GB2386535A - Disinfecting animal mat - Google Patents
Disinfecting animal mat Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- GB2386535A GB2386535A GB0203730A GB0203730A GB2386535A GB 2386535 A GB2386535 A GB 2386535A GB 0203730 A GB0203730 A GB 0203730A GB 0203730 A GB0203730 A GB 0203730A GB 2386535 A GB2386535 A GB 2386535A
- Authority
- GB
- United Kingdom
- Prior art keywords
- mat according
- animal mat
- animal
- disinfectant
- tray
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Withdrawn
Links
- 241001465754 Metazoa Species 0.000 title claims abstract description 44
- 230000000249 desinfective effect Effects 0.000 title 1
- 239000000645 desinfectant Substances 0.000 claims abstract description 32
- 239000000463 material Substances 0.000 claims abstract description 27
- 230000002745 absorbent Effects 0.000 claims abstract description 12
- 239000002250 absorbent Substances 0.000 claims abstract description 12
- 239000012528 membrane Substances 0.000 claims abstract description 9
- 229940121375 antifungal agent Drugs 0.000 claims description 3
- 229920003023 plastic Polymers 0.000 claims description 3
- 239000004033 plastic Substances 0.000 claims description 3
- 229920000915 polyvinyl chloride Polymers 0.000 claims description 3
- 239000004800 polyvinyl chloride Substances 0.000 claims description 3
- 239000003242 anti bacterial agent Substances 0.000 claims description 2
- 239000003429 antifungal agent Substances 0.000 claims description 2
- 239000002184 metal Substances 0.000 claims description 2
- 229910052751 metal Inorganic materials 0.000 claims description 2
- 229920000642 polymer Polymers 0.000 claims description 2
- NWONKYPBYAMBJT-UHFFFAOYSA-L zinc sulfate Chemical group [Zn+2].[O-]S([O-])(=O)=O NWONKYPBYAMBJT-UHFFFAOYSA-L 0.000 claims description 2
- 239000008258 liquid foam Substances 0.000 claims 1
- 235000009529 zinc sulphate Nutrition 0.000 claims 1
- 239000011686 zinc sulphate Substances 0.000 claims 1
- 239000006260 foam Substances 0.000 description 8
- 241000283903 Ovis aries Species 0.000 description 7
- 208000030175 lameness Diseases 0.000 description 5
- 241001494479 Pecora Species 0.000 description 3
- 230000012010 growth Effects 0.000 description 3
- 241000894006 Bacteria Species 0.000 description 2
- 241000283690 Bos taurus Species 0.000 description 2
- 244000025254 Cannabis sativa Species 0.000 description 2
- HCHKCACWOHOZIP-UHFFFAOYSA-N Zinc Chemical compound [Zn] HCHKCACWOHOZIP-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 2
- 230000000694 effects Effects 0.000 description 2
- 239000006261 foam material Substances 0.000 description 2
- 229910052725 zinc Inorganic materials 0.000 description 2
- 239000011701 zinc Substances 0.000 description 2
- 206010053615 Thermal burn Diseases 0.000 description 1
- 230000000844 anti-bacterial effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 230000000843 anti-fungal effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 230000009286 beneficial effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 235000008429 bread Nutrition 0.000 description 1
- 210000000078 claw Anatomy 0.000 description 1
- 235000005911 diet Nutrition 0.000 description 1
- 230000037213 diet Effects 0.000 description 1
- 208000010801 foot rot Diseases 0.000 description 1
- 239000004459 forage Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000007788 liquid Substances 0.000 description 1
- 208000004396 mastitis Diseases 0.000 description 1
- 238000000034 method Methods 0.000 description 1
- 239000000203 mixture Substances 0.000 description 1
- 230000035699 permeability Effects 0.000 description 1
- 230000017423 tissue regeneration Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000009966 trimming Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000009423 ventilation Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000004584 weight gain Effects 0.000 description 1
- 235000019786 weight gain Nutrition 0.000 description 1
- 210000002268 wool Anatomy 0.000 description 1
- 229960001763 zinc sulfate Drugs 0.000 description 1
- 229910000368 zinc sulfate Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
Classifications
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A01—AGRICULTURE; FORESTRY; ANIMAL HUSBANDRY; HUNTING; TRAPPING; FISHING
- A01K—ANIMAL HUSBANDRY; AVICULTURE; APICULTURE; PISCICULTURE; FISHING; REARING OR BREEDING ANIMALS, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; NEW BREEDS OF ANIMALS
- A01K13/00—Devices for grooming or caring of animals, e.g. curry-combs; Fetlock rings; Tail-holders; Devices for preventing crib-biting; Washing devices; Protection against weather conditions or insects
