Editor’s Note: This article is part of TheHorse.com’s ongoing coverage of topics presented at the 2012 American Association of Equine Practitioners’ Focus on Ophthalmology conference, held Sept. 6-8 in Raleigh, N.C.

To a rider, a deer walking across a field might seem like a scenic bonus, but the horse he or she is riding might see a predator when viewing the same animal. Why? Because horses have very different ocular function than do humans.

At the 2012 American Association of Equine Practitioners’ Focus on Ophthalmology conference, held Sept. 6-8 in Raleigh, N.C., Andrew Matthews, BVM&S, PhD, Dipl. ECEIM, ACVO (Hon.), FRCVS, an equine practitioner and ophthalmologist from Ayrshire, Scotland, gave an overview on what we know about equine vision.

"Although there is much information as to how the eye functions as an optical instrument, the function of the higher visual pathways and optic cortex–in particular the way the assimilate and integrate nonocular cues to produce the sensory interaction with the animal’s environment we call ‘vision’–is wholly unknown," Matthews said