does that matter? – hell no. So off we went to visit Ali, who I’ll be honest was beautiful but terrified the life out of me, God baby horses they move like soap (if you know, you know) and without warning she kicked me in the leg. Obviously when that happens, she’s the one. So, she came home. Malek and Duende (our Hispanic Arab) was thrilled to meet her and couldn’t contain laughing at her silly markings. But she fit right in, into a hole I didn’t even know was there.

The boys Meeting Ali

Ali And Malek

Unfortunately, on the 16th of October 2020, my heart broke into smithereens. We had lost our fight with laminitis. 18 months of box rest and on/off lameness, limited food, limited turnout with no sign of getting better wasn’t a life Mal deserved. He lived to run, lived for mud, and eating as much as he could eat so unfortunately, we had to let him go. I was broken, Duende was broken, and I didn’t want Ali. More so because I had to get out of my slumber, she still depended on me. Head down, trudging through masses of pain to continue in a world I didn’t want to be. But one terrible snowy day, I was mucking her stable out with her in, she came over to me and blew in my ear like Malek would, so I looked at her (first time I truly had looked at her in months) and blew in her nose like I would of Malek, and she loved it. She woke me up from my slumber and what a journey it’s been already.


I visited the Northern Society show not long after, just to see how it was. I’d never shown before, so didn’t want to take Ali just in case, but I instantly regretted it. It was so quiet, well organised, the people were lovely, and more people knew about Ali than me! I wasn’t Kirsten with Ali, I was Ali’s owner Kirsten, but that’s the joy of having such a rare and fantastic breed! Everyone is like a family.


And so, we prepared for the National! I wasn’t expecting anything, it was our first show. Ali had decided she didn’t like to trot in hand – why would you in mid-July temperatures surely a walk is good enough? We learnt to load into a trailer but hadn’t travelled in one since she came and so I dropped a 3.5-ton box on her to go to the National hoping she would load and travel 3.5 hours and you know what, she did! We stabled overnight, having never done that before, but she took it like a pro, settled straight away and as she was stabled at the end of her block, took full ownership of whinnying hello to every horse arriving.


Show Day arrived and obviously I’m bricking it. Ali not so much she’s cool as a cucumber. Horses kept rocking up, we go and get a show programme. Only 75 horses have pre-entered! That’s it get in the box, we’re off home. No, we came for the experience, so off we go into our 1st class. Ali’s decided trotting is what we do in August, and she likes that bit. Problem is, walking and standing still not so much. After not breathing through our whole class, we were pulled 2nd! I cried my God my girl did it, we came 2nd we’ve got a frilly. Well, weren’t we in for a shock! 3 classes later placed 1st in each one, 2 championship wins and then to take Supreme Champion what could I say. I’m still in shock it even happened, and it’s been 6 months! So proud, that proud I had to shout it from the roof tops and mentioned it to Baileys Horse Feeds! 

They only went and did a write up of my wonderful girl on their social media, absolutely amazing! 

So obviously by this point, I’m pretty hooked on the Appaloosas, its pretty good to be fair. That good that when Ali’s weanling sister, came up for sale. How could I say no? I did say no, I was adamant to be honest but a visit to Ali’s breeder for a cup of tea and a catch up was only going to end up one way, so little Bea joined the family. She’s such a wonderful large character, no confidence issues and takes the world by storm whether you’re coming with her or not, Bea’s off regardless. But she lives for cuddles and scratches, God forbid you stop. What makes the pairing brilliant is, she’s in awe of Ali, everywhere mum Ali is, Bea is, and Ali has stepped up to her big sisterly duties perfectly. Appaloosas are wonderful, I seriously don’t know how people go through life without one. Oh yes, they are quirky and full of character, but God what a breed. You give them 100% and they’ll give you a 1000%. But above all else, the laughs, oh the belly laughs my girls have given me is beyond anything they’re just so wonderful. 

Baby Bea



  •   Thankyou Kirsten, Ali and Bea for your Spotlight Contribution x

Heather Robinson and Elmo

Cachriph Narimanov



Hope you’re sitting down for this one!!

