Animal husbandry – Confining or housing – Pen or rack
Utility Patent
1999-06-04
2001-01-02
Poon, Peter M. (Department: 3644)
Animal husbandry
Confining or housing
Pen or rack
C119S732000, C119S510000
Utility Patent
active
06167842
ABSTRACT:
This invention is in the field of apparatus used for the confinement and management of livestock and more particularly deals with a pen for the containment of an animal.
Reference is made to my co-pending application Ser. No. 09/325,939 filed simultaneously with this application entitled “TWO-WAY GATE”, which application describes a two-way gate which may be used with the present invention.
BACKGROUND
This invention deals with the field of pens for confining animals and in particular such a pen that provides improved access to a confined animal.
Animal confinement pens are used to confine livestock particularly for calving purposes, the pen incorporating means to confine the mother while the calf may wander within the pen. As well the mother may be released from the confinement means and still be contained within the pen to facilitate further observation. As well as for calving, such pens are useful for other livestock treatment and observation as well, such as vaccination, disease detection and so forth.
Such pens typically confine the cow against one side of a pen with a pivoting squeeze panel, with the cows neck confined in a head gate on that side of the front of the pen. An example of such a pen is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,138,981 to the present inventor Akins.
A problem with such pens is that access to the animal is restricted by the panels making up the pen. In such pens the squeeze panel is typically hinged to a midpoint of the front panel and it is preferred to have the rear entrance gate hinge on the same side of the pen as the animal is squeezed against. In this way the squeeze panel and gate may be aligned to guide the animal diagonally across the pen and into the head gate, at which time the squeeze panel is swung parallel to the side panel and locked into position, thereby confining the animal against the side panel. Once the animal is so confined, the rear gate may be opened, however the side panel and the upright whereon the rear gate is hinged are fixed in position and interfere with access to the side of the animal adjacent the side panel.
Particularly for calving, access to both sides of the rear portion of an animal would be advantageous.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to provide an animal confinement pen which allows access to the rear end of a confined animal and to both sides of a rear portion of the animal.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide such a pen which allows the rear gate thereof to be used to direct an animal diagonally across the pen and into the head gate of the pen.
The invention accomplishes these objects providing in one aspect an animal confinement pen comprising a front panel, a rear panel comprising a rear gate, a first side panel comprising a fixed front side panel and a movable rear side panel, and a second side panel; means to confine an animal against said first side panel with the animal's head extending through a head gate incorporated in said front panel; means to lock said rear side panel into substantial alignment with said front side panel adjacent said confined animal and to release said rear side panel allowing same to move away from the rear portion of said confined animal; means to move said rear gate away from the rear end of said confined animal; whereby all parts of said pen may be moved away from said rear end and a rear portion of said confined animal thereby allowing access thereto by the pen operator.
The pen could comprise a first side panel frame, said first side panel frame comprising a front side vertical member attached to a first end of said front panel; a bottom side horizontal member attached to the bottom of said front side vertical member and extending to the rear of said pen; a top side horizontal member attached to the top of said front side vertical member and extending to the rear of said pen; and an intermediate side vertical member attached between said top and bottom side horizontal members at a mid point thereof; a front side panel attached between said front and intermediate side vertical members and between said top and bottom side horizontal members; a rear side panel movably mounted in said first side panel frame between said top and bottom side horizontal members such that said rear side panel may be moved from a closed position adjacent to said confined animal to an open position removed from said confined animal; a second side panel attached at the front end thereof to the second end of said front panel and extending substantially perpendicular thereto to the rear of said pen; a rear frame comprising a rear frame vertical member attached to the rear end of said second side panel; a bottom rear horizontal member attached at one end to the bottom of said rear frame vertical member and attached at the opposite end to the rear end of said bottom side horizontal member; a top rear horizontal member attached at one end to the top of said rear frame vertical member and attached at the opposite end to the rear end of said top side horizontal member; said rear gate movably mounted in said rear frame between said top and bottom rear horizontal members such that said gate may be moved from a closed position adjacent to the rear end of said confined animal to an open position removed therefrom; means to selectively secure said rear first side panel in said closed position and release same to move to said open position; and means to selectively secure said rear gate in said closed position and release same to move to said open position.
The pen thus does not have a vertical member at the rear corner adjacent to the rear of the confined animal. The first side panel frame and rear frame comprise top and bottom members which meet at this rear corner and are supported by the intermediate vertical member of the first side panel frame which is somewhat towards the front of the pen from this rear corner. The movable rear first side panel and the rear gate may be moved away from the confined animal, thus giving unrestricted access to the rear end and both sides of a rear portion thereof. The means to confine the animal against the first side panel need not extend all the way to the rear end of the animal, thus allowing access to a rear portion of that side of the animal.
The rear side panel could be pivotally attached at its front end about a vertical axis to the intermediate vertical member such that the rear side panel may pivot about the vertical axis from a closed position aligned with the first side panel frame to an open position removed from the confined animal. To provide improved versatility, the rear side panel could comprise an upper panel and a lower panel, each pivotally attached to the intermediate vertical member such that the panels may be selectively locked in alignment with the upper panel above the lower panel, or unlocked so that each may pivot independently.
Similarly, the rear gate could be pivotally attached about a vertical axis at its second end to the rear frame such that the rear gate may pivot from a closed position aligned with the rear frame to an open position.
To allow the gate to be used to help direct the animal diagonally across the pen to the head gate, the rear gate could further be a two-way gate wherein the gate is also pivotally attached about a vertical axis at its first end to the rear frame and latchable at its second end to the rear frame whereby either end of the gate may swing open.
The two-way rear gate could comprise a rear gate vertical member attached to the rear gate and extending substantially between the top and bottom rear horizontal members; a gate pivot pin extending from each end of the rear gate vertical member, the gate pivot pins biassed in an extended position and retractable against the biassing force to a retracted position wherein the gate pivot pins are retracted within the rear gate vertical member; a pivot hole defined by each of the top and bottom rear horizontal members for receiving the gate pivot pins; and means for retracting the gate pivot pins.
The pen could further compri
Akins Allan
Kuffner Joe
Peters Len
Akins Allan
Lamb Charles G.
Middleton & Reutlinger
Poon Peter M.
Shaw Elizabeth
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