Even after aluminum and titanium were introduced as alternatives to steel horse shoes, driving nails into the horse's hoof has been the accepted way to fasten a shoe. Now, the Sigafoos^TM Series Glue-on Horse Shoes, developed by the University of Pennsylvania's New Bolton Center Large Animal Hospital, offer relief from the severe hoof damage that can result from horse shoe nails.

The Sigafoos System uses a braided fabric cuff to fasten the shoe with adhesives to the outside of the hoof, completely eliminating any invasion of the hoof itself.  The fabric cuff is intimately connected to a polyurethane rim pad, which acts as the interface for adhesive bonding the metal shoe or composite foot plate in place.  Spectra, Allied Signal Corporation's high strength polyethylene, was the fiber of choice for the cuff due to its excellent abrasion resistance; yet using woven spectra resulted in the loss of some of the fibers in assembly and poor shear strength after fabrication.

A&P Technology solved these problems with a +/-45° braided Spectra, which holds the fibers in tact during fabrication and provides the optimum shear strength in use. The braided structure completely eliminated shear failures and according to Rob Sigafoos, the system's inventor, was "the single greatest advance in this development." Because the high strength polyethylene presented a problem of adhesion, A&P provides a second braid of polyester to act as the adhesive bonding surface.  Two two-inch diameter braids, one Spectra and one polyester, are flattened and sewn together resulting in a four layer tape.

The abrasion-resistant Spectra forms the outside of the cuff and the polyester inside provides the base for adhesion to the hoof.  The lower portion of braid is encapsulated in the polyurethane rim pad and the upper portion is fastened to the horse's hoof using a methylmethacrylate adhesive.  The adhesive, applied by the farrier, not only provides a chemical bond to the hoof, it also mechanically locks the two different braids together permanently.

Removing the shoe, when necessary, is simpler than one might imagine.  The farrier cuts away the fabric sleeve just above the rim plate, releasing the shoe.  The cuff can then be peeled away, because the acrylic adhesive, strong in shear, has relatively low peel strength.  The Sigafoos Series is a boon to both working horses and show horses.  It eliminates much of the tender hoof problems that can reduce load-pulling efficiency or cause a show horse to refuse a difficult jump in competition.  By eliminating the driving of nails into the hoof, it prolongs the life of the animal.

Braided fabrics from A&P Technology combine conformability, required to fit the individual hoof, with continuous fiber strength throughout the fabric.  Furthermore, the braided construction reduces the task of laying-up layers of woven fabric, simplifying the assembly process and reducing the component cost.  The versatility of materials and braid angles available and the conformability of braids by A&P Technology simplify a complex task.  In the Sigafoos Series, A&P Technology's braid was the only fiber reinforcement that could conform to the required shape and still perform by distributing the load evenly over the hoof wall.

Composite Shoe for Giraffe This is Wendy, a 3-year-old giraffe that had a life threatening deformity in her right front leg. With the use of A&P Tech's Cobrasox® and Spectra® Braided Sleeves, the New Bolton Center School of Veterinary Medicine was able to save her life. Following corrective surgery, Wendy was fitted with a special composite shoe strong enough to support her weight, but light enough not to interfere with her locomotion. Wendy now lives at the Cape May County Zoo in Cape May, NJ.