If you are lucky enough to own a horse, they are like a member of your family. They also require a ton of care and can be very expensive. Like any other animal, horses often get sick and distressed. Unfortunately, you can’t be with them all the time. One company is offering the next best thing by using AI to help better monitor your horse.

Hoofstep is a horse wearable that keeps track of your horse even when you aren’t near the stable. Sensors attached to a light halter monitor your horse’s health and behavior while sending data real-time to an app. If the horse shows signs of injury, distress, or sickness, you’ll receive an alert. The headgear was developed with veterinarians to make sure it doesn’t disturb the animal.

“Our easy-to-use system (Hoofstep) can be a real game-changer when it comes to safeguarding horses’ well-being, As prey animals, horses are very good at masking their discomfort until it’s already reached a serious stage. But Hoofstep® picks up on the subtle cues that humans might not notice—or simply might not see because they’re not with their horses day and night” said Hoofstep CEO Per-Eric Olsson.

Hoofstep Horse Wearable Tech Monitors Movement 24/7

Hoofstep also lets you keep track of your horse’s movement throughout the day. Whether it’s in the pasture, sleeping in the stable, or even in transit, you can know what your horse is doing and who it’s interacting with at all times. For example, if it wanders into a restricted area, the app will send you an instant alert. It’s not just showing your horse’s location, Hoofstep registers every move your horse makes down to the slightest head movement.

You can also chat and share information with other users. For example, if your horse is showing signs of sickness, you can quickly send the information to your veterinarian. The app also allows you to share pictures and post updates to Facebook.

App Shows Real-Time Digital Representation of Your Horse

You won’t just be reading text notifications. In the Hoofstep app, you’ll be looking at a digital version of your horse mirroring its every move. The digi-horse can be customized down to coat, mane, and size.

Hoofstep also has another aim. All horse behavior data will be part of the largest equine behavioral data set ever created. That information will be used to gain greater insight into horse health, behavior, and care.

“We will give the horse research community the behavior data in much bigger volumes, to boost research possibilities”, said Olsson.

The horse wearable was developed by a team of equestrians, engineers and designers based in Helsingborg, Sweden. The team is currently running a Kickstarter and is hoping to start shipping out units later this year.

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