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HorseAdvice.com » Diseases of Horses » Eye Diseases » Anterior Uveitis, Recurrent Uveitis, Periodic Opthalmia, and Moonblindness »
  Discussion on Blue eyes and moonblindness
Author Message

Posted on Wednesday, Feb 16, 2000 - 2:56 pm:

Is it true if a horse has two blue eyes that he will eventually get moonblindness

Posted on Thursday, Feb 17, 2000 - 6:48 am:

No.
DrO

Posted on Thursday, May 25, 2000 - 9:24 am:

I have a 24 year old Appaloosa who recently lost his eye to moonblindness. What are the chanches of the other eye going also?

Toby

Posted on Thursday, May 25, 2000 - 10:55 am:

Teri-
What's moonblindness?

Posted on Thursday, May 25, 2000 - 11:09 am:

Moonblindness is another name for recurrent uveitis, so called because people thought that it came and went with the phases of the moon.

Posted on Thursday, May 25, 2000 - 8:30 pm:

Teri-
Some studies show that Appaloosas are more likely to get recurrent uveitis than other breeds. Uveitis can occur in either eye, so it is possible that the other eye could be affected. I suggest keeping a close watch on the good eye for any excessive tearing,squinting, etc. At the first sign of trouble, get a veterinarian to examine the eye. I don't have any percentages on the good eye becoming affected,but it definitely is possible.

Posted on Thursday, May 25, 2000 - 9:08 pm:

Teri-
Studies have shown that Appaloosas are more likely to get recurrent uveitis than other breeds. This disease can occur in either eye, therefore I would keep a close watch on the good eye. Any excessive tearing, squinting, etc. noticed, then I would have a veterinarian examine the eye immediately. I don't have percentages, but it is something that you need to be on top of.The earlier the treatment of uveitis, the better chance you have for saving the eye.

Posted on Thursday, May 25, 2000 - 9:11 pm:

Sorry about the duplicate, It took awhile for the first entry to post, so I didn't think it went through

Posted on Friday, May 26, 2000 - 10:58 am:

Can anyone tell me what the sypmtoms of this moonblindness are? Thanks alot.

Posted on Friday, May 26, 2000 - 12:00 pm:

When my friend's gelding gets it his eye produces alot of tears and he cannot tolerate the light so it closes and he looks troubled. He will rub it on you so it obviously irritates him. If you can prise the eyelids apart the cornea has gone cloudy. He gets steroid ointment and painkillers straight away and is usually much better within 24 hours. It must be taken seriously or the eye will be permanently scarred and damaged and eventually sight is lost.

Posted on Friday, May 26, 2000 - 1:46 pm:

Helen-
Thanks alot!! :0)

Posted on Saturday, May 27, 2000 - 12:27 am:

hi all---my 11yo appy mare just recently recovered from her first episode of eye inflammation...we're suspicious that she may have ERU(equine recurrent uveitis, or "moonblindness" or "periodic Ophthalmia")...another occurrence of symptoms will likely confirm the diagnosis. This is a very scarey disease and is fraught with misinformation/ out of context info via a variety of internet articles. Please be very very cautious about jumping to conclusions based on one author's article, or being paranoid/irrational regarding "causes".(yes, my mare and I have been victimized) To date ( and let me tell ya, I've done some research here) there is no known cause but many suspected "triggers". This is a disease in which the horse's own body creates antibodies that will attack the tissues of the eye, eventually doing enough damage to cause cataracts and blindness. A multitude of things are suspected to "trigger" this antibody reaction, but rest assured, your horse is not contagious and can not spread ERU to others. Symptoms of ERU are typically swelling of both upper and lower eyelids, to the point the eye is swollen shut, profuse watery drainage/tearing, photosensitivity, irritability, going off feed, etc. If your horse has any symptoms of eye infection/inflammation, do not delay seeking professional care..I can not stress loudly enough the importance of this...don't try to manage this with self care if you're horse has never been evaluated for it..your actions may make the difference as to how rapidly permanent damage occurs and progresses.

Posted on Monday, May 29, 2000 - 9:54 am:

I agree with Beth in that this is a disease that should not be managed with self care. If you notice any symptoms of eye disease, you should have your veterinarian come out the same day. Do not use steroids in an inflamed eye, until the
veterinarian has examined it and prescribed such medication. There are lots of different eye diseases that are treated in different ways. For example, if your horse had a corneal ulcer instead of uveitis and you used steroids, then you may make the condition worse.

Posted on Monday, May 29, 2000 - 9:37 pm:

For more information on this disease see the article associated with this forum: The Horseman's Advisor: Equine Diseases: Eye Diseases: Anterior Uveitis
DrO
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