runny eye

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narkymare

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last week my horse developed a sticky, pink runny eye
He wont keep an eye mask on - he can escape both a full mask and fly fringe by rubbing his head on the trees in the field
Following advice here i have washed it with cold strong tea and applied goldeneye twice daily
the pinkness has gone - its not swollen and i thought it was better but today when i visited it was watering again
It is a windy day here - should i just carry on or do i need the vets out???
 
If it is getting better then carry on with the tea and ointment, but if it looks swollen and painful then it might be time to get the vet out.
 
orange ty so much - its not swollen or a different colour to other now, it was -now its just like hes crying out of one eye - no swelling, no bad colour just this weeping - so wish he would keep his fly mask on but he wont x
 
NM - I know I'm paranoid about horses' eyes but I'd always always always recommend owners err on the side of caution. Ask yourself, if you had a swollen, bloodshot, weepy eye would you just rinse it with strong tea and golden eye ointment and hope it does the trick or would you make an appt to see your GP? Eyes are so very precious that they need treating differently from other bits of the horse. Corneas heal poorly because of the lack of a blood supply and across-the-counter or home-made preparations will at best only soothe and at worst make the situation worse. Your ned could have a dose of conjunctivitis and no matter how soothing (or not) strong tea is, it isn't an antibacterial. He could have a foreign body in his eye from rubbing it in which case you are wasting time when the vet should be there. He could have a condition like uveitis in which case you need to act fast. I know it's almost certainly "only" conjunctivitis but my horse had chronic and untreated conjunctivitis (previous owners) that led to the overnight development of superficial keratitis and that led to him having the eye surgically removed after a 6-month battle to save it failed. Conjunctivitis is a recognised pre-cursor to superficial keratitis which is an auto immune diease and is a hideously expensive and soul destroying thing to treat.

And a final "beware". Every time you put anything in your horse's eye, are you certain it is sterile? What about the end of the tube or whatever you're using for the strong tea? What about your hands? You risk introducing an infection every time you interfere with your lad's eyes and don't even start me on the dangers of holding sharp, pointy medication tubes a millimetre away from a horse's eye, when he could jerk at any moment turning a dodgy situation into a tragedy.

Vet.
 
Mine also developed this a couple of weeks ago - think combination of it being v v hot and sunny plus we have sooooo many flies. Like yours mine has never kept a mask or net on before but I picked up an equilibrium mask (like below) and it is fantastic - its stretchy so it clings on - would highly recommend (and no I dont work for them!)

http://www.equilibriumproducts.com/fly_protection/field_reliefreg_midi_fly_mask/
 
How long has this been going on for?

Archie started off with a runny eye a few years back and it got worse and worse to the point where he couldnt open his eye. He ended up at Newmarket!!

Not trying to worry you or anything!!
 
Sounds like what my TB gets, I'd term it as "fly worry". I use homeopathic treatment for it, works a treat. Her eyes started off pink, hot and runny, cleared up after only 1 treatment.

Call Helios Homeopaty and ask to speak to Ros. Most remedies cost IRO £8 inc P&P.
 
i beleive (imo) that eyes are self cleansing and are best left alone. a consistantly runny eye i would get the vet to check the sinus drainage,. and not a big fan of fly masks in general as they tend to rub the nose and behind the ears thus creating a problem in themselves!
 
After my boy had a ulcer in his eye last year I have a tendency to panic about the slightest change in them now.

If it continues to weep I would phone your vet and ask for advice on it. They can then say if they need to come out and check the eye or if you continue on the treatment.

My boy eye has flared up this year 3 times and is now currently on boxrest so it gets a chance to heal. As he is reacting to something outside and currently not sure what it is.
 
i would get the vet out jack had what looked like conjuntivitus and turned out to be uvitus!!
this can blind your horse sadly jack already lost his sight in that eye maby due to a attack before we had him
last night he came in with a weepy eye but in his good eye we cleaned and the vets coming out today to check for anyproblems
Better to be safe than sorry x
 
thanks everyone - the vet is coming to the yard this afternoon so im asking her to have a look - it is strange, not pink, runny or swollen at all - just running !!! thanks everyone xxx
 
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