have 5 stage vet cert but within year horse blind - HELP

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leonh

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hello

advice needed please!

i bought an appaloosa polo pony last july 2010 for £5,000 and had it vetted 5 stage. report came back that she had cataracts in both eyes but vet wrote 'in my opinion this will not progress further or visually impair horse and she is fine for polo"" today i had another vet check her as horse lame due to kicking out back of stable. As with polo, all ponies are turned out from September to April and not ridden. when she came back into work in April she seemed fine. she has always been spooky and a kicker, kicking out at shadows, other horses in field, but played fine on polo pitch. it was pure chance i asked this vet to check her eyes. well, turns out she has 10% vision in right eye and 40% in left. so basically near on blind!! hence in my opinion, why she kicks out. the vet has told me she is not to be ridden at all and kindest thing is to shoot her. i phoned the vet who did vetting and he has tried to worm his way out of it. where do i stand?? any suggestions? :confused:
 
Did the vet that's just looked at your horse think the blindness has been like that for some time? Or has the cataracts got worse recently? Probably hard to prove??

I suppose when you have a horse vetted they have to assess whether they are fit for the purpose you want them for, not sure how long they stand for? I'm assuming they are seen as snap shot of the horse at that time?

I think the only way you could pursue it is if the vet can give any indication how long it's been that way? :-S

Are you covered for loss of use on an insurance policy?

Sorry not much help just rambling my thoughts!
 
If I had a 5 stage vetting and the vet told me the horse had cataracts in both eyes I would NOT have bought it whatever he may have said - and quite frankly I would seriously question a vets ability if he thought that a horse with cataracts would not have a progressively deteriorating problem!!!:eek:

If he actually wrote this on the vetting then I would be knocking very loudly on his door if it were me.
 
You paid £5000 fo a horse with cataracts in both eyes? Oh dear.......

The problem with vettings is that they are only as valid for the day they are done on, and as the condition may well have detiorated over the months the horse has been turned away, don't think you will have much of a case, but hope for your sake I am wrong!

If it is any consolation we bought an ex BSJSA mare who passed a 5 stage vetting but had to be put down due to wobblers 6 mnths later, so know how you must be feeling.
 
Sorry to hear this - sounds awful :( I think leonh is right - the question is whether it is likely that the blindness has been there for some time and therefore whether it was there when you bought her. If you can't prove that, then I think it is very difficult to sue on a vetting as it is all qualified by "in my opinion" etc. But if no competent vet would have said that it wouldn't get worse and/or that she would be fine for polo then you would be able to sue. Can you speak to the vet who recently looked at your horse and ask him/her what they think?
 
i know now i shouldnt have bought her, but the vet at the time assured me that the cataracts were not a problem and would never be a problem - even saying lots of horses have them. he described them to me as ''loking through a fine spiders web'' ..... the vet today called it 'moonblindness' (never heard before) and having googled it, it seems appaloosas are quite prone to it (didnt know that either).

i also understand that a vetting is ''for the day and assess fit for purpose i.e polo' however if the vet had told me that the condition would/could worsen i would never have bought her. she is only 8. i already have 2 'retired due to problem' lawnmowers at the farm so don't need anymore!

on my vet report it says in black and white "cataracts are unlikely to be interfering with the horses ability to see and are unlikely to progress to do so""

i rode the horse for 2 and a half months before turning her out in 40 acres with herd of 10 for winter. £5k for 2 and a half months riding!!

surely the vet is part responsible, after all he charged me 500 quid for 5 stage vetting and xrays.
 
You have a very good case here if you have it in writing. He has said in his opinion that it wont progress any further and you paid for his opinion. He will also have insurance and you need to take the matter further with the person who owns the practice and therefore employs the vet. The vet is accountable and you also need to get your vets written statement. But first of all get some legal advice.

It is a snap shot in time but he should not have predicted the future in writing.

This is why a lot of horses are nappy, one of ours was like that and he was on loan and blind in one eye, we didnt know until the vet check him.
 
