Today we discovered that our beautiful blind mare Lena has developed a problem with her right eye. We noticed a small eruption on the surface of her cornea. I could see at a distance that something was wrong because her eyelids were a little puffy, and she just didn't look at me the way she normally does. (Blind horses still look, they just don't see.) So I went up to investigate and found a strange looking thing on her eye.
This is a photo I took this evening ... click on the photo to enlarge it and you may be able to see what I'm talking about. The spot is at about the 10 o'clock position ... if you see the light oblong shape in the back of the eye, it's on the left side of that. The inside of her eye also now looks very different from the inside of her left eye. Something odd is going on.
Small eye problems can quickly mushroom into major problems, and they're often painful as well. Thus I called our equine vet, Bill Brown, and found him enjoying a beautful Saturday afternoon on his sailboat on Flathead Lake. We discussed what I was seeing occur in her eye, and he thought it might be a corneal stromal abscess.
With Bill on the phone, I pulled out our favorite medical book (Brian Gilger's Equine Ophthalmology) and started reviewing with him the treatment options recommended in the book for these abscesses. Of course, Bill is at a disadvantage because he can't see the horse and has to rely on my description of the problem, but we've been through lots of eye issues together.
Bill also knows that I am neurotic about Lena ... I am absolutely certain that she is the most beautiful horse in the universe. I also call her my 'red-headed girlfriend.' (Alayne just rolls her eyes.) This second photo of Lena was taken earlier this summer by Amber Chenoweth, a friend and supporter of the sanctuary from Seattle. (And a wonderful photographer!) Click on the photo for a larger image. This is horse perfection, ladies and gentlemen. She is as sweet and adorable as she is beautiful.
So Bill suggests we begin treating her with two types of eye ointment, a systemic antibiotic (trimethoprim-sulfa), and bute to make her comfortable. He also has me take a Q-tip soaked in a solution and gently tap the eruption point with it; this may help it open up and drain to the exterior of the eye, rather than rupture inside.
Alayne and I gathered up the supplies and headed out to treat this gorgeous horse. (There I go again.) Gentle Lena patiently let me tap her eyeball with the damp Q-tip, squirt copious amounts of ointment in her eyes, flush a 60 cc syringe of oral antibiotics down her throat, and top it off with 2 grams of bute paste in her mouth.
We'll have a better idea tomorrow of what we're dealing with. And Bill offered to cut his weekend short and head back to Missoula if things got worse. Hopefully we can keep the eye stable and comfortable until Monday.
After what this horse went through (a distant memory to her, now, thank you) she is the perfect example of what kindness and caring can do. Not only for her enjoyment of life, but for yours also....
Posted by: Karen San Antonio, TX | August 22, 2005 at 05:39 PM