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Old horse losing sight

7K views 53 replies 13 participants last post by  KarinNoah 
#1 ·
Our 31 year old Thoroghbred has been slowly loseing hit site on his right side for a while. at first me just might bump into his feeder or jump suddenly at something on that side. i really noticed it when i went to saddle him of his off side (he normaly dose not care what side he is saddled). he pulled back and would NOT calm down. switched sides and he could care less. now if u tuch him on his left side when he can easily see me he spooks a bit. he is fine if i talk to him alot. My issue is that he is getting some small cuts and scrapes on the right side of his head as he seams to be hitting it more. would a normal fly mask help with that or would i need a special face guard?


Info on where he lives. he is in a 20X20 stall (well in az its a stall, most people would call it a pen). he is eating good now and looks fantastic.

I have never dealt with a blind horse before or one who is losing his sight so dont entirely know what to do.


here are pics of the old guy because why not.










 
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#3 ·
Our 21 year old mare has vision problems due to cataracts and Lepto and used to get a lot of scrapes/cuts on her head. Over time as she adjusted, she now rarely bumps into things. She knows every inch of her pasture and shelter and can even navigate through the corral gates into a pen and riding ring. I would hesitate to use a mask as it may limit her vision more and my gut says it wouldn't help much. The main thing is to keep the living environment and location of food/water as consistant as possible.
 
#7 ·
His eyes need to be examined by a vet who knows eyes well. It could be something treatable.
^^^Please get him examined. As fabulous as he looks, it's obvious you care very much about him.

Get your checkbook out and eat hot dogs for a month if you have to:D:apple:
 
#10 ·
If he loads on a trailer, and your regular vet would give the recommendation, do you have a university, with an equine facility, close enough to carry him?

Provided he is healthy enough to tolerate the trip. He looks fantastic but sometimes a trailer ride can be really stressful if the horse isn't fond of them:)
 
#11 ·
@KigerQueen I agree that you should take him to a vet, but you said you already were.

My friend owns multiple blind horses including my gelding, so I have a good bit of experience around them.

I WOULD recommend you putting on a fly mask. Actually, it may sound strange, but if your vet says that the vision in that eye will continue to deteriorate and can't be fixed, then put duck tape over it on that side. The reason for that is this: if his vision is going to keep getting worse, it will be constantly changing. That is where the spookiness comes from and is probably a big reason he's hitting his head so much; he can't see things clearly and also may have a hard time judging distance. Like PaintHorseMares mentioned, he will adjust with time. However, unless whatever's wrong with his eye isn't progressive, he may never be able to fully settle down unless he is "made blind" in that eye (the duck tape). The fly mask can also offer some protection to his face/head. I've found them to be spookier when they're going blind in one or both eyes, but just fine once they're use to being fully blind.

I also agree to change around his living area as little as possible because that way he can make a "mental map" of his pasture to compensate for half his sight missing. You're also definitely right in talking to him before approaching his blind side. If he does go completely blind in that one eye at some point, he'll learn to associate you more by voice and touch when you're on that side, so he won't be afraid of you messing with the side he can't see. Given that, you will probably eventually be able to saddle him from that side once he adjusts or if you figure out how to repair his sight, which would be great as well.

Good luck and if you have other questions about it, I might be able to help. :)
 
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#12 ·
no university that is not a couple of hours away. i contacted the vet AGAIN a few min ago. might give him a call sooner than later. its hard for me to call because work (and my cell being broken so nothing beyond texting at this point). it has been gradualy getting worst over time and its gotten to the point of causing obvious issues (besides the ocatienal bump or jump). Will get a fly mask on him. might stop him from jabbing himself or hurting himself as bad at least. my normal vet is good at vax and teeth if the horse is under 20. once they hit 20 he will leave a festering rotting tooth in there because he dose not like messing with older horses teeth.

could get an equine dentist to do teeth but 40 for the gel sadative then 100 per horse for teeth i might as well get the vet out to do a once over on them while im at it. 75 for an exam per horse. might still get the dentist if its cheeper but a vet needs to see at least the old man.
 
#14 ·
I am amazed there are not a number of good vets in the Phoenix area considering the number of Arabian farms etc. I do see a reduction of equine vets even around my area.
I would think he would be adjusting to loss of vision in that eye. Do you think there could be more going on, as in possibly something neurological? With a horse that age one might suspect more than just one thing. It's hard having them get old, isn't it?
He's really nice looking!
 
#15 ·
chaparral has some good vets but alot of times they want $400 up front before they even look at the horse. had both good and bad experiences with them. there is two 3 other vets in the area, one we dont like her old school ways or doctoring and then there is a half retired vet and my normal vet.

in other news my normal vet will be coming out on the 31st so yay!
 
