The world has progressed from horse carts to hyperloops, and it seems as though it has left behind the trusted old horses in the wake of its dust. The poor animal is stuck with the painful iron horseshoe for over 2000 years, which has also been the main reason behind many fractures and leg realted issues, ultimately leading to “putting it down”.
A certain Austrian company had enough of this, so they decided to “take the horse out of the Iron Age”. They have created world’s first equine running shoes called the Megasus Horserunners. Charly Forstner, who is the CEO of the company Megasus, himself is an animal welfare inspector in Austria. He saw the plight of using the iron shoes, so almost two decades ago he decided to work towards freeing the animal from this misery.
Pic Credits: Megasus
He has created several hoof protection products before this, such as plastic made ‘Dynamix’ or the ‘Easywalker’. But his latest clip-on running shoes for horses can be truly termed revolutionary. The Megasus has all the properties that an iron horseshoe offers, while saving the horse from the misery and giving it the protection and freedom of movement that is vital to itwell-beingng.
The Megasus is superior from the old horseshoes as it is light weight, can absorb shock, and is also an insulator against the bravities of climate. It also doesnt’t reuqire any nails to be fixed, meaning there is no chance of destroying the hoof horn. The Megasus is easy to install and remove, and provides a perfect grip for all kinds of terrains.
Pic Credits: Megasus
A Megasus press release states,
“The innovative Megasus Horserunners offer many advantages over the traditional products such as they are lightweight (less than half a pound), can be adjusted individually, easy to put on, and offer protection without permanence. It can also stay put in all kinds of terrain including mud and water plus it allows the hoof to be flexible. The product is also designed to protect the sole from bruising, cracking and other injuries by offering shock absorption. It does not accumulate snow, dirt or mud and is easy to clean.”
Pic Credits: Megasus
Using an improved improved velcro system, the need to use nails has been eliminated. Only two large strips of strong velcro tape, also known as Meg-Log Tape is strapped around each hoof, which compliments the Horserunners clip and is also adjustable.
“The Mega-Lock tape remains approximately 3 weeks on the hoof and is protected with a protection foil during the time the hoof goes bare. The foil has a sealing lip similar to swimming goggles, so that the Mega-Lock tape is prevented from water and dirt intrusion,” Megasus claims.
https://youtu.be/ZHDxOwbJymE
The company claims that their designed horse hoofs will be able to maintain grip in any kind of terrain, let it be water, rocks or mud .
Charly Forstner commented on his product,
“The time is ripe for healthy and comfortable hoof protection for horses. In 1998, I already proved with a wedge test that the hoof moves on the vertical plane 1-2cm, almost 10 times more than horizontally, and without affecting the overlying joint. This means that the hoof works jointly and compensates for ground irregularities such as stones and ground waves. A rigid fixation of the hoof capsule by a horseshoe is, therefore, very close to plastering it. Horseshoes immobilize ligaments and tendons; hence, it makes the blood flow becomes weaker.”
Pic Credits: Megasus
The company has been looking to raise money for mass scale production through crowdfunding. They launched a Kickstarter campaign back in October, with the goal of raising €100,00. Up till now, they have been able to raise a whopping €169,136, and the company hopes that they will be able to ship the Megasus Horserunners as soon as July 2017.
