Q. My school pony's eyes got checked today. I can't spell what it is, but it's the same as human pink eye. The barn manager says it's because of all the dust from the ring and his stall, but the teacher wouldn't give him a rest today. When I turned him out today, his eyes were swollen almost shut. I got a cold, wet rag and wiped them clean. Then I got contact solution and put some in there.

A. I'm sorry to hear the pony's eyes are being so irritated, but rest probably wouldn't do him any good anyway. As soon as he's exposed to the arena dust (if that's what's irritating his eyes), they'll get puffy again. I have two horses who have terrible problems with their eyes as soon as the face flies come out. Those doggone flies that hang around their eyes can be very irritating to some horses, and once a horse's eyes get irritated and puffy for any reason, they also tend to become more sensitive to light. For these reasons, I would suggest keeping a fly mask on the pony anytime he's turned out - and perhaps in his stall during the day if there's a problem with face flies in the barn. Not only will the mask keep flies away from his eyes, it will also provide a bit of shading from the sun when he's turned out. Better yet, is there any way the pony can be turned out only at night so his eyes won't have to be exposed to the direct sun and flies at all?