Uveits: supportive care in addition to herbal treatment

[beachridr]

Cary sent me a great link on a good hood with rigid screened eye bubbles for protecting the highly sensitive eye of a horse suffering from Uveitis. It was designed to protect the eyes of polo horses but also protects race horse & rodeo horses eyes from dirt & lassos, etc.  I've found with Mariah that any little bump can cause a relapse of clouding and tearing and a lot of pain for quite of few weeks. I've had been struggling with figuring out how to put her out to pasture in the early morning hours when its still dark as our pastures have a lot of trees and obstacles and she would tend to follow the other horses who see normally at night into areas where she could have trouble bumping her eye . So this would be excellent.

http://www.tfloki.com/pelling.html

http://www.montyroberts.com/shop_tack_training.html#PellingProtector

Filters light for horses with various eye injuries (like those with the inability to blink) or sensitivity to bright sunlight or arena and track overhead lighting

[beachridr]

darn! they've quit making it...

I've ordered the next best thing which is a custom racing blinker with a clear cup to protect her bad eye.. I'll let you know how it works.

http://www.tfloki.com/custom.html

[beachridr]

has anyone used this hood for eye protection called the Guardian Mask? I'm thinking Marty did....

I had some concerns with it as it looks from the pics to be so low over the eye that it could put pressure on the eye, but this is the reply I got from the company... would love to hear from anyone that has actually used it

 

Greetings Angela,
 
Thank you for your email and details regarding your questions. 
 
The Guardian Mask with 95% Sunshades is recommended for horses with uveitis.  It is recommended that the mask be worn in all daylight hours.
 
The eye covers and sunshades are interchangeable and the eye mesh is away from the eye because we use a rigid plastic insert within the material where the eye covers are attached.  The eye covers are not shaped like "bubbles" such as the photo you included, and there have been many attempts at creating a mask like the Guardian Mask however I assure you that the Guardian Mask is the first, original and the one that still works the best to help with uveitis most of all. 
 
Here are a couple of pictures to show the mask on a horse, we usually recommend that customers read our testimonials as the customers that have written them have done so to help others more understand their own horses needs.   Feel free to do so as well, we also have an archive, and many of these customers have sent in pictures as well.
 
http://www.horsemask.com/Cart/
 
http://www.horsemask.com/t-nannette.html
 
Thank you and if you need further assistance let me know.
 
Vee
Guardian Mask
 

[Marty]

Yes, I've used the Guardian mask with Gus. I'm not real fond of the original mask which is the one you are talking about. Because it's a dark material, it gets pretty hot in the summer and Gus's face would sweat a lot. Also, it's prone to a lot of rub areas around the eyes. It's ok to use for a short term thing (eye injury), but I had trouble with the ever day use. Also, it's not good in the rain- really obsures vision.
Getting just the right fit isn't easy. You can take measurements on your horse and send them in for a custom design, but I haven't tried that.

It's not on the Guardian mask site, but if you call they will also offer the farnam type traditional fly masks made out of the same material. This is what I use and have been fairly happy with that. I would definitely give this a try.

There's another company (www.horseyshades.com) that offers fly/protective masks in a similar material to block out 95% of the sun light. They look good to me, but I haven't given them a try yet. I would check them out!

[horsenflower]

I am not that happy with it either.  After six months the eye parts start caving in and I have concerns about it rubbing the eye.  I know you can buy replacements,  even the bug eye fly mask doesn't cave in but it is not 95% sunshade.

So no I would not recommend it.

I went to horseyshades site and they are down for a while so I can't see what it looks like.


Sharon

[beachridr]

Thanks, Marty & Sharon,

just as I suspected... so frustrating that they're not making the Pelling Protector anymore... that one looks so perfect.... it wouldn't be hard to add extra covering if you wanted it more shaded. I've not needed to be concerned about the UV protection (since she's been on the herbs) as much as the injury to the eye from bumps, but like I said somewhere, that may be because we live were the sun is not so strong and we do have a lot of grey days... but she's fine even on the beach... doesn't squint at all. Its when she bumps her eye accidentally that she's in pain and swelling & tearing follow. Took me a while to figure that out as I thought episodes were "just" happening that were more severe and harder for the herbs to control but they quickly stopped once I left the night light on.   

[beachridr]

I got a reply from the MontyRoberts site that used to carry the Pelling Protector...  she had a good idea. I may mess around with that and see what I can come up with. Definitely will need to pad the edges of the sieve where it meets the face, but if I get a metal sieve at least I can bend it so it follows the contour of her eye  area.... the bony part over the eye especially.