- A01K13/003—Devices for applying insecticides or medication
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A01—AGRICULTURE; FORESTRY; ANIMAL HUSBANDRY; HUNTING; TRAPPING; FISHING
- A01K—ANIMAL HUSBANDRY; AVICULTURE; APICULTURE; PISCICULTURE; FISHING; REARING OR BREEDING ANIMALS, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; NEW BREEDS OF ANIMALS
- A01K1/00—Housing animals; Equipment therefor
- A01K1/015—Floor coverings, e.g. bedding-down sheets ; Stable floors
- A01K1/0157—Mats; Sheets
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A01—AGRICULTURE; FORESTRY; ANIMAL HUSBANDRY; HUNTING; TRAPPING; FISHING
- A01K—ANIMAL HUSBANDRY; AVICULTURE; APICULTURE; PISCICULTURE; FISHING; REARING OR BREEDING ANIMALS, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; NEW BREEDS OF ANIMALS
- A01K1/00—Housing animals; Equipment therefor
- A01K1/02—Pigsties; Dog-kennels; Rabbit-hutches or the like
- A01K1/035—Devices for use in keeping domestic animals, e.g. fittings in housings or dog beds
- A01K1/0353—Dog beds
Landscapes
- Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
- Environmental Sciences (AREA)
- Zoology (AREA)
- Animal Husbandry (AREA)
- Biodiversity & Conservation Biology (AREA)
- Animal Behavior & Ethology (AREA)
- Pest Control & Pesticides (AREA)
- Catching Or Destruction (AREA)
Abstract
An animal mat including a support comprising an absorbent material 2 substantially enveloped in a permeable membrane 3, and a tray 6 arranged to receive the support. The mat may be annular and arranged around a feeding trough 5. The absorbent material may be a foamed material which has disinfectant supplied to it so that the disinfectant is delivered to the feet of the animal whilst it feeds.
Description
Animal Mat The present invention is concerned with an animal mat. In
particular an animal mat arranged to permit delivery of anti fungal, antibacterial, disinfectant compositions or the like to the feet of an animal.
5 A major consideration for farmers and cattle breeders is lameness in, for example, sheep. The factors influencing lameness in sheep include diet (forage based, zinc levels and laminitic growth), bread (some breeds are more prone to lameness then others), growth rates, seasonality (bacteria is 10 present all year around, climatic conditions, scald, foot rot), paring and trimming (so that bacteria cannot survive) and also housing (such as stock density, bedding and ventilation).
In order to reduce lameness, it is known to "walk" the sheep or cattle through a tray containing a disinfectant. This 15 method is labour intensive and time consuming for the farmer.
In addition, for the disinfectant to have the desired effect, it is important to ensure that the animal stands in the disinfectant typically for between 5 to 15 minutes, depending on the actual disinfectant being used.
20 It is therefore an aim of the present invention to alleviate some of the disadvantages identified above.
It is yet a further aim of the present invention to provide an animal footmat which can be used to apply a disinfectant material. 25 Therefore, according to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an animal mat including a support comprising an absorbent material substantially enveloped in a permeable membrane, and a tray arranged to receive the support.
The absorbent material is preferably a foam material. A preferred foam is sold by Recticel under the product number RS35H. Typically, the foam material is about 2.5cm to 20cm thick. A particularly preferred thickness of the foam is about 5 5cm.
Advantageously, a disinfectant (such as an antibacterial agent or antifungal agent) is applied to the foam. The disinfectant is preferably in liquid form and may be applied prior to encasing the foam in the membrane, or subsequent thereto.
lo However, it is envisaged that the disinfectant can be reapplied when the mat is in use.
The tray is preferably of a non-permeable material and, is preferably rigid or semi-rigid. Advantageously, the tray substantially prevents disinfectant from draining away or 15 seeping from the support to the surface below. If disinfectant were permitted to seep to the surface below, such as grass, it would have a determined effect on the grass. Furthermore, the tray has the advantage of maintaining the disinfectant in contact with the support and therefore may substantially reduce 20 the necessity of frequent repeat applications of disinfectant to the support.
A preferred disinfectant is a zinc sulfate based disinfectant.
Advantageously, zinc improves horn growth in feet, improves resilience and roughness of horn, improves tissue repair and 25 reduces mastitis cell counts.
