Improvements in Hoof Expanders.
Year: 1889

page_text: Date of Application, 9th Sept., 1889-Accepted, 12th Oct., 1889
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Hoof Expanders.
We FRANK KING DOWLER and HENRY W. WATSON, of Jamestown, in the County
of Chautauqua, State of New York, United States of America, gentlemen, 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 invention relates to improvements in hoof-expanders, and has for its object to
provide a simple light device for the purpose which may be applied to the hoof
independent of a shoe.
Various forms of expanders have heretofore been used, but they depend more or
less for their attachment upon the shoe and therefore if the shoe is lost the expander
is also lost. Furthermore, the presence of the shoe in many cases interferes with the
operation of the expander and could with advantage be dispensed with.
The invention consists in a certain novel construction and combination of parts fully
described hereinafter in connection with the drawings and specifically pointed out in
the claims.
In the drawings, Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the improved expander applied in
the operative position to a hoof, the underside of the latter being shown. Fig. 2 is a
similar view of the expander detached from the hoof.
Similar letters denote corresponding parts in the figures.
The expander consists, essentially, of a V-shaped spring A, the divergent arms BB,
of which pass respectively on opposite sides of the frog C, of the hoof D, and the
arms terminate in the sharpened studs or points E E, which engage in the hoof
on opposite sides of the rear end of the frog. The extremities of the arms B B
must be drawn toward each other when the expander is applied and when
released the points engage the material of the hoof at its rear end and press outward.
The expander conforms closely to the shape of the frog, its arms B B bearing
respectively, against the opposite sides thereof, and flat sharpened spurs G G are
formed on the inner sides of the said arms to engage the opposite sides of the frog.
These spurs prevent the apex of the expander from dropping out of place, and in
combination with the points on the free ends of the arms secure the device firmly to
the hoof.
It will be seen that the expander is arranged above the place of the shoe (not shown)
and is not dependent thereon, and therefore it can be used upon young horses, and
also upon horses whose hoofs are too sore for shoes.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what we
claim is:
1. A V-shaped hoof-expander for use independent of the shoe, having spurs on the
inner sides of its arms to engage the opposite sides of the frog substantially as specified.
2. The herein-described hoof-expander for use independent of the shoe, having the
divergent arms B B, terminating at their rear ends in points E E to engage the hoof,
and provided at intermediate points with spurs G G to engage the opposite sides of
the frog, substantially as and for the purpose specified.
This oil 1
Ca
1
3000
JENSEN & SON,
77, Chancery Lane, London, W.C., Patent Agents.