 

 
A couple of years ago I did make my own from a pair of normal racing blinkers and I cut out the blinker part and inserted small sieves from a cookery shop and they worked well for a horse I needed them for with remedial issues
 
Hopefully you will be able to source what you need or make your own pair!
 
Sorry not to have been much help
 
Maya
 
Kind regards
 
Maya Horsey
Head Instructor MRILC
www.join-up.org
www.montyroberts.com
805 688 3483

her reply to my question of what she used for padding

Sheepskin cut outs worked well as provided cushioning and padding  - and I also cut up an old travelling pad/boot and that had good padding and worked well.  I was on a mission to save money at the time and used what I had lying around!
 

[beachridr]

found a hood that is like the Pelling Protector.. I"m going to try it and let you all know how it goes. Looks like it attaches to a halter... one size fits all so may be a problem for Mariah... she's got a very large head. Will keep you posted, but the price is right and it will be easy to add extra mesh if one would want to have it more shaded. I'm interested to see if the mesh cups are contoured to the face.
http://www.bigdweb.com/detail.aspx?id=20580

[horsenflower]

Hmmmm....looks very interesting.  Let us know and how the heck does it stay on?

Sharon

[beachridr]

Well.... got the eye guard mask from www.bigdee.com and I LOVE IT!!!!  very much like what was pictured  as the Pelling Protector... and the mesh cup's base is able to be contoured.... meaning I was able to put enough of a bend in it and it held so that it follows the face contour so no one spot gets too much pressure. It also has moveable "shades"... almost like a plastic lash/lid/short visor so the eye is also shaded.   Its working very well for Mariah, but she only need it when I put her out in the pasture early while its still dark.  Oh... it has ear holes and clips that are elastized that attach under the check like a normal fly mask... I think it would have been more comfortable to have designed it with a thick velcro strap like most fly masks have though. If I eventually need Mariah to wear it for more than a few hours a day, I'll switch that out or at least add a sheepskin pad between those narrow straps/clips and her.

But I think this is the BEST option for Uveitis protection.... it completely clears the eye, shades the eye (you could increase the shading if needed very easily... I have a few ideas if anyone has that need) and protects from bumps plus she also looks cute in it and not like some alien being... Snickers was so funny... he got so excited, he though there was a new mare in town-lol

[horsenflower]

I'm having trouble finding the site.  Is it Bigd.com?  I clicked on the site you listed and didn't get it.   And have been searching but still no luck.

Sharon

[beachridr]

its the link I gave on reply # 7..
http://www.bigdweb.com/detail.aspx?id=20580

I just checked.. its still the correct link

I'll have to take a picture of Mariah & post... it looks so much better than pictured... especially since its formed to her face

[horsenflower]

My vet told me the other day that someone is working on a mask/eyeglasses that has the yellow hue for horses and blocks out 95% of UV's.

Angela, do you still like the eye guard mask?

Sharon

[beachridr]

Hi Sharon,
Yes, I still love the mesh eye goggle thing I got from BigDee that is like the Pelling Protector... but remember, I not convinced with all this "UV" talk as being the real source of the problem. My hypothesis is that a Uveitis horse (whether from exposure to lepto virus or any of the other causes they think are involved) is an eye problem waiting to happen that goes undetected until the eye takes an insult and then starts the self destructive process of the auto immune condition. I don't think the issue for mariah is the UV as much as the bumps & insults and this is no doubt due to the work of the TIH & Uveitis herbs... the problem I have with her is if she bumps it.... I have no trouble with her if full sunlight, on the beach , etc.... no increase in tearing or clouding due to just sunlight exposure... I really wonder if the  "science" is off on Uveitis and they're focusing too much on UV rays and not so much on the whole auto immune response and the inability for the body to deal with injury when an auto immune situation is active.  But that is just my novice observations with my horse who lives on the pacific northwest where the light is always less than closer to the equator anyway and that could play into it big time, but since I have no intention of moving south, I can't "test" Mariah in another set of living conditions and see if my hypothesis is full of crap or not...lol!

[horsenflower]

I used the Guardian Mask today just to try it again.  I just don't like the way it seems to smash in if they roll on it and his eye was redder today then when I used the bug eyed mask.

I don't like to leave halters on so I'm wondering why the eye guard mask from Big D doesn't go all the way around the head and just fasten?  I might have to get it.

Sharon