The permeable membrane is preferably of a geosynthetic material which has resilient properties. It is particularly preferred that the geosynthetic membrane is a material sold by Terram Ltd. UK under the Trade Mark TERRAM 35. However, it is 30 envisaged that any material having a similar tensile strength (such as EN 150 10319 45KN/m (warp), 55kN/m (weft)) and permeability (such as EN 150 11058, 50 103m.s1 (VIHso - 50mm head)) can be used.
The tray may be manufactured from any rigid or semi rigid material, such as a metal (which may be coated) or a plastics material. It is particularly preferred that the tray is manufactured from a polymer such as polyvinyl chloride, however 5 any plastics material having the desired properties may be used. It is envisaged that the mat may be made in a number of shapes, for example circular, semi-circular, rectangular or square.
It is particularly preferred that the mat is shaped and 10 dimensioned to fit substantially adjacent an animal feeding area. Alternatively, the mat may be shaped and dimensioned receive an animal feeding trough or bin, for example, substantially in the middle of the mat.
According to a particularly preferred embodiment of the present 15 invention, the support is annular. The central portion being arranged to receive a feeding trough, bin or the like. In this preferred embodiment, it is preferred that the support has a diameter of about 1800mm to 2400mm (such as about 2100m), the tray has a diameter of about 50mm to lOOmm (preferably 75mm) 20 greater than the diameter of the support and, the hole in the centre arranged to receive the feeding trough, bin or the like is about 250mm to 350mm (preferably 300mm) in diameter.
Advantageously, when animals are feeding from the feeding area, trough or bin, the animal stands on the mat and the animals 25 feet come into contact with the disinfectant which has been absorbed by the absorbent material in the support.
The use of a mat according to the present invention is an improvement over prior art trays containing disinfectant, as
the animal is encouraged to stand on the mat and therefore be 30 in contact with the disinfectant when the animal is feeding.
The mat according to the present invention therefore alleviates the requirement of the farmer to watch the animal to ensure
that the animal is standing in the disinfectant long enough for the disinfectant to have a beneficial effect.
The present invention will now be described by way of example only, with reference to the following example.
5 TRIAL
A group of 330 lambs were split into two groups, a treatment group and a control group. The treatment group were permitted to graze in a field whereby the feeding bin was positioned in
the middle of a mat according to the present invention. The 10 control group grazed in a field where the feeding bin was
simply positioned in the field (ie no mat according to the
present invention was present).
DAY 1: disinfectant was poured onto 5 mats and permitted to be absorbed by the foam inner.
15 DAY 30: disinfectant in the mat was replaced in the mats. DAY 32: improvement of the condition of the lambs in the treatment group was apparent; the colour of the wool had improved.
20 DAY 48: marked improvement in condition of feet of animals in treatment group.
DAY 62: trial ended.
At the end of the trial it was noted that the control group had an average daily live weight gain of 196g whereas the treatment group had a gain of 210g. The percentage of lame lambs in the control group was 12%, however the percentage of lambs in the treatment group was only 1%. In addition, the percentage of lambs that had achieved a saleable weight was 63% in the treatment group, whereas it was only 49% in the control group.
30 The trial clearly proved that the lambs using the mat had marked improvements over the lambs not in communication with the mat.
The present invention will now be further described by way of reference to the accompanying drawings, which are given by way of example only, wherein 5 FIGURE 1 represents a mat according to the present invention.
FIGURE 2 represents a mat according to the present invention along the lines A-A shown in Figure 1.
FIGURE 3 represents the mat shown in Figure 2 provided with 10 a feeding bay.
Referring to the figures, where like numeral have been used to represent like parts, there is provided a mat generally indicated by the numeral 1.
The mat comprises a circular piece of foam 2 which is typically 15 about 5cm thick enveloped in a geosynthetic casing 3. The mat has a hollow central portion 4, which is arranged to receive a feeding container 5. The casing 3 stands on tray 6 which is manufactured from PVC. The tray 6 includes a shoulder 7 which folds over the casing 3 to maintain the casing in place when 20 the mat is in use.
In use, disinfectant solution is poured over the geosynthetic casing 3 and absorbed by the foam 2. A feeding container 5 containing feed for the animal is placed in the centre of the mat (shown in Figure 3 only). The animal, when eating the 25 feed, stands on the casing 3 and "sinks" into the foam 2, typically up to their claw depth, thereby standing in the disinfectant for the entire time the animal is eating. The animals feet are therefore treated with the disinfectant thereby substantially reducing the occurrence of lameness and 30 other related illness.
Claims (20)
1. An animal mat including a support comprising an absorbent material substantially enveloped in a permeable membrane, and a tray arranged to receive the 5 support.
