>>> After Alex brought in the pix I went out to look for myself and Gat >>> didn't have as much discharge as shown here but the swelling is still >>> there. You have to look for it otherwise it doesn't stand out.
Watch it and see if the swelling goes down quickly or gets worse. She might have just bumped it on one of your shelter posts - that sort of thing happens a lot. Eye injuries can be serious and should be looked at by a vet quickly, but if you don't see any injury to the eyeball, and the swelling goes down quickly, I wouldn't be TOO concerned. If the discharge gets worse, or looks infected and/or the swelling doesn't go down, I'd get the vet out. That said, the most common cause of yellowish discharge from a horse's eye in this part of the country comes from fly egg irritation. An infected looking discharge can be serious, and I'd have the vet check it quickly if it gets to that point - but try not to have a heart attack while waiting. The first time I saw one of the fly egg reactions, I just KNEW my horse would be blind for life. Thankfully, it wasn't the case. The cure for the fly egg syndrome? A fly mask always does the trick here. Karen Thomas, NC