I had a pony 2-stage vetted a few years ago and the vet found low level cataract in one eye (can't remember if a percentage was mentioned). She said it could develop with worst case scenario being it could lose the sight in that eye. However, it could have been born with an abnormality and it might never get any worse but she still advised against purchase. I didn't buy the pony as couldn't agree on reduced purchase price with owner and I decided I didn't want to take the risk. I'd be surprised if you didn't have any comeback against the vet as not to tell you what could eventually happen seems a bit negligent to me. If vet told you worst case scenario and you decided to buy anyway, then that obviously is a different matter. Hope you can reach a satisfactory conclusion.
 
If the vet has diagnosed 'moonblindness', then that is a a common name of a different condition to cataracts. It is another name for uveitis which can occur at any time in a horse's life. You would need to clarify whether the vet was diagnosing uveitis as a new condition, or whether the cataracts are a result of undiagnosed uveitis.
 
lhotse said:
If the vet has diagnosed 'moonblindness', then that is a a common name of a different condition to cataracts. It is another name for uveitis which can occur at any time in a horse's life. You would need to clarify whether the vet was diagnosing uveitis as a new condition, or whether the cataracts are a result of undiagnosed uveitis.
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Thats quite true could be a different condition totally.
 
Unfortunately as well, with impaired vision a pony cannot play polo. I had a pony vetted for polo, it had a cataract in one eye and as a result I did not buy it as it is against HPA rules.
 
Surely the opinion of the vetting vet is just that - an opinion, and perhaps only valid on the day.

I too am amazed at the purchase of a horse with cataracts, especially for so much money. But I suppose that's a different matter - albeit perhaps a relevant one.
 
I had a polo pony develop uevitis (moon blindness) which was thought to be from a blow from a mallet earlier in her playing life. As stated she was then unable to play competitive polo as against HPA rules to play a vision-impaired pony.
 
Ditto ihotse - Moonblindness is uveitus. My horse had uveitus which was left untreated before I bought her. She is now totally blind in that eye. It was seven years ago and the vet said it was very unlikely at this stage to transfer to the other eye, which can happen. It has left her eye shrunken, but I am glad she is totally blind in it as she also feels no pain in it, with no visible muscle spasms or streaming of the eye. Uveitus can be very painful indeed. :(
 
lhotse said:
If the vet has diagnosed 'moonblindness', then that is a a common name of a different condition to cataracts. It is another name for uveitis which can occur at any time in a horse's life. You would need to clarify whether the vet was diagnosing uveitis as a new condition, or whether the cataracts are a result of undiagnosed uveitis.
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This ^^^

And yes, Appaloosas are well known to be at risk from uveitis.
 
Surely if what others have said regarding polo rules, I.e a horse with sight problems not being able to play polo, then surely as the purpose you got the horse for was to play polo, the vet should have said that due to the cataracts the horse was unfit for purpose? Even if they have got worse or developed into something else, if the horses sight was affected (which is obviously would be) then the vet was at fault for not advising against the purchase?!

Hope that make sense?!?:confused:
 
Horses24-7 said:
Surely if what others have said regarding polo rules, I.e a horse with sight problems not being able to play polo, then surely as the purpose you got the horse for was to play polo, the vet should have said that due to the cataracts the horse was unfit for purpose? Even if they have got worse or developed into something else, if the horses sight was affected (which is obviously would be) then the vet was at fault for not advising against the purchase?!

Hope that make sense?!?:confused:
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I understand what you're saying, but unless the vet knows the rules of polo then they would not know and would therefore be unable to say the horse was unfit for purpose.
 
To be honest a vet never passes or fails a vetting - they tell you what they see. In this case he has stated that the eyesight should not deteriorate any further. Yet appys are known to suffer progressive blindness - one of my PC riders has just lost her pony through blindness. He went through a fence and when vet checked him over said that the horse was almost blind - been showjumping until a month or so earlier. He refered to it as 'Moon Blindness' something that appies are prone to developing.
The vet should know about this condition.

I hope you are succesful in suing the vet.
 
Surely a vetting is "on the day", he/she cannot/should not foretell how suitable for purpose the animal will be a year down the line.
My own mare vetted 5 star sound,but a year later developed a spavin..that is just life,NOT his fault.
As it is a mare you are in luck and she can at least have a purpose in breeding appis.
 