2. An animal mat according to claim 1, wherein the absorbent material is a foamed material.
3. An animal mat according to any preceding claim, wherein the absorbent material is a material sold by Rectical 10 under the product number R535H.
4. An animal mat according to any preceding claim, wherein the absorbent material has a thickness in the range of about 2.5cm to about 20cm.
5. An animal mat according to claim 4, wherein the 15 absorbent material has a thickness of about 5cm.
6. An animal mat according to any preceding claim, wherein a disinfectant (such as an antibacterial agent or antifungal agent) is applied to the absorbent material.
An animal mat according to any preceding claim 6, 20 wherein the disinfectant is in liquid foam.
8. An animal mat according to any preceding claim 6 or 7, wherein the disinfectant is applied prior to, or subsequent to, the absorbent material being encased in the permeable membrane.
25
9. An animal mat according to any preceding claim, wherein the tray is of a non-permeable material.
10. An animal mat according to any preceding claim, wherein the tray is rigid or semi-rigid.
11. An animal mat according to any of claims 5 to 10, wherein the disinfectant is a zinc sulphate based 5 disinfectant.
12. An animal mat according to any preceding claim, wherein the permeable membrane is of a geosynthetic material having resilient properties.
13. An animal mat according to claim 12, wherein the 10 geosynthetic membrane is a material sold by Terram Ltd. UK under the Trade Mark TERRAM 35.
14. An animal mat according to any preceding claim, wherein the tray is metal (which may be coated) or a plastics material.
15 15. An animal mat according to any preceding claim 14, wherein the tray is manufactured from a polymer such as polyvinyl chloride.
16. An animal mat according to any preceding claim, wherein the tray is circular, semi-circular, rectangular or 20 square.
17. An animal mat according to any preceding claim, wherein the support is annular.
18. An animal mat according to claim 17, wherein the annular support has a central portion which is arranged 25 to receive a feeding trough, bin or the like.
19. An animal mat according to claim 18, wherein the support has a diameter of about 180Omm to 240Omm (such as about 2100mm), the tray has a diameter of about 50mm to lOOmm (preferably 75mm) greater than the diameter of 5 the support and the central portion has a diameter of about 250mm to 350mm (preferably 300mm).
20. An animal mat substantially as described hereinbefore with reference to the accompanying figures.
Priority Applications (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| GB0203730A GB2386535A (en) | 2002-02-15 | 2002-02-15 | Disinfecting animal mat |
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| GB0203730A GB2386535A (en) | 2002-02-15 | 2002-02-15 | Disinfecting animal mat |
Publications (2)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| GB0203730D0 GB0203730D0 (en) | 2002-04-03 |
| GB2386535A true GB2386535A (en) | 2003-09-24 |
Family
ID=9931228
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| GB0203730A Withdrawn GB2386535A (en) | 2002-02-15 | 2002-02-15 | Disinfecting animal mat |
Country Status (1)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| GB (1) | GB2386535A (en) |
Citations (4)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FR2590473A1 (en) * | 1985-11-22 | 1987-05-29 | Mauro Bernard | Device for disinfecting shoes |
| JPH0223963A (en) * | 1988-07-12 | 1990-01-26 | Fukuyoo:Kk | Disinfecting mat |
| US6196156B1 (en) * | 1997-04-15 | 2001-03-06 | Seefar Technologies, Inc. | Bedding articles possessing microbe-inhibiting properties |
| US6463885B1 (en) * | 1999-02-24 | 2002-10-15 | Cyriak Laner | Hygiene system |
-
2002
- 2002-02-15 GB GB0203730A patent/GB2386535A/en not_active Withdrawn
Patent Citations (4)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FR2590473A1 (en) * | 1985-11-22 | 1987-05-29 | Mauro Bernard | Device for disinfecting shoes |
| JPH0223963A (en) * | 1988-07-12 | 1990-01-26 | Fukuyoo:Kk | Disinfecting mat |
| US6196156B1 (en) * | 1997-04-15 | 2001-03-06 | Seefar Technologies, Inc. | Bedding articles possessing microbe-inhibiting properties |
| US6463885B1 (en) * | 1999-02-24 | 2002-10-15 | Cyriak Laner | Hygiene system |
Also Published As
| Publication number | Publication date |
|---|---|
| GB0203730D0 (en) | 2002-04-03 |
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Legal Events
| Date | Code | Title | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| WAP | Application withdrawn, taken to be withdrawn or refused ** after publication under section 16(1) |