Private Eye is being treated for an eye infection at the Randwick Equine Centre, all but ruling him out of the autumn features in Sydney.
The high-class gelding has been a regular fixture at his major hometown carnivals in recent seasons but trainer Joe Pride is resigned to refocusing on the Brisbane winter following the setback.
Pride confirmed Private Eye was spelling when the infection took hold, and while the issue doesn’t require surgery, the horse will need a period of recuperation.
“He is yet to get out of REC (Randwick Equine Centre), but when he does he’s going to have to have at least a couple of weeks off,” Pride said.
“My plan to bring him back and run him first-up in the T J (Smith Stakes) is probably gone. I’m more looking at a couple of runs in Brisbane for him now, and a spring campaign.
“In the grand scheme of things, he has hardly missed a carnival in the last couple of years so it’s alright. He will come out the other side, it’s not a serious injury.”
Pride says Private Eye is being “treated around the clock” as eye issues can escalate quickly if left unattended.
The 2021 Epsom Handicap winner and 2022 Everest runner-up hasn’t raced since lumping topweight of 61kg to a gallant fourth in The Ingham on December 14, just weeks after returning to the winner’s circle with a thumping victory in the Festival Stakes.
