Weeping, slightly inflammed eyes

jesterfaerie

jesterfaerie

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I brought my TB inside to ride him this afternoon to find his eyes were weeping and inflammed. (It was the bottom side of his eye and the corner looked rather puffy)
His eyes and gums were the normal colour with normal capilliary refill timing.
He did seem himself although a bit lathargic.
Anyways brought him in and washed his eyes out with luke warm water which he was fine with, I have decided to just keep an eye on him and wash his eyes out. If things do not improve or they get worse in a few days he will go to the vets.
I am debating if it is the flies that have been bothering him as he has been stood in the small wood we have in the field as shelter from the heat the past few days.

Do you have any advice, would you book him in to see the vet asap or wait a few days and see what happens?
 
try golden eye i swear by it. Lots of postings abut this on here. I have been ok but i leave my fly mask on when out all the time where as those at our place who taken them off have had problems.
If its not cleared up or improving with GE then call the vet and they will give you cream
 
Ooo Bluemonty we're on the same wavelength today - Golden Eye ointments is what I was going to suggest.
 
Thanks a lot Bluemonty, where is the best place to get golden eye from?
I will be getting him a fly mask aswell incase it is that causing the problem, he may just be more sensitive to them than the other horses which are all fine.
 
Our grey has had this too, over the last couple of days. You describe it exactly. He looked like Alice Cooper last night bless him. It was much better after I bathed it. Will try Golden Eye too !
 
Bathing the eye with tea bags (not hot) soothes them as well. You can also try the cream they use for cats, rabbits etc I cant remember what it is called but it is a silver box with an orange stripe. Costs about £6 I think from the pet shop (or £60 including visit from my vet). If it doesnt improve in a couple of days, then call the vet although if you suspect anything more serious call the vet. I always think safe rather than sorry with eyes.
 
Thanks AmyMay

LOL Alice Cooper, bless.

CBAnglo - I will try the tea bags until I can get the golden eye which has been recommended above. I drink enough of it so it will be good to put the tea bags I leave lying around to good use lol.
Yes if it doesn't clear up I will be having the vets to check him out, just didn't fancy a huge vet bill if it turns out to be nothing as I have already just had one for my cat.
 
My pony has exactly the same symptoms.
frown.gif
i have had the vet out who diagnosed conjunctivitus,i was given cream but it hasn't made any difference.This makes me wonder if it is more pollen related. A friend advised me to try golden eye as she swears by it. I put a post on here last week about it and optrex for itchy eyes was recomended aswell......Pollen mask sounds like a good idea...... hope you go on ok
smile.gif
 
i would just use some thing light like barrier nose and eye ceam to bath and soothe that boots thing may be good but not for horses that could make things worse i would give 24hrs if knoe better than get vet out in the mean time it might be worth a phone call tho just for some advice!
 
Yeah, I tried the golden eye as well for a week and the cold tea bags did more!

Otherwise go to the pet shop and ask for the cream in the silver box with the orange stripe - the vet gave this to me but she couldnt recommend it because it is meant for cats and rabbits etc (yes they are meant to be a very good vet practice). It cleared it up within 2 days.
 
If using water to rinse eyes, it should always have salt in. Try the difference with your own eyes, water on its own stings like ****, however a touch of salt means its equal to your own tears and is ok.
I get a special saline eye wash (human stuff) as it's hygenic and I know it's the right mix.
 
Please, please, please everyone who notices eye problems in their horse - however apparently minor - get the vet out. Eyes are too precious and fragile to leave to chance. I've posted on this many, many times but feel so strongly about it that I'm going to do it again. Because of the horrendous problems my Sunny had with chronic conjunctivitis that his previous owners didn't ever bother to treat properly, he eventually had to have one eye surgically removed. The remaining eye is a constant worry, as I'm sure you understand. During the course of trying to understand what had happened, what went wrong, what Sunny's body was doing and some of the truly nightmare pitfalls along the way, I am now a bit of a lay "expert" on eyes. Some very basic dos and dont's now, and please folks, I'm not trying to preach, just save other horses' eyes. List in no particular order. Don't try to treat it yourself unless it's very, very superficial. Don't rely on cold tea: this may sooth but it won't clear up a bacterial, viral or fungal infection. Don't let ANY condition get chronic. Don't put medication in your horse's eye that was prescribed for a different animal or pet. Proprietary soothing stuff for people eg Optrex etc can be SOOTHING for horses too but, again, they won't clear up a true infection. Whenever you put anything in your horse's eye you risk damaging it further by scratching the cornea or puncturing the eyeball itself with the end of the container the stuff comes in. If at all possible (not so easy with watery drops) apply creams to the clean end of your finger and then squash your finger in the eye. Sunny finally lost his battle after the yard staff stabbed him in the eye with the pointy end of the very cream that was being used to try to save the eye. Plain boiled and cooled water is best for wiping round the outside of the eye. All the following need the vet immediately: lumps, bumps, puffiness, swelling, sticky gunge, bloodshot, horse hiding from the light, excessive weeping (especially to the extent that the whole side of the horse's face is black with tears), blue tinge on the cornea, blood vessels growing across the cornea, milky white patches on the cornea, half closed sore eyes. This list is NOT exhaustive, just a guide. Sunny's 6-month battle cost £4,000 and he still lost an eye. His remaining eye isn't in good condition. Please be vigilant all. Gonna post this as a fresh post in Vets x
 
"Don't put medication in your horse's eye that was prescribed for a different animal or pet."

I wasnt suggesting this - merely that my vet prescribed medication used for cats and rabbits for my horse. I had his eye checked for any scratches etc with the dye and then she prescribed the cream although said that it was not an equine cream.

As I said, if you suspect anything then the vet must be called. I know of another person that this has happened to with the same results as your horse. Equally so, if the eye has a cloudy look or does not repsond to light etc then the vet must be called immediately.
 
No CBAnglo - didn't mean that at all! Your vet prescribed it so that's fine! I've just tried to list some of the things that people do when trying to do the best for their neds. But sometimes - because eyes are so sensitive - it can be the wrong thing to do. My poor Sunny - I'd never want another horse to go through that if it could be prevented. He used to be a riding school horse and was so safe and genuine and worked so hard for his dinner and they couldn't even be bothered to see to a relatively simple thing like his conjunctivitis. So it became a chronic condition. I bought him - and thank god he was mine when it all went tits up - and 3 weeks later the chronic conjunctivitis in one eye became superficial keratitis and that was the beginning of 6 months of torture for him, ending with the eye being removed. Thank god he's now fat and happy and well and a really safe boy who takes his mum hacking everywhere. But he came to me with TWO bad eyes and I have nightmares over the other one ending up the same coz that would be the end. Thanks for your support x
 
I took him to the vets this morning as his eyes were still inflamed. He has been perscribed eye drops which are a bugger to get in so hopefully he will be ok in a week.
 
jesterfaerie - take huge care with getting the drops in. If they are watery drops, the cream-on-the-finger tip method won't work but it's still safer to rinse a little pad of gauze out in clean water and squeeze it dry. Then dip it in the eye drops and let it soak up as much as needed, then squeeze this into neds eye, sort of from above so it runs down into the eye. The danger of stabbing the horse in the eye with ANY drops or ointments is enormous. I'm amazed one of the drug companies hasn't come up with a safe applicator. Good luck and hope ned is better soon x
 
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