#18 ·
So rocket has peripheral uveitis. he can still see directly in front of him self but no reaction from his peripheral vision. He also has really bad tmj on his right side and very mild on his left. his gimpyness has been caused by arthritis in his front right fetlock and his left stifle. so he is on privacox to help with all the above.

here is the kicker. Rocket has ALL of his TEETH! Every. Single. One. is still there! the vet was floored! he kept checking his teeth and he agreed that rocket was defiantly in his 30s. he had some sharp points that the vet removed and he was impressed with how well his chewing action was after so hopefully the float and the privacox will help his tmj too.


So should i still do the fly mask with one dise blocked out to get him used to being blind as that is happening and happening fast.
 
#20 ·
So rocket has peripheral uveitis. he can still see directly in front of him self but no reaction from his peripheral vision. He also has really bad tmj on his right side and very mild on his left. his gimpyness has been caused by arthritis in his front right fetlock and his left stifle. so he is on privacox to help with all the above.

So should i still do the fly mask with one dise blocked out to get him used to being blind as that is happening and happening fast.

I was wondering if it could be some sort of Uveitis, as I'm pretty sure that's one of the most common causes of blindness in some form or another. ERU (moon blindness) is what blinded my gelding and one OTTB my friend has, among others. I hate to hear that he's got these other issues on top of it, and I hope the Privacox helps.


If it is definite that he will become totally blind in that eye then yes, it would be easier on him to be use to it before he does, especially since it sounds like it's deteriorating rapidly. I'm sorry that he's going to go blind in that eye, but I can tell you that after he adjusts you should hardly notice a difference. All of them adjust differently, but he sounds like one that takes things in stride, so I'd be pretty confident that it won't take him long.

My unprofessional opinion is let the poor guy see as long as he can.

Unfortunately sometimes what seems kinder to us isn't better, as I'm sure you know. While we'd like to keep our sight as long as possible and they probably don't want to lose it, they're typically better off when a deteriorating eye stops changing (by blocking vision) because their sight (or lack of) is consistent. It's easier on them in the long run because, being prey animals, not being able to properly keep up with their environment makes them jumpy and sometimes skittish, because they're scared of things that don't look right (constantly looking different due to deterioration). Once they're totally blind in one or both eyes, they learn to work with what they have and can be perfectly bombproof if that's what they were or otherwise have the same personality they previously did.


Regardless, good luck with him Kiger. Sending love his way, because he seems to be having it rough right now. Also sending cutos to you for standing by him.
 
#27 ·
I agree, and based on our experience with our vision impaired mare, avoid the temptation to always help him navigate around unless he is obviously trapped somewhere and/or gets frantic. We learned that letting them find their own way lets them adjust to navigating on their own via smell and hearing easier even if it means a few scrapes here and there.
 
#24 ·
She's really pretty. The one I'm talking about is a tiny little chestnut Arabian. Was yours a paint?


We haven't every intentionally buddied any of my friend's blinds, they kind of do it on their own.
 
#26 ·
the arthritis is an on going thing that i have noticed for a while. he is fine most the time. he just had days where out of no where he gimps but works out of it with no issues. he still runs like an idiot lol!

this was him last month. so he is having issues but its not all suddenly down hill thankfully. i just had a few suspicions confirmed and now have a plan of action. i am determined to get this horse to 45 if not 50 lol (assuming he is still in good health)



i have some black thick uv window screening that i can use to cover one side of a fly mask. it will still let light in but it will also alow air flow. he MAY be able to see out of it but not by much. we are hitting 116f this week and his face being able to breath is important.
 
#29 ·
I'm glad you have something that's going to work, and it's definitely important to breath with that heat! Dang! I feel really sorry for dark colored horses like him when the temp gets that high.


Either way, he look awesome in that video. Lol, the "don't fall dude" and "It's a shame you're not a stud" killed me! He's such a good spirited guy; honestly that video reminded me of my little 13ish pound Shi Tzu mix. XD


Absolutely love how spunky he is. My guy is laid back to the point of just about being asleep a lot of times, lol. He doesn't have energy to burn, he just is what he is; lazy. <3 for lazy horses.
 
#32 ·
wow talk about day and night. rocket met me at the gate today and wanted his food. gave him his carrot with privacox in it and he chomped it down. then dug into his food with gusto! When i went to feed him again this evening he not only was walking about but again met me at the gate and was talking to me demanding his food! he is also walking around alot more and i can tell he is feeling ALOT better!
 
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