Help & tips, please! One-eyed horse?

[MikeP]

So Old Cisco, cart puller, roper, cow pony, trail horse and all around good-guy, the horse you can put any guest or child on and not worry, came down with “Cancer Eye”. The vet removed his right eye and surrounding tissue last Thursday and said he’s good to go unless the cancer spreads. The vet also told me how to tell if the horse starts having pain due to the cancer recurring and all of that. Also, the vet will, of course, be checking on him frequently. I’m confident with the medical aspect of things. The horse is an 18-year old QH/Morgan cross, if that matters.

But….has anyone out there ever trail rode with a one-eyed horse? What’s different, how did it work out for you, etc? (This would be purely recreational trail riding, not competitive.)

How is handling a one-eyed horse around the barn different? Things to beware of?

All comments, tips, suggestions are welcome. This is too good of a horse and he’s too good natured to just have him euthanized if he has some more happy years in him.

Thanks in advance.

[jazzrider]

Hey, I can answer this! I leased/rode a wonderful TB mare for four years out on trail that had vision in only one eye. I can’t speak to her adjustment period though – she was well used to it by the time I started riding her. I believe she lost her vision at around 10 years old. To be honest, in and around the barn it was hard to tell she only had vision in her left eye. She always kept her blind eye to the back of the stall, so she could see who was coming. When grooming on cross ties, if I was working on her right side, I usually kept one hand on her so she knew I was there. She seemed to have a keen sense of hearing and didn’t often spook because of things coming up on her right.

Out on trail, she kept her head slightly bent to the right, so she looked like she was looking at the scenery – but she was using her good eye to look ahead. Once she developed a full trust in me (through ring work), she would let me straighten her out, and trust that I would be watching the right side. She had been a jumper, and when I jumped her in the ring for fun, she took everything as if it was four feet :eek:. Once she was retired, it took me a long time to shake my sense of responsibility for watching the ground and the right.

I never felt that she couldn’t do what the other horses could do – she just needed a consistent rider that understood her issue and worked to develop trust. Your horse can absolutely be useful and happy with vision only in one eye!

Here’s a link to some useful info for blind horses. Some of it might be informative for you. http://www.voicenet.com/~sstrauma/Blind_Horse_Care_Training_and_Riding.htm

[MikeP]

Thanks for sharing your experience, and providing the link. That’s exactly the sort of information I was hoping for.

Anybody else?

[Beverley]

I had a tb that lost an eye due to bacterial and fungal infection at age 8. I foxhunted him to age 19, and he raced over fences at age 13. Post- foxhunting, out here in Utah, he did just fine as a trail horse, though I was careful not to go on narrow mountain trails with 1,000 foot dropoffs on his blind side!

He was a fractious OTTB type, and for hunting it took him about a year to adjust fully- he was concerned about what he could hear but not see approaching from his blind side. He also got a bit one-sided in that first year, because when in the field he tended to always move in the direction he could see (the right). Fixed that with extra workouts, especially longeing, to the left. If yours is an all around good guy, I would expect a smoother transition.

Mine wasn’t particularly spooky about working on the blind side- over the years his hearing on that side became more acute to compensate. But yes, especially early on, pay attention when working on the blind side to see whether you notice that he’s concerned about anything.

I have known one-eyed horses to cock their heads when jumping, but mine never did. More than once I found myself pulling his head around approaching a fence to make sure he could see it- annoyed him no end!

[Giomanach]

I know a lady who has an 17yr old appy mare who is completely blind in both eyes.

This mare will go anywhere you point her nose…the lady who owns her frequently trail rides her and even barrel races with her and does well. The way this mare rides you wouldn’t think she was blind. When her owner goes ridine she has to be the mares eyes and so has to be cosistently watching so the mare doesn’t hurt herself.

Her owner lets her know she there by either humming or always keeping one hand on her.

[gabz]

I’ve ridden 2 lesson horses - extensively - that both had only 1 eye. One was a laid back QH gelding and the other was not so laid back mare.

Both trail rode all over. They both were little spit-fires in speed events too!!

You’ll want to spend time with your horse working around him and talking to him all the time. If you keep in mind that horses can feel even a tiny fly or gnat land on them, they know your presence. It sounds like this horse is a tried and true gentleman and I’m sure he’ll do just fine. It will only take him a little while of your handling him to figure things out. I would suggest some ground work over logs and walking between trees/ poles, in and out of stall doorways, etc.

The gelding that had only 1 eye would go over logs and such… but only when he fully trusted the rider. The mare … she went anywhere you pointed her.

[GallopingGrape]

There is a one eyed horse at our local lesson barn. You’d never know he had only one eye. I believe he’s going blind in the other eye, but he gets around just fine!!

[MikeP]

Thanks for all the input. Cisco came home from the Vet’s today. He was fired up! I guess the trailer ride and just glad to get back home got him going. We’re keeping him in a small lot with water and “his” two mares across the fence for now.

I do think the suggestions about lots of leading and groundwork are good. He’s really not comfortable yet. I think him seeing all the familiar things with only one eye is confusing him right now. He was calmer at the clinic where everything was strange.

I keep posting his progress.