If she was an excellant polo pony, you could breed, horses do develop a 7th sense, but if you don't want to keep her pts and I wouldn't think you would have much hope as he did say about the cataracts and you still bought
 
Echo Bravo said:
If she was an excellant polo pony, you could breed, horses do develop a 7th sense, but if you don't want to keep her pts and I wouldn't think you would have much hope as he did say about the cataracts and you still bought
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I'd be amazed if anyone would be as foolish to breed from a blind mare!

We need good stock out there bred from healthy quality mares, not bred from mares that are broken down and have a functioning uterus for christs sake!!

Sorry OP:(
 
you may have a point here.

the vet is a well know polo vet. maybe he was negligent in writing down on report that cataracts were ok and would not impair her vision. however, on report there is no mention of moonblindness or uvitus .... so maybe she has developed it in 10 months??? WISH to god i'd have had her checked 3 months after vetting to see. i bought her as she was easy, fun, responsive and safe to play as a beginner. believe it or not she was up for 8k and got them down to 5 !!

i was new to polo at the time and trusted vet completely. hence why i paid him for his opinion.
the HPA rule (4g) states a pony can not play if blind in one eye. cataracts are apparently fine. (!!) ... however if the pony is visually impired/blind its up to the player to stop using horse. polo ponies are not checked. the vet today said one of his clients has a polo pony blind in one eye that still plays no problem, and has done for past 5 years. no one knows about it and unless the guy tells anyone, tries to sell pony no one will ever know. i asked what would happen if pony had accident on pitch and injured player / other rider and horse. he shrugged and asked me how many times the vet checks horses eyes after polo accidents (never) so his secret is safe.

dont want to put her to sleep, but moonblindness / uvitus seems awful with no drugs/ operation to make better.

she could be broodmare but why breed from a horse that has genetic problems?
too many foals in UK for my liking that are just 'bred from lame mares with no other job to do'

this mare was also imported 2 years ago from argentina, and looks more like a knapstupper type. 15.3h very stocky, big brown spots on white background. very sad. just dont know what to do.
 
Echo Bravo said:
I wouldn't think you would have much hope as he did say about the cataracts and you still bought
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Im afraid I dissagree with this statement. The vet should determine if a horse is fit for the activity in mind. By stateting that the impairment is not likely to get worse and the horse is fit for purpose, he has failed in his duty.

If the horse has always been blind to this degree, he is negligent for not spotting it. If the blindness has progressed, he was incorrect in his statement. Either way, by playing down its significance, he has influenced your buying decision.
 
i agree with sprite. i had long chats with this vet about her and he assured me she would be fine and the cataracts were not interfering with her sight. he even wrote a large passage about it in report.

what i need to know is how quick moonblindness can come on, searched google but no answers!
 
leonh said:
i agree with sprite. i had long chats with this vet about her and he assured me she would be fine and the cataracts were not interfering with her sight. he even wrote a large passage about it in report.

what i need to know is how quick moonblindness can come on, searched google but no answers!
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There was an article in HH earlier this year about this condition. Treatment options included cyclosporin implants or removing the jelly completely and replacing with saline. It can come on quickly, but normally occurs with intermittent periods of flare up.
 
Moon blindness and cataracts are two different unrelated eye conditions. The cataracts may not have got worse and may not be causing the deterioration in sight so the original vet may be correct.

I think moon blindness can sometimes be treated with eye drops.
 
when Oibought my mare she was classed as dangerous unrideable but i dint have her vetted as I would have bought here regardless due to the horrific abuse ahe was suffering (yeah yeah all wrong reasons lol) but with kind quiet firm handling she learnt to tru me and yes i rode her hacked her out jumped her till one day she flung her head back when i put reins over her head - vet called and basically she was going blind - did it start before i bought her was that why she was so manic - that i will never know and do you know what it doesnt matter - 2 yrs ago i was given a time scale of 3 to 5 yrs - 2 months ago vet gave her a check up and basically blind at bottom of both eyes and progressing - she as her routine she plays out with the herd everyday but i know as time goes on that will change and i know when the day will be right - but in the wors of my vet - she sparkels health happiness and contentment at the moment so my baby is a survivor :)
 
just a quick ps as I know my post didnt answer OP post but my daughter still rides her on bright days and she goes beautifully for her as she trusts my daughter to - sadly no more hacking out though :(
 
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