Blind Ambition, otherwise known as Bee, was only 2 days old when she was diagnosed with thick cataracts covering both of her eyes, causing her to be blind at birth.
However, Joy Weber, owner of Weber Training Stables in Agua Dulce, wanted to ensure that Bee had a chance of a long, healthy life, transporting her to University of California, Davis, for surgery.
“She was born a little over three and a half months ago. We didn’t immediately know that she was blind. We realized pretty quickly when she kept bumping into things and not knowing where her mother was or really having any concept of her surroundings,” Weber said. “The potential of living for a horse is 30 to 35 years. Once we got her up to Davis, she was a good candidate, and the surgery went well.”
According to Weber, Bee now has vision in both eyes, but is in recovery longer than expected.
“She’s had some minor setbacks following the surgery, with corneal ulcers, and she has a little bit of an infection in one eye that they’re trying to treat with antibiotics. We were told that the surgery itself isn’t that complicated, but if there’s going to be complications, it’s going to be in the immediate follow-up,” Weber said. “She’ll have to be monitored and have monthly checkups, and after that, at least once a year, as long as there are no further complications.”
Bee has been in recovery for over four weeks, and has been accompanied by her mother, Ivory, since the start.
“Most people wean babies when they’re 4 to 6 months old. She could’ve been weaned at three months, but Bee went up there before she was actually 3 months old. So to be able to continue to nurse, her mother had to go with her,” Weber said.
Despite being a breeder for over 40 years, this is the first time that Weber has ever encountered such a condition firsthand.
“This is definitely a learning curve, because it’s not something that you expect. My wish is that this sweet filly can lead as much as a normal life as possible, because an unsighted horse [usually] doesn’t have much hope. That whole process is stressful, because everything is out of my hands,” Weber said. “This is an amazing, little filly. It was really apparent she was brave. Despite bumping into things, she would still try to be independent. [Her condition] didn’t deter her from trying.”
To help with the costs, Weber created a GoFundMe for Bee’s hospital costs. To donate, visit www.gofundme.com/f/sightsaving-surgery-for-joys-newborn-foal.
