Would you buy a 'blind in one eye' pony?

[LMuirEDT]

I'm going to view a pony with a friend for her daughter this morning. She is hopefully doing a straight swap with the pony she currently has that she has out grown. My initial thoughts were 'oh no' but actually on thinking about it it may not be that bad. If it's the right pony for her then why not.

I just wondered what other people views might be. My only worries are that if it starts having issues then they will use the fact it is blind in one eye as an excuse for everything.

 

[SVMel]

Well, if she has issues, then eveluate whether they are problems too big for the rider as you would any other horse with 2 good eyes. You'll know whether you think any behaviours could be attributed to being blind in one eye or not, or whether its just down to naughtiness etc. Always worth going to have a look if the pony seems to fit your needs otherwise. Might be worth checking why she is blind in that eye, and get advice as to whether it will causes health problems later on, like having to get the eye removed etc. Probably not, but would be worth checking.

One of the smartest jumping ponies I've sat on was blind in one eye. She was quick, clever and got herself out of all sorts of trouble if someone took a bad line. Don't discount her yet!!!

 

[LMuirEDT]

Good point about the future health problems bit. I hadn't thought of that.

 

[Shysmum]

If it's the right pony, and is vetted re future probs, then yes I would. sm x

 

[Toby_Zaphod]

To be honest No I wouldn't. There are are plenty of ponies out there with out this problem. I appreciate that horses/ponies adapt when they have a problem however with one eye blind they have lost 180 deg vision around one side of the body. Anything coming from that direction they will not see & this could cause problems to them. Additionally there may well be a problem with depth perception. As lovely as the pony may be you need to give careful consideration to taking it on. Good Luck with whatever you decide.

 

[teddyt]

If the pony was ok in every other way, yes i would buy it.I would want to know how and when it lost the eye though. A sudden loss is harder to adjust to and takes longer than a gradual loss of eyesight. Having one eye wouldnt put me off though

 

[gemin1eye]

I used to ride a horse a long time ago who was blind in one eye. He was a bit naughty (used to tank off if he could get away with it) but he acted no differently to the other horses on the yard and he still used to jump, go cross country and play polo.

 

[teddyt]

Your user name is very apt for this thread!

 

[MontyandZoom]

YES! I did

My one-eyed pony does everything a two-eyed pony would do. She hacks, hunts, jumps and is awesome in traffic. The only possible consideration is whether it is a degenerative condition that could affect the healthy eye. Zoomy was kicked in the face so it wasn't caused by disease.

Out hunting she has horses run into her blind side and has never flinched. The only small problem we had at the start was narrow gaps but this has been completely cleared by building trust with her rider.

To be honest, I wouldn't hesitate to get a one-eyed pony again - you can get a bargain! Zoom cost me £1 due to her eye and had cost tens of thousands as a polo pony.

If you need any advice please feel free to PM me

 

[blackcob]

Ditto everything MontyandZoom said - I've had my blind-in-one-eye pony for six years now, she didn't cost me a penny and is my horse of a lifetime. Jumps, hunts, shows at a county level (no judge has ever noticed!) and is bombproof in the heaviest traffic. Wouldn't hesitate to have another one.

 

[Box_Of_Frogs]

I'm not sure I'd deliberately buy a one-eyed pony. My horse Sunny tragically lost an eye 3 years ago and he hacks, does dressage tests, has "free range" privileges on the yard, can pop a jump (even at 23!) and is generally the safest horse on the yard. He adjusted very quickly to having only one eye. But the real problem is that with a 1-eyed ned, if anything happens to the remaining eye, you're stuffed. Sunny doesn't have any "spares" any more. It would be helpful if you knew how the pony lost the eye. If it was uveitis or some similar disease that could spread to the other eye then it could end up an expensive and possibly unrideable purchase. If it was eg a field accident, then you're more certain but then field accidents can happen at any time. Difficult call. Sunny is with me for ever and then some but whether I'd deliberately buy a 1-eyed horse....not sure x

 

[Katie__Connie]

Tbh i wouldn't as someone said, there are many ponies without this problem... but saying that if it didnt affect it health wise etc and i really loved the pony i may consider it...

