Swollen eye

[Simone]

This morning i got up to feed my horses and one of them was blinking really strange in one of her eyes. At taking a closer look it all around the eye was swollen, there wasn't any discharge or anything. I suppose something may have gone into her eye like a grass seed - should I get the vet out to have a look?
Oh yes and I've washed her eye out with lukewarm salty water...

[ann]

This morning i got up to feed my horses and one of them was blinking really strange in one of her eyes. At taking a closer look it all around the eye was swollen, there wasn't any discharge or anything. I suppose something may have gone into her eye like a grass seed - should I get the vet out to have a look?My vet says you should never take an eye problem lightly. However, if there's a grass seed or something in it, I would expect at least some tearing. Is there any heat in the swelling? It could be an insect or spider bite.

If in doubt, call the vet.

[Simone]

Ann, there is a little bit of heat in it, not a greawt deal more than the other eye though. It is more swollen on the bottom eye lip than the top but shes still holding it practically half closed. i think i should ring the vet and see what they think...

[carolyn hadjigeorgiou]

I would be getting the vet in asap and put a fly mask on to stop flies and help shade from the sun. Nothing worse than an ulcered eye. Hope all goes well

[Simone]

Thanks Carolyn, I've put a fly mask on - the vet opens at 7:30 so i will call then. I'll put her in the stables out of the sun

[Madeline]

check also for a tick it may be a small tick as high as up near the ear.
I had a horse about 10 years ago that in the morning his eye filled and overfilled the hood eye hole it was hugely swollen. he had a small tick just near his ear on that side.
He was very reactive to ticks though he got one on his sheath at a later time and man did that swell up.
I pulled a tick off my WB yesterday

[Simone]

That's a good point, i couldn't see anything around the area really, the swelling has gone down a little since i've washed it out with salty water but i'll still get the vet out to be safe.

Her eye is pretty glassy and clear, it's mostly down the bottom that's all swollen

[ann]

That's a good point, i couldn't see anything around the area really, the swelling has gone down a little since i've washed it out with salty water but i'll still get the vet out to be safe.

Her eye is pretty glassy and clear, it's mostly down the bottom that's all swollenDefinitely a job for the vet, in my view.

[Simone]

Alright, Judy from the vet came and looked at her, she has a tiny scratch on her eye - I could see something there that was a big irregular. She’s opened it up a little more so no abscess can form, put antibiotics in it and some other cream. I have to put it in 6 times a day until Saturday & she's on bute. It hasn't become infected so it's obviously happened early this morning. It’s nothing major but she said left untreated it can become infected and takes a long time to fix. She’s going to come and check on Saturday afternoon and should be all fixed by then!

[Franca]

Hi, Simone,

A friend of mine recently had the same thing happen with her mare - a tiny scratch on the cornea from who knows what. She had the vet out right away and started treatment. The only thing I would add to what your vet said is that if at any point you notice that the eye is becoming worse rather than better, don't wait until Saturday to have a recheck. With my friend's mare - for whatever reason - the antibiotics being used didn't work, the scratch lengthened and became quite resistant to treatment. The mare ended up spending a couple of weeks in the hospital. $$$ I think the chances of this happening are pretty slim, but just keep a good watch on it and make sure that things are going in the right direction. If there's no noticeable improvement or it appears to be looking worse the vet may need to prescribe a different antibiotic. Good luck with it - I hope she's good as new by Saturday!

[Simone]

Thanks for the added advice Franca, i've got to check her every two hours to put this cream in - hopefully having the fly mask on will stop any dust and all the flies and hopefully it will improve and not get worse.

[Zephyr]

Yuck, been there. Melting ulcer and $3000.00 later! At least we saved the horse's eye, but he lost nearly all the vision in that eye, and as he was being prepped for a racing career (our only soiree into racing), that was the career over and lots and lots of training $$$ down the drain too. On a brighter note, he made a beautiful dressage horse.

[Simone]

yes you certainly don't want anything bad to happen to their eyes. This morning all the swelling has gone down which is good, she is just sick of me trying to open her eye and squirt things in.

[Carole Lok]

Glad to hear the eye is on the improve. I'm with the call the vet crew here, mind you I tend to want the vet to check everything!
To add another tip on an eye wash ( obviously not on something serious) Cold tea really seems to sooth them too. Resident Vet Anita have you heard of this one?
Carole

[Zephyr]

Not sure about that one. Tea bags are supposed to be soothing on human eyes, but I think that probably has more to do with the coolness of it. I'd be reluctant to stick anything in my horse's eye that wasn't designed for it!

[Simone]

Vet came back on Saturday afternoon to check on it - it was fine so she said to stop treatment (thank god the horse was getting so sick of me sticking stuff into her eye) and just to keep the fly mask on for a few days to make sure it's 100%

[Equine Elegance]

One of the small animal vets recommended cold tea bags for our dogs eyes when they were weeping, but that's the first time I'd heard of it.

[Zephyr]

But there has to be a reason why your dogs eyes are weeping? An abberant eyelash, blocked tear duct, irritation, allergy? What breed of dog is it, what colour is the discharge, do its eye get sore when it weeps, does it only weep at a certain time of the day or year? I think its better to try and fix the problem rather than manage the symptoms, if possible.

[Equine Elegance]

I can't remember the reason, probably something like dust or grass seed in the eye. She's a Tenterfield terrier and the discharge was clear.

[Zephyr]

Clear discharge is usually irritation, blocked tear duct, viral infection, allergy. If it occurs seasonally (ie, particular time of the year), it could be allergy. If it happens frequently she could have hair or an eyelash irritating her eye, or the tear duct could be blocked.