Animal husbandry – Antivermin treating or cleaning – Sprayer
Reexamination Certificate
2001-03-15
2003-11-25
Abbott, Yvonne (Department: 3644)
Animal husbandry
Antivermin treating or cleaning
Sprayer
C119S656000, C119S658000, C119S667000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06651589
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention pertains generally to an apparatus and method for variably discharging ingredients on an animal. More particularly, the present invention pertains to a substantially fully automated apparatus for controlling insects on an animal for effective insect management. The present invention is particularly, but not exclusively, useful for variably discharging chemicals and oils on cows in a dairy herd.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Control and management of insects has proven challenging, costly, illusive, and frequently ineffective. The terms “insect” and “insects” as used in this document include (i) not only the conventional class of arthropods and related classes and orders known as muscoid and nonmuscoid flies, but also (ii) arachnids, a class of mainly terrestrial arthropods comprising spiders, scorpions, mites, ticks, and the like, (iii) ectoparasites, parasites living on the surface of an animal, and (iv) endoparasites, parasites living within an animal. Muscoid and nonmuscoid flies, for example, in a wide variety of species, cluster synanthropically to humans and their domestic animals, or in close proximity to humans and domesticated animals such as cows. Insects may have dramatic impact on the economics of animal production, which is a commercial industry constituting a significant contribution to the gross national product of the United States, where the dairy cattle industry has been estimated to produce $12 billion annually. The several different species and class of flies, for example, commonly found on livestock premises may cause a number of problems, including irritating cows so severely that milk production suffers; transmitting disease pathogens; increasing enteric (intestinal) diseases among humans associated with cow herds; violating regulatory rules and regulations, and generating a host of similar problems.
A variety of devices, apparatus and methods have been proposed for controlling insects among cattle, including dairy cows. Except for the invention disclosed in the [co-pending and allowed application of the inventor of the present invention, a document incorporated by reference into this document (“Prior Invention”)], none has proven effective in achieving the level of control demanded by industry operators, or providing substantially complete control of a fly population using a substantially automated insect control apparatus requiring minimal operator involvement during operation of the apparatus. In addition, none of the solutions available provides an apparatus or method for varying the rate and amount of discharge of ingredients used to combat insects, particularly the rate and amount of chemical discharge, to reduce costs while maintaining insect control on and around animals.
One known proposal for controlling flies attracted to cattle, for example, is to bury parasites in soil beneath the surface of the soil on which cattle are penned. Other insects, including nematodes, have been introduced into herd locations in hopes of fly control. Fly traps using bait attractants have been used. Those techniques has proven ineffective in controlling fly populations attracted to cattle pens. Parasites achieve control of only a small portion of a fly population, and then only temporarily. Parasites reproduce more slowly than the rate at which flies reproduce, and their hatch rates are unreliable and unpredictable. An effective parasite population also my be reduced because parasites die or fly way. Use of parasites as a method for attempting to control flies among cattle is labor intensive, therefore expensive, usually making the solution unacceptable to an operator of a cattle business. Virtually no control is achieved using nematodes. Nematodes are not suitable for use in acidic soils. Because of the large amounts of manure and urine produced by multiples pens of cattle, all soil used for cattle becomes acidic. In addition, use of nematodes is impractical because nematodes must be applied or introduced into a herd at night, only after rainfall, and reintroduced frequently to achieve any measure of success in controlling insects on an animal and animal herd.
No marked reduction of a insect population occurs with use of fly traps. Fly traps, for example, rely on bait. No bait, however, has proven effective for flies, particularly on large tracts of land used to pen large cattle herds.
Spraying or fogging chemicals on cattle has proven marginal in achieving control of flies for long periods of time. Fogging causes droplet drift, so fogging is not cost effective. For similar reasons, aerial spraying has proven no more effective than use of fly parasites, nematodes, and fly traps using bait attractants.
Other proposals for controlling insects among cattle include feeding cows oral larvicide and applying residual insecticides on the underside of shaders. No significant long-term reduction in the fly population has been observed using an oral larvicide, primarily because no chemical that might work effectively against flies may be fed orally to milking cattle. Even more primitive devices have been used, such as back rubbers, both manuals and automated. A manual back rubber applicator requires an operator to periodically remove, dip into a chemical, and reinstall a rubber device above the back of a cow that walks beneath the rubber device. No noticeable difference, however, in fly population has been observed using this method, and automated variations have proven no more effective. Ear tags, or other apparatus attachable to parts of an animal's body, containing a liquid chemical or insecticide dispensable on an animal, also have not satisfied the industry requirements for an apparatus that provides substantially complete control of the fly population in the form of a substantially automated system requiring relatively little attention during operation. Ear tags or similar apparatus connectable to parts of an animal body cannot be designed to release or apply sufficient chemicals either to an animal or to flies.
Attempting to control insects by spraying underneath shaders, direct spraying of roosting flies, and spraying vegetation near cattle pens, also are ineffective. Those techniques may eliminate problems associated with food and water contamination, but are labor intensive and expensive. An average dairy herd, for example, requires six to seven hours to complete one such spraying cycle, a cycle that must be repeated often to achieve even minimal control. A problem encountered by these methods is the tendency of flies to change roosting areas regularly, requiring an operator to hunt fly roosting areas to effectively induce a spray.
Larvicide spraying has not proven feasible because of the huge volume of water required to penetrate at least three inches below the surface of soil where fly larvae feed. The typical service truck carries only 500 gallons of water, and for a cattle herd held in a common arrangement of twelve pens, the cost of frequent larvicide applications is prohibitive.
An oil based chemical mixture, although expensive, has proven to be the only effective combination of ingredients to control insects among cattle, particularly in a dairy environment. A useful apparatus and method for cost-effective discharge of such ingredients is shown in the Greeson Patent. The Prior Invention provides for water encapsulation to encapsulate water with one or more ingredients to be applied to an animal, including one or more chemicals. It would be useful, however, to provide an apparatus and method that did not use water encapsulation, thus reducing costs and structural challenges of having to provide water to the apparatus. It also would be useful to provide an apparatus capable of further reducing the cost of insect control on animals by reducing the discharge of the chemical component of ingredients applied to an animal, the chemical component being the most expensive ingredient.
A problem to be solved, therefore, is to substantially reduce insect infestation in and around animal herds, including herds of
Abbott Yvonne
Regan Ray R.
LandOfFree
Apparatus for variably discharging ingredients on an animal does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Apparatus for variably discharging ingredients on an animal, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Apparatus for variably discharging ingredients on an animal will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-3142276