 

[KatyM933]

I might, it depends on the nature of the horse.
My pony got her right eye taken out last March and its acctually made her better than what she was. She's such a good natured pony and I think if she wasn't good natured before her eye was removed then she wouldn't have copped with it so well.
I would look for a horse with the best nature and a good ride, ot if it has one eye or not, that dosen't matter so much.

 

[caitlin95uk]

a horse at my old riding school was a naughty pony used to buck and and canter off and then he got an infection and had his eye removed, they tried him without his eye and is now used for the disabled and is amazing! jumps 3ft and all sorts, it has made him better if anything :L xx

 

[Double_choc_lab]

There was a very successful hurdler called Material World who was blind in one eye. She would get in the hustle and bustle of a race and was very brave. As others have said it was an accidental loss rather than disease then I wouldn't be so worried. Depends if you want to keep or sale at a later date - then you'd need to find someone else like you who isn't too worried.

 

[Kenzo]

I had one when I was younger, she was called Fudge, never made any difference to be honest, just have to be more aware of it, but to be honest it never effected her or my riding, we easily sold her on too, she was a cracking little pony.

 

[bj_cardiff]

Its a very different thing owning a pony/horse that looses an eye while in your ownership to buying a horse/pony thats lost one..

Personally I wouldn't unless it was ridiculously cheap and was exactly what I was looking for.. If its a childs pony and you'd sell it on once outgrown you might find him difficult to sell..?

 

[Rainbowrider]

Is the pony at Silverstone by any chance?

 

[Starzaan]

I have two horses who are blind in one eye, and both deal with it in very different ways. It depends entirely on the horse - if this horse is right in every other way, go for it, why should being blind in one eye stop you?!
My big gelding is blind in one eye, and nobody realises - he jumps, hunts, plays polo when we fancy a change (interesting at 17.2hh), events, hacks out in all sorts of traffic, and is my horse of a lifetime. Even the new vet didn't believe me when I told him! The only things that are different about him since he lost his sight are:
~ you need to be noisy when you're in a stable with him, or he'll clonk you on the head accidentally
~ if a particularly scary thing is approaching from behind us on his blind side, I'll turn him round so he can look at it first, and not suddenly see it whizz past him
~ when jumping, we now don't bother with cross poles, as although he still jumps them willingly, he jumps to the left, which can be rather odd!
~ his right eye is now stunningly beautiful - it's still brown, but has amazing ice blue flecks right the way through it
~ I have to check his eye every day to make sure there's no swelling or colour change, as if that happens, his eye will have to be taken out.

My mare on the other hand has gone bonkers and is now un-rideable due to her blindness, but she was quirky and a bit of an idiot to begin with anyway!

If this pony is right, go for it - look at Briarlands Blackberry, competing at four star with only one eye.

 

[rcm_73]

My 19 y.o. TB (bay horse cantering in my siggy) is blind in her right eye due to uveitis. I would say that they should look into the cause of blindness incase it will need careful management or future treatment. My mare having uveitis has to wear a UV mask all through the summer & sometimes in winter (e.g. in the snow). If she has an attack it is very very painful for her as the pupil contracts and it requires instant aggressive veterinary treatment. I would also consider which eye the horse is blind in and how that could affect him/her. My mare is blind in her right eye which means she doesn't see traffic, however she was 100% in traffic before going blind and still remains so. The main thing that I have to watch out for are cyclists as she doesn't see or hear them so they usually take her by surprise. Flatwork / dressage is a no go for her as she goes crooked to compensate for her loss of vision, I can lunge her but it's awkward on her blind side & I have to use lots of voice. I always speak before approaching her blind side & make sure everyone knows she is blind on the right including the farrier & I would say it would be important to drum this into a child handling a half blind pony as I do know of a child that got kicked for startling a pony on its blind side.
Having said all that, my mare is still a super hack & can still jump although I don't compete her anymore & she does tend to jump to the left. Gates she always gives herself an extra wide berth on her blind side & loading into a trailer the partition always needs to be moved as far over as possible. Good luck, personally I would never rule a decent horse or pony out just because it is partially sighted.