Oakham - anyone used for an eye problem??

Birker2020

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I am wondering if anyone can assist me as I've not had much luck to date with this problem on the forum. Has anyone with an equine eye problem used Oakham in Leicester, and do you know what kind of cost it would incur for a simple eye examination?

To cut a long story short I have posted under the veterinary section a couple of times to no avail but I am convinced that my horses shying problems stem from the extra layer of cells my vet says he has over his cornea. The layer is called an epitherial layer (i think I have got that correct) and in normal horse is 7-10 cells thick, but in my horse's case is much thicker. This layer is also connected to something called a basement layer or membrane within the eye, but it is very hard to get much joy from googling the internet about this.:(

My horses shying has increased recently although its been getting progressively worse over the last couple of years. I have googled and found that extra layers of epitherial cells can be caused by corneal injury and I am convinced my horse may have scar tissue present. I am also concerned that should he have corneal damage it should be contained (if it is not too late to do this) and maybe laser eye treatment could be a viable option. Above all I need to know if he is losing his sight and to what extent so I can make decisions about the best course of action. As I was so right about Baileys shying and the vet coming up with the explanation re: extra cells (which surely must make it more difficult to see) I am convinced I am right to get it checked out. Apparently not all corneal damage is painful, it is only when the cornea gets infected and an ulcer comes about that the condition is painful. To the average horse owner, from what I've read up on the internet, it would be quite easy to miss slight scaring of the cornea.

My friend has suggested Oakham as my own vet wasn't certain that the eye problem (if it is a problem) would cause shying or not and said an eye specialist would be the best bet. He told me this about a year ago when i got him to check his eyesight as I was worried about his spookiness but at the time I wasn't contemplating taking it further as he didn't seem convinced it would cause Bailey any problems. Bails seems to be worse in his right eye as he shies to the left violently when there is anything he cannot 'make out' with his right eye. If he runs out at a fence (or spins around on the road) it is always to the left. If another horse passes him in the menage he gets a little flustered and sways to the side as if he is worried it will smash into him. He is even spooky when I lead him out to the field or anywhere new and will look at shadows i.e a clump of bushes, grass, mud, etc whereas no other horse would even notice these things.:confused:

Cookies AND a hot choccy with a thick layer of cream on top if you got this far x
 
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Hiya,

Oakham vets are supposed to be good. i used them years ago when Michael Gibson owned the practice and they were excellent, although I haven't had any experience of them recently.

I use Roger Lee (who used to be Gibson's partner) he's now based at Grimsthorpe (Tower Equine) but they have just opened a practice in Somerby - so not far from Oakham at all.

Roger has been absolutely brilliant with my horse, who was diagnosed with bilateral bone spavins 2 months ago. I can't say what he's like with eyes but I really can't speak highly enough of him.

I would say you'd be in pretty good hands with either practice.

Hope you get him sorted. :)

R
 
I've never used Oakham myself but know lots of people who have and I've never heard anything bad about them.

Regan - I also use Roger Lee and recommend him!
 
Your vet is right that you need an eye specialist. I don't know Oakham at all but would suggest you ask your current vet who has seen the horse to refere you to a specialist ophthalmologist. The majority of veterinary ophthalmologists spend most of their time doing small animals because of the much higher case load. There are many excellent general equine vets you could go to but unless they have done specialist ophthalmic training they wont be able to give you the answeres you are looking for. You can search on the RCVS website for a specialist near you but as I said you want an ophthalmology specialist not an equine specialist.
 
Your vet is right that you need an eye specialist. I don't know Oakham at all but would suggest you ask your current vet who has seen the horse to refere you to a specialist ophthalmologist. The majority of veterinary ophthalmologists spend most of their time doing small animals because of the much higher case load. There are many excellent general equine vets you could go to but unless they have done specialist ophthalmic training they wont be able to give you the answeres you are looking for. You can search on the RCVS website for a specialist near you but as I said you want an ophthalmology specialist not an equine specialist.

It has since transpired that i am hoping I will will be able to get the advice of someone who is an animal optometrist who came out to look at my friends horse some time ago who was diagnosed by the vets as having recurrent ueveitis. As she is in training (just waiting for her qualification certs) she came out to see my friends horse F.O.C as she was interested in seeing as many eye things as possible. I am hoping she will come out to see Bailey and give her opinion before I make the long journey to Oakham. I am also concerned that looking on their website there is no specialist eye vet there at Oakham, so could well find myself in exactly the same situation as I did with my own vets, being told to consult an eye specialist.

We competed in a one day event on Sunday at the local riding club and I think my horse must have looked and shied at about 20 different things during the course of the morning, its just not right.

Thanks for your replies.
 
Your vet is right that you need an eye specialist. I don't know Oakham at all but would suggest you ask your current vet who has seen the horse to refere you to a specialist ophthalmologist. The majority of veterinary ophthalmologists spend most of their time doing small animals because of the much higher case load. There are many excellent general equine vets you could go to but unless they have done specialist ophthalmic training they wont be able to give you the answeres you are looking for. You can search on the RCVS website for a specialist near you but as I said you want an ophthalmology specialist not an equine specialist.

I agree that you need to see someone with a special interest in eyes, but I wouldn't worry if they don't have a specific ophthalmology qualification - there are several equine medicine specialists with great expertise in this area (Derek Knottenbelt for one). I don't know whether there is anyone like this at Oakham, but they should be able to tell you.
 
I had a quick look on the internet and came up with this, not sure if it is anywhere near you.

http://www.donningtongrove.com/small-animal.html?pgid=231

Thanks JRT but it is even further away than Leicester for me.

I am going to see what outcome of visit by this lady who is studying opthamolgy that I mentioned and if she thinks its necessary go from there.

Thanks for all your replies though guys. xx
 
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