Help PLEASE!!

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XxCoriexX

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My beautiful mare has been diagnosed with Uveitis in her right eye. She is currently having eye drops etc to try to treat the issue but after reading up on the dreaded internet I have discovered that this can be a recurring issue. At the moment she is out in the field during the day and having a flymask with UV protection has really helped to stop the tearing of the eye. I am using an equilibrium one at the moment but she keeps getting it off meaning I am making a minimum of three trips a day (around my full time job) to make sure she has her fly mask on!

Can anyone suggest a good fly mask that will provide her the best UV protection but still stay on in the field?
Any help is much appreciated...


thanks
 
With the mare I had with Uveitis some years ago I used Cashel Crusader Fly Mask and found it very good and it always stayed in place
Someone may come along with a much better idea as times and products become better with time
 
http://www.guardianmask.com

these are probably the best for dealing with eye conditions. Lots of info re the condition on their site. They are a US product but 3 UK distributors. The best of those by far is the one on their site for Scotland ie Paul Mcguiness. He is excellent. One of mine lived in his guardian for 16 months.
 
I feel your pain OP.

My mare will not keep a mask on and she gets recurring eye infections from the flies in summer.

I've tried:

Fly mask
Smaller fly mask
Fly mask's with and without ears
Fly fringe
Fly mask with fieldsafe over the top.

She gets every single one of them off and she won't let me put drops in more than once as even on a chair I am too sort to argue with her when she puts her head up.

Resigned myself to having to bring her in during the day in summer.

If anyone has a magical mask that will stay on their face let me know!!!
 
I sew three loops on to the mask, one at the poll and two just below the ears and pass the crown strap of the headcollar through these. Not even my champion head rubbing "get-it-orf-me!" horse can remove his fly mask with this arrangement.
 
Another vote for guardian mask. We have 2 horses with eye problems wearing them. Neither can get them off.
 
XxCoriexX said:
My beautiful mare has been diagnosed with Uveitis in her right eye. She is currently having eye drops etc to try to treat the issue but after reading up on the dreaded internet I have discovered that this can be a recurring issue. At the moment she is out in the field during the day and having a flymask with UV protection has really helped to stop the tearing of the eye. I am using an equilibrium one at the moment but she keeps getting it off meaning I am making a minimum of three trips a day (around my full time job) to make sure she has her fly mask on!

Can anyone suggest a good fly mask that will provide her the best UV protection but still stay on in the field?
Any help is much appreciated...


thanks
Click to expand...

Sorry to hear this


I have had two with Uveitis.

I would
1 keep a record on when the attacks happen
2 her symptoms prior to the flare up
3 call the vet immediately they flare up to reduce vision loss


My vet gave me atropine which I kept and administered it straight away the ey started to flare up and she lost very very little vision

http://www.horsemask.com/ I used a cashel fly hood in the stabled and a guardian mask in the field http://www.horsemask.com/


The inflammation from starting. Many horses wear fly masks to cut down on thy light and owners are also using dietary supplements to hEquine recurrent uveitis, sometimes known as moon blindness, is a disease of the horse's eye that can be caused by many different things -- bacteria, virus, parasites, or trauma. Signs that an eye is in distress include redness, swelling, pus, pupil constriction in the dark, cloudiness, squinting, and photophobia. Uveitis is often diagnosed as something far less serious and valuable treatment time is lost. If not treated aggressively from the onset, there is less chance of saving sight in one or both eyes. Unfortunately, even with very aggressive treatment, some eyes cannot be saved, but in other cases the disease can be halted or at least slowed down.

When the uveitis first starts, if the original cause can be determined then additional treatment may be used depending on the cause. The usual short term treatment includes atropine to dilate the eye, followed by either a steroid or antibiotic. Treatment must be prescribed by a veterinarian because if a steroid is used when the eye is ulcerated, blindness can result. Bute, banamine or aspirin are used as anti-inflammatory agents along with the other medications.

After the original episode has been successfully treated, the inflammation and signs will disappear and the eye may appear to be normal or almost normal. At sometime in the future, if it is recurrent uveitis, a set of circumstances will cause the eye to have another episode. The circumstances can be internal; external such as wind, dust, pollen; stress of any kind; or due to stopping the anti-inflammatory medicine prematurely. With recurrent uveitis, the episodes continue to occur. Each one lasts a little longer and each time the eye loses a little more sight.

Long term maintenance treatment will often include aspirin, bute or banamine on a regular basis in an attempt to keep Help build up the horse.

Recommended things to help are
Brewers yeast
Pro bio
Guardian mask
drops from the vet
dedicated care from the owner
1 bute a day to minimise inflamation
 
Now the better weather is coming, you would be better to turn her out over night, and bring her in during the day. This may help take the pressure off you, with doing so many round trips and worrying if the fly mask is still on. Hope everything works out for you x
 
My boy has posterior uveitis in both eyes and is slowly going blind. He has adapted really well as it had been such a slow progression. There have been no obvious signs. I only found out as he has developed cataracts on both eyes and he had an ultrasound scan at leahurst. He is absolutely fine in himself. He wears a Nags ranch fly mask that he doesn't get off too often. It is 90 per cent UVprotection. Get the highest uv proyection you can. He is on one sachet of bute a day to combat the inflammation. If you go on FB there is an ERU support group. They are absolutely brilliant and have really helped me through these last few weeks. X
 
thanks everyone for your great advice!

For those using the guardian fly masks may I ask where you got them from?
I asked about one supplier who said they are £120, just wanted to make sure this is market price

thanks I really appreciate your help1
 
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