Is there anyway to tell when your horse is blind?

Question

I have a horse that is blind in one eye, but My mom and I think he might be going blind in his other eye also. We are going to contact our vet soon! I love my horse very much and we take good care of him his feed rations are good and I exercise him every other day. he is a great horse and he is 18, he isnt lame or anything! please help thanks lots

Answer 1

Why do you suspect he's blind in the other eye?

Just pay extra attention to his reactions to things... When he hears a noise is he more afriad than when he sees something scary? Sensitivity to strange sounds that never usually phase horses could indicate that hes going blind. I know that there are some other tests you can do with objects, especially a favorite treat,,,,does he show alot of interest when he sees it still? Do you see any cloudyness in his eyes? There isn't really much other ways you can tell without the help of a vet. I hope everything turns out ok.

Dont worry about your horse. many horses still live sucessful and happy lives when they are blind-- in fact a woman from romania just won a huge dressage show with a blind horse. Of course, it's going to take a lot of retraining but it sounds like you are willing to work through it which is great =) Heres a good website you should take a look at. Never lose hope and good luck hun!

Blindhorses.org

I hope everything turns out OK and please contact me when you hear anything!!!

Answer 2

Horse Going Blind

Answer 3

My horse was born blind in one eye and then when he was MUCH older, he started losing vision in his other eye too. My vet said that he would compensate SO WELL as he was going blind that we would not even notice, but when he was finally TOTALLY blind, we would know.

I occasionally tested my horse's vision by walking him toward a pole on the ground or into a tree -- he always 'saw' the obstacle. He could find his way around his LARGE pasture just fine.

I can't tell you about him being blind because he died before he lost ALL his vision.

Prepare your horse as much as you can. Teach him some words such as 'Step Up' or 'Be careful' so that you can let him know where obstacles are. Also, if you still ride him, ride him a LOT until he is blind and work hard at building his confidence in you. When he can no longer see, only his belief in YOU will allow him to safely be ridden.

Good luck.

Answer 4

First, get the best veterinary care you can – right away. Eye diseases are often painful and need immediate intervention. The earlier the animal gets medical attention, the better your chances of keeping its sight.

Because the process of losing sight can be frightening for the animal, bring the horse into a corral or stall. This will keep it out of harm’s way and allow you to closely monitor it. Keep other animals away, except perhaps for a single buddy.

This is also a scary time for you. Your friend may be in pain, and even if not in pain, the animal will be upset and confused and nervous. So this will be upsetting for you, too, and you may also feel helpless if you can’t do anything to prevent the blindness.

This is when well-meaning relatives and friends will step in to tell you that the only “humane” thing to do is to put your friend down. Your vet may also say the same thing. They’ll tell you a blind horse will be unhappy and will only get hurt.

Don’t believe it.

During this crisis – and that’s what it is – you should not feel pressured into making a decision about ending your blind horse’s life. Give it time to adjust to the darkness. Give yourself time to adjust, too. You will find that your horse will come around just fine, and pretty soon you will, too. In fact, your blind horse may adapt faster to its new disability than you will.

We found that in working with and around a blind horse, talking to it is the key. If you let it know where you are and what you're doing, you won't surprise it. So we're constantly talking with our blind ones. When working with them, we also touch them a lot, both for re-assurance and to let them know where we are.

You'll find your blind horse will become very attuned to listening, and will develop what we call the "blind horse tilt" ... the head tilted at a slight angle, ears forward, listening intently. Your blind horse will still walk on a lead, accept a farrier's handling, and get into and out of a trailer okay (with a little practice and coaching). Our blind horse Lena will even follow voice commands -- we'll stand in her stall door and call to her across the corral, and she will walk straight towards us, following our voice the entire way, right up to the door.

Although the initial period of going blind can cause some anxious behavior on the part of your horse, our experience is that once blind, horses will be very careful and cautious in their movements. Blind horses typically do not run around and get hurt. They know they can't see and act accordingly. In fact, our blind horses are no more likely to get hurt than our sighted ones. So if you provide a safe environment and keep other animals from bullying it, your blind horse will be a very happy animal ... and grateful to you for the chance to live out its life.

Answer 5

Waving your hand near the eye is futile because the air movement can elicite a response from the horse, not the actual sight of your hand. The easiest way to tell is to get a small pen flashlight and shine it in the eye. If he reacts strongly, there is some vision in the eye but it would still not clarify to what extent. Could be blurry and unfocused but still recognize light. You really need to get a vet to check it asap so that you know what you are dealing with. The quicker corrective action is taken if needed, the better chance you may have of saving the eye.

Answer 6

Hi,

I am sorry to hear about your horse's eye.

If you want to find out whether he is losing sight in the other eye as well, then you should take the tip of one finger and move it closer and closer into the corner of his eye (but not actually touching it).

After you have done this, move your hand across his eye.

If he blinks when you do either of these things then it means that he can see your finger. If he doesn't blink then it means that he may be losing sight.

This is just a rough guide of how to tell if he is going blind, but I am sure that your vet will tell you for sure!

Good luck and I hope this helps!

x

Answer 7

Hold him in a shady area, then move him into the light. Does he squint with his good eye? Does he react to your hand moving close to his eye? Just quietly bring it up from behind and pass it a few inches from his eye, taking care not to tickle his whiskers. If he shows no reaction to either, he may be blind or going there. Squinting and tearing when going into the sunlight could mean he's having trouble with his eye and a vet visit now may prevent worsening. And he can still be a happy camper if he's totally blind. He will adjust to his surroundings with your help, just be careful not to take him into new places without "showing" him where stuff is by quietly leading him everywhere and lettting him touch/sniff first.

Answer 8

ibbibud has some good ideas - I have known a few blind horses. When properly managed, they can live a good life. Some can continue to be ridden, as long as they were before. It is a good idea to get them a kind-hearted guide horse or pony friend, too.

Answer 9

sometimes when a horse goes blind it'll lose pigment and turn blue ,but not always sometimes they just have blue eyes,slowly cover his eye careful not to touch his lashes or hair if he flinches or pulls away he still has some vison but a visit from the vet is a smart idea.

Answer 10

you can tell by going in front of the horse and clapping your hands or waving in his face. if he does not flench he is probably blind. i hope he is not because it seems u love him very much

good luck
savanah