Golden State Appaloosa Horse Association

June 18, 2008

Hi All,

Hi there! I’ve had Grapenut for 16 years- he is almost 21 years old (but acts like a kid!). He and I do mostly trail riding in Woodside & Portola Valley . I purchased him for $100 back in 1991 from a family in Salinas . I named him after my own nickname- I really liked eating Grapenuts and my roommate started to call me ‘a Grape Nut’. I was a college student at Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo at the time. Grapneut wasn’t broke nor was he gelded! I just wanted a horse so badly I didn’t care- in fact, I hadn’t even seen him before I bought him (I was a complete novice but loved horses my entire life, and couldn’t WAIT to get one). And he was on the small side, being only 14.1 and 800 lbs. Little did I know he’d grow until he was 7. He’s now 15.1 and around 1150-1200 lbs! All I can say is that I’m really fortunate to have him as a first horse. I didn’t take lessons nor did I have a trainer for him, and we both lived! Oddly enough, I’ve never fallen off him. He’s like a table with wheels! He is very smooth. He does the ‘Appaloosa Shuffle’ at the walk, which is really neat! But it helped that I had very natural balance, no fear and he had no terrible vices. He didn’t spook or take off or spin, buck or rear. That’s not to say he was a well behaved horse! He was a brat and liked to play games, which he attempts on a regular basis to this day. He’s truly a special horse with a lot of personality. A little more about him specifically, he LOVES to eat. He’s a vacuum! He’ll eat just about anything. He likes coffee (which was discovered when he stuck his nose in my cup and started slurping). He also likes grapes, of course! He can ‘count’ with both right and left front legs. He loves attention but when you go to pet him he pretends like he never wanted it. He’s game for just about anything. Jumping, galloping on the beach, swimming, parades, barking dogs, etc…. BUT, he does have a fear, and that’s the vet with a little tiny needle. To quell his fear I blind fold him and feed him carrots. For some reason it’s OK if I give him shots. I guess b/c I’m his mom?? He also doesn’t like backing out of trailers, but he does it with character- he quivers with fear and his butt muscles get really tight while he takes 2-inch steps backwards. It’s rather endearing to watch! Anyway, hope that gives you something to work with. I’m lucky to have him! From: Chrissy Foley cholene@hotmail.com

This is Grapenut

 Hughey