Improvements in Protective Foot Coverings for Cattle and Horses for Curing Foot Rot and other Diseases of the Hoof.
Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 22nd Oct., 1898-Accepted, 3rd Dec., 1898
Improvements in Protective Foot Coverings for Cattle and Horses
for Curing Foot Rot and other Diseases of the Hoof.
A communication by FERDINAND KOENIG, of Ellingen, Middle Franconia, in the
Empire of Germany, Agricultural Expert.
I, WILLIAM PHILLIPS THOMPSON, F.C.S., M.I.M.E., of the Agency for Foreign
Patent Solicitors, 6, Lord Street, Liverpool, and 6, Bank Street, Manchester, both
in the County of Lancaster, 118, New Street, Birmingham, in the County of
Warwick, and 322, High Holborn, in the County of Middlesex, Civil Engineer,
do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to
be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement:-
The great losses caused by the foot and mouth disease are due to the difficulty of
healing the diseased hoofs more particularly of the hind feet of the animals which
is easily explained as the disease attacks the whole organism of the animals and the
animal excreta both solid and liquid are infected with the germs of the disease. As
however most grown cattle are kept in stalls and fastened with a neck chain, the
hind feet are constantly in contact with dung and urine in spite of a thick bedding
of straw. If the beast has an open wound in the cloven parts of the hoof as is
usually the case in foot rot, urine and dung penetrate the sores and prevent them
healing. Veterinary surgeons unfortunately mostly give surgical treatment
frequently too late to the hoofs of infected beasts which develop into serious illness
and they must then employ expensive bandages, binders and the like of slight
durability which in a few days are so rapidly worn away that the dung and urine
which produce the sores can again penetrate the hoof.
As however open wounds can only heal if the sore producers and foreign
substances (in this case infected dung and urine), be kept away from the sores, and
as hitherto no means have existed for effecting this object completely, 'the
arrangement which forms the object of the present invention effectively prevents
the very deleterious subsidiary sores of the foot and mouth disease in the feet
and causes them to heal.
According to the present invention a boot is so constructed that it is suitable
for the hoofs of grown cattle or horses of any size and fits well thereon without
interfering with the circulation of the blood and may also be easily constructed
and modified on the same principles for young beasts with hoofs of small
dimensions.
The boot may also be employed for covering any sores or wounds which have
been treated by a veterinary surgeon with compresses, bandages or the like, as
the boot may be placed over the latter, thus protecting them and preventing
any impurities penetrating the sores, and these advantages apply both for cattle
and horses.
In the accompanying drawings,

page_text: Figure 3 is a vertical section of Figure 1 ;›and
Figure 4 a rear view.
The boot consists of an " upper in two parts a and b, a back piece c, a sole d, a
strap and buckle f and loop pieces e sown or otherwise suitably attached to the
upper portion for holding the strap f
To use the boot the strap is unbuckled, the foot of the animal inserted in the
boot and the strap rebuckled. The boot may be made of leather or any other
suitable material.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, as communicated to
me by my foreign correspondent, I declare that what I claim is :-
A protective foot covering for cattle and horses for counteracting or curing foot
rot and other diseases of the hoof caused for instance by the foot and mouth disease,
consisting of a hoof boot made of leather or other suitable material of a form fitting
all kinds of horse-or cattle-hoofs and comprising an "upper" (a and b), back (c),
sole (d) buckle and strap (f) and loops (e) for holding. said strap substantially as
hereinbefore described.