Here is Elmo’s story for those who don’t know it:

I got Elmo when he was 18 months old, after deciding that when my current horse left us (he was 21) that I’d be having no more horses. I was given the chance of Elmo and after much discussion (well me telling my husband that I really wanted him!) I took him. I’d known him since he was born, and ironically joked with one of my friends that I’d end up with one of Steph’s (Arrowsmith) Appaloosas, and there we go!


  1. I got Elmo in the March and sadly lost my old boy just 6 weeks later. Once I’d got my head around that, we started to make plans for the future, with a completely clean slate (I’d always had cobs before, so appies were a total change)                  
    We took Elmo to his first show about 3 months after we got him, and he was just so laid back, so we decided to join BApS and take him to the northern. He was amazing, for a horse that was so young and had only moved fields, he was just so laid back. We had an amazing time at the Northern, and so started many new friendships.

In October, he didn’t look quite right in the field, so we got the vet. She suspected an abscess, so box rest and a poultice for a week. A week later, no improvement, no pus, no logical explanation for the inability to use his front left leg properly. Vet visit no. 2. A different vet came out this time (my Vet was still on holiday) and she said she thought it was a shoulder/elbow injury, so box rest and bute for a week.

Vet visit no3! This time my vet came out. He initially suspected Elmo might be a wobbler, so we took X-rays. When he saw the X-rays, he wasn’t convinced so said he was going to speak to a neurologist at Edinburgh Vet School.


The resulting conversation led to a referral, so a couple of weeks later, off we went. Elmo was there for 5 days, and at the end of it, I was advised to euthanise him. They couldn’t tell me what was wrong with him, and agreed he wasn't in pain, but the neurologist’s exact worlds (and I’ll remember every single one of them for the rest of my life!) were:


Your horse won’t be able to be turned out with other horses, he’s never going to be ridden, he’s a danger to himself and people handling him, and could kill someone, so I suggest you don’t invest any more time, money or emotion in him. While he’s here, I’ll euthanise him and do a post mortem, as this is a very interesting case, and I’ve never seen anything like it!!


I asked if he was in pain, and she said no, so I said I’d be up the next day to bring him home, she then said she wouldn’t give any more medication for longer than a month and would I bring him back to be pts so she could post mortem him.


My response was that you’ll never touch my horse again, dead or alive!! 

That was probably one of the most soul destroying moments of my life. I had a 2-year-old that may never be able to be a horse.I spoke to my vet, and he said he’d be happy to keep medicating as long as he wasn’t in pain, so we brought him home. We weaned him off the steroid he had been on and over the next few months, started to see a slight improvement. He had regular visits from the physio, who suspected nerve damage.


I spoke to my vet, and he said he’d be happy to keep medicating as long as he wasn’t in pain, so we brought him home. We weaned him off the steroid he had been on and over the next few months, started to see a slight improvement.  He had regular visits from the physio, who suspected nerve damage. 


Fast forward to March last year, the vet said when he came to do his dental that he thinks I should start backing him (he was 4 at this point) so we got our saddle fitter to come and measure up for a saddle, and when it arrived a couple of months later, started backing him. 

The rest, as they say, is history. We’ve just started trotting and did our proper hack last week. 


Elmo is an amazing horse, and although I’ve had horses for over 25 years, has taught me so much in the short time we’ve had together. I’m so excited about starting our ridden career and the goal for this year, is to compete in the novice (ultra) at the northern show. It just goes to show, sometimes you have to just follow your heart, and Elmo has certainly stolen mine 

Felicity Armstrong & Santana Belle

Santana Belle, bred by Tony Watson, came into my life three and a half years ago as a stressy, anxious, unbalanced and very green 7yr old. I hadn't had a horse for 8yrs and had forgotten that I am no longer 25 (I'm pushing 60). 


Oh my, what a journey we have had together. I spent much of the first year unintentionally on the ground following many spectacular unplanned dismounts but slowly we began to form a bond. I fell off less and she started to let me ride her. 


She has gone from spooking at fresh air to letting me dress her up in headless horseman costumes, paint her face and mine for Halloween and wear a dress for our very first Concours D'Elegance class at the Northern Appaloosa Show in 2021 which we won. This year I am determined to have a go at side-saddle.


We've grown into the most wonderful partnership together, we're both slimmer, fitter and stronger than we were, we've travelled so many miles together we can read each other's minds. I have always preferred a good mare to any gelding but a good Appaloosa mare....well she's fearless, peerless and priceless. 
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