[nj2]

I had to have the eye removed (injury) on my 18yo Hackney horse
I did take him a little adjustment to get ussed to no vision on that side
They said he could not see for some time but I think he at least had lights and shadows, based on adjustment later

Once he settled down to it, he was as steady as he had been before the removal
“I” took the precautions of always touching him when I worked around him on the ground, but that was as much for me as for him
I was also careful when the “danger” on the trail (drop off, stream, etc) was on the blind side in case he spooked away from the good side - which is something he would do

All in all, the blind side did not cause problem itself - for me
It was the moving away from the good side that I had to react to

Rode and drove him for another 6 years before we lost him

He also gave us no problems adjusting to the blinker bridle for driving, so I dont think that horses are so concerned about losing sight in one eye - they adjust pretty quickly

Best of luck to you

[jazzrider]

[QUOTE=MikeP;3315486]
I keep posting his progress.[/QUOTE]

Please do! Jingles that he’ll settle in quickly and keep his spirits up. :yes:

[pines4equines]

Hay

If you need to cover the bad eye until it heals, I’ve seen people use an old bra. They cut out one cup so the horse can see and leave the other cup intact. They then put the straps over the ears and fasten the back thingy under the jaw.

Good luck with your horse!

[prudence]

Fritz

This horse did not find having vision in only one eye a problem:

http://simplymarvelous.wordpress.com/2007/06/13/blind-in-one-eye-fritz-wins-famed-tevis-cup-twice/

Fritz, owned and ridden by Marjorie Pryor, won the Tevis Cup in 1982 and 1983, and is an eight-time finisher, 7 times in the top six. Fritz is blind in his left eye.

More practically, we have a 29yr old horse we still use on the trail who is blind in one eye. We try and be aware of that side and watch out for branches, etc. when riding him but we have never noticed a problem. The problem we DO notice is you need to be a little more careful on that side since if he moves quickly to get away from another horse he could step on you. You can’t really sneak up on though since his hearing is so good.

You should be fine. Horses are great compensators.

[MikeP]

[QUOTE=pines4equines;3315841]
If you need to cover the bad eye until it heals, I’ve seen people use an old bra. They cut out one cup so the horse can see and leave the other cup intact. They then put the straps over the ears and fasten the back thingy under the jaw.

Good luck with your horse![/QUOTE]

Great tip! The vet said I might have to modify a fly mask if the eye gives trouble healing. I like this idea better. The missus will like this one too, as it gives her a great reason to go bra-shopping…

He’s doing better today, calmed down and acting more like himself. This afternoon I turned him out in a five-acre pasture with a pond and “his” two mares. All seems back to normal as of sunset.

[MareMc]

One Eye

This is a great website…I had a one eye who I retired from racing with over $400,000 lifetime…now, he didn’t get the bulk of that with me or with one eye but he raced with one eye for 3-4 years with me…they helped me understand the vision issues…these are some wonderful people and the website is great…read the stories on “meet the horses”…my old one eyed man always donated a little $$ when he won.

http://blindhorses.org

[yellow-horse]

my old yellowhorse had cataracts, i didn’t realize she was going blind at 1st because she was her steady old self, it was gradual with her so that made a difference, i used to trail ride her and like others said, i didn’t assume she could see dicey parts of the trail and sometimes she would stop if she wasn’t sure of something under her feet
what made me think something was wrong with her is she acted senile, she’d stand in the middle of the pasture like she didn’t know where she was and the other horses would herd her all over the place, i thought they were being bossy but after the vet came out to see her, we figured they were helping her get around
when you start working with him again, you might want to pony him if he knows how to do that and then start riding him with one of us buddies

[amdfarm]

I had a OTTB broodmare/recreational riding that was blind in her left eye. It happened on the track when a rock flew up and into her eye so by the time I got her she’d become very used to it, though hadn’t been ridden for some time due to being a mom.

You honestly never would have known, because she was so accustomed to it. I just made sure when I approached from that side that I let her know I was there before putting my hands on her. And she was NEVER spooky ever.

When we started riding her, we stayed in the pasture since she was familiar w/ it and then moved on to trails and riding in town. Parades, gas station, railroad crossings, river, timber, etc… She never took a wrong step and took everything in stride. She was such a sweet mare and also had no problems w/ trailering.

I’m betting that’s what Cisco will do, too.

My friends have a broodmare, that started out as a driving mare, that is blind in her left eye from a detached retina… we think she was kicked in the head as a baby, because we didn’t notice it until she was 2yo and being broke to drive. She would come out of her skin if you didn’t let her know you were there and you don’t dare touch her unless you let her know first. She’s much better now that she’s older, but she didn’t start that way. It took a lot of time and patience to figure her out.

When she was driving, she was used on the right so she could see and then depended on the mare next to her to be her eye on the off side if she couldn’t see something. She did remarkably well. One thing we noticed after we found out she was blind on that side was that she’d walk and hike that leg up higher… almost like since she couldn’t see it, she exaggerated it to make sure she picked her feet up. Being a BIG, 17.3hh Percheron mare, this was a good thing. She no longer does that.

She’s also a very good mom and is great at keeping track of her foals. Has never stepped on them, but gets nervous if they go on her bad side and she can’t see them.

Good luck w/ Cisco!!

[MikeP]

Thanks, All! He’s doing still better this morning. It seems like every time I check him he’s adjusted a little more. Gave him a good grooming and wipe-down with fly spray, being careful to let him know when I was on his off-side. He did great.