Tell me everything you know about uveitis!

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Found a gorgeous 3yo gelding I'm interested in taking on to back next summer and keep as a family horse. Everything about him is perfect except he had to have one of his eye's removed due to uveitis about 4 months ago.
I know nothing about this disease but I do know that this little horse isn't bothered by only having one eye and is in excellent health otherwise.
Please tell me all you know about the disease!
 
The gelding won't be bothered at all by having only one eye, once he's used to it. My veteran cob had to have an eye removed 8 years ago and he went on to lead safe hacks, win dressage competitions, everything as before. You have to make sure you place feed bowls away from walls and talk to the horse when you're near him or put a hand on his body so he knows where you are, same for vets, farrier etc. So that side wouldn't bother me. It's the uveitis that bothers me. It can affect the other eye too and then you'd have a blind horse. And remember that a 3 yr old has a long life ahead of him but he doesn't have any "spare" eyes left so there's a theoretical risk there if he injured his remaining eye. But it's the uveitis itself that's the issue. Have the current owners told you what caused it? What did they try before opting for removal of the eye? I'd be very very careful. This could be an expensive purchase - you won't be able to get any insurance for anything to do with his remaining eye so if the uveitis starts in that eye, you'd be paying the whole cost. Take great care!
 
Thanks for your response. Owner said he was neglected and traumatized so that is what caused it? Its a shame because he's perfect but everyone has said it can occur in the other eye further down the line, I'm in 2 minds whether to go for it :(
 
I have had two horses with this.

The first in the 80.s where not much known and she lost virtually all her sight.

My other mare had this start up then after regular attacks it just stopped last August.

You need yo speak to vet see if the other eye affected. Horses cope with one eye, just be casrefull on the blind side for pertruding objects
 
timorliste said:
Thanks for your response. Owner said he was neglected and traumatized so that is what caused it? Its a shame because he's perfect but everyone has said it can occur in the other eye further down the line, I'm in 2 minds whether to go for it :(
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Yes it could occur in the other eye but then it might not, my second mares only went in one eye. It depends on the cause ask your vet to check the other eye.
 
Ok, will the vet be able to tell if it's likely to occur in the future? Owner has spent over 2k on getting him back to form after being neglected so if pretty confident I won't have any medical problems for a while!
 
I'm not a vet but if it's "moon blindness" then it can recur at any time and start affecting the other eye too. My understanding is that there's no way a vet could say whether it would or wouldn't involve the other eye. But rest assured, you wouldn't be able to get insurance cover for the remaining eye as the risk of it is too high. If it did develop, you'd be faced with covering all veterinary costs yourself. I'm sorry to say but I wouldn't touch this horse with a 10 foot barge pole.
 
Having just gone through an incredibly traumatic time with my mare I would tread very carefullly regarding purchasing this horse. my mare has just had her eye removed due to glaucoma. The process of caring for an eye that flares up is incredibly time consuming, expensive, and emotionally draining.
If you really love this horse I would say having a horse with 1 eye in itself is NOT a problem. however you have to consider the POSSIBILITY of it happening to the other eye. in this case I would suggest that paying a minimial amount for the horse would be fair but I would probably not spend a lot of money as you could potentially have a horse that ends up being PTS if it flares up in his other remaining eye. Equally this horse could be absoutely fine but it would be a gamble.
if it was a proven horse, with a proven record for competing etc then it would be worth money, but as a youngster to bring on it is an even bigger gamble. out of interest what are you looking to pay for this horse??
 
I Bought a horse with a small cloudy area in one eye he had been on his current home long ( a friend who bought him finding him being stabled 24/7 with no exercise).
The cloudy area was uveitis damage , it reoccurred within 2 months of me buying him it cost me over £3000 to treat it was extremely painful ,the horse suffered terribly and yes you got it we had to keep him 24/7 in the dark to prevent reoccurring it flared up again the vet at the point felt the horses suffering was so great that removal of the eye was necessary at a cost of £1800 it was then she dropped me the bombshell that it could occur in the other eye at any time I said enough was enough and PTS , no not buy this horse it is not worth your time money or heartache it very sad for the youngster but please dont do it.
 
My mare has a problem with her eye. She was treated for a nasty bout of conjunctivitis last summer - the vet hasn't ruled out uveitis but hasn't diagnosed it either - and the same eye's been watering quite badly for the past few days.

I'm watching it closely and turning her out in a UV fly mask and it seems a lot better, and she doesn't seem to be in any pain.

I was told that horses can lose a small amount of eyesight with every attack, and when they go blind the eye is removed, mainly because they still get attacks even when their eyesight's gone.

(Incidentally, my husband had his eye removed about four years ago because of uveitis and secondary glaucoma).

I've resigned myself to the fact she could eventually lose her eye, and I've decided if the other eye flares up I'll have her PTS because my yard's not equipped for a blind horse - she'd hate being in 24/7 - and there's no way I'd move her under those circumstances.

Would I have bought Sham if I'd known? Impossible to answer, because I know her and I love her. If you've fallen for this horse and you can cope with managing the condition emotionally and financially, go for it, otherwise walk away.
 
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