FR2690046A1 - Anti-crush mattress to protect newly born piglets - consists of outer covering, which contains low pressure air or fluid, to fill in space between sow and floor - Google Patents

Abstract

The anti-crush mattress is fixed to the floor of the pig pen, to protect the newly born piglets. It is formed with a flexible covering (3), which is elastic and resistant. It is positioned under the sow (7) and inflated at a low pressure to prevent the piglets from moving around or under the sow. The mattress is held at low pressure, either by air, or by fluid. When fluid is used the pressure is maintained by the difference in height (12) between the mattress and the tank (4). When the sow lies down on the mattress, it deforms under the weight of the sow. When she stands up, the mattress reinflates. USE/ADVANTAGE - It prevents the newly born piglets from moving around and under the sow.

Description

The present invention relates to an anti-crushing piglet mattress, placed under the sow, and fixed to the floor of a stall, in a whelping cage.

The problem of crushing newborn piglets by the sow is well known to pig breeders, it represents the main cause of death of these pigs, just after their birth.

When the sow goes to bed to suckle its piglets, it often happens that it crushes them, because they instinctively place themselves under its teats, attracted by the heat and the smell of their mother.

The present invention aims to remedy this drawback and to provide a device which prevents newborn piglets from being placed under the sow, when the latter is standing.

According to an essential characteristic of the invention, the piglet anti-crushing mattress comprises an envelope made of a flexible, elastic and resistant material.

This envelope which has the particularity of being easily deformed under the weight of the sow, when the latter lies down, is kept inflated by a fluid or by air.

To achieve this objective, the envelope of the anti-crushing mattress is connected to a reserve of fluid or to an air cushion, by a pipe, according to the variant of its embodiment.

When the sow lies down while deforming the mattress, the volume of fluid or air contained in the envelope is expelled towards the reserve or in the air cushion, and conversely, when the sow gets up, the envelope of the mattress inflates instantaneously, under the effect of the height of water contained in the reserve or the air pressure exerted on the air cushion, by a counterweight, which prevents the piglets from being placed or circulating under the sow.

The device, object of the invention, therefore aims to protect newborn piglets, the first days of their life, by preventing them from placing themselves instinctively under the sow.

Another advantage of the device according to the invention is to avoid excoriation of the sows' teats in contact with the floor of the stall.

The piglet anti-crushing mattress therefore has at least a thickness sufficient to prevent the piglets from placing themselves under the sow, without the mattress covering reaching the teats.

Another advantage of the device, according to the invention, is to allow greater comfort of the piglets near the sow, it frequently happens that they scuff on contact with the floor in the openwork of the stalls, this advantage is obtained by a mat which extends beyond the surface of the whelping cage.

The invention will be better understood following the description and the appended drawings, in which - FIG. 1 represents a top view of the farrowing cage, with the anti-crushing mattress, produced with a reserve of fluid, - FIG. 2 represents a side view of the farrowing cage, with the anti-crushing mattress, produced with a reserve of fluid, - FIG. 3 represents a top view of the farrowing cage, with the anti-crushing mattress crushing, made with an air cushion and a counterweight, - Figure 4 shows a side view of the farrowing cage, with the anti-crushing mattress, made with an air cushion and a counterweight.

The whelping cage (1) is provided with restraint bars (5) intended to position the sow in reduced space and to force it to orient its head towards the trough (6), to be placed longitudinally at the above the anti-crushing mattress (2).

In a first embodiment, the envelope (3) of the anti-crushing mattress (2) is made of a flexible, elastic and resistant material, this envelope is filled with a fluid (8), to be kept inflated, under low pressure.

This low pressure is obtained by the difference in level between the height (12) of the fluid in the reserve, and the casing (3).

When the sow (7) lies down while deforming the mattress, the volume of the fluid (8) contained in the envelope (3) is expelled into the reserve (4) by means of a pipe (13).

When the sow (7) is raised, the envelope (3) of the mattress is instantly inflated, under the effect of the difference in level between the height (12) of the fluid (8) contained in the reserve (4) and the envelope (3).

In a second embodiment, the envelope (3) of the anti-crushing mattress (2) is made of a flexible, elastic and resistant material, this envelope is filled with air (9), to be kept inflated, under low pressure.

This low pressure is obtained by a counterweight (10) which presses on an air cushion (11) connected to the envelope (3) of the mattress (2), by a pipe (13).

When the sow (7) lies down while deforming the mattress, the volume of air (9) contained in the envelope (3) is expelled into the air cushion (11).

When the sow (7) is raised, the envelope (3) of the mattress is instantly inflated, under the effect of the pressure exerted by the counterweight (10) applied to the air cushion (11), which has the effect of expelling the air contained therein towards the envelope (3).

The anti-crushing mattress (2) must at least have a sufficient thickness, to prevent the piglets from being placed or circulating under the sow (7).

According to a third alternative embodiment of the device, there may be a larger fluid reverber (4) or a larger air cushion (10), placed in an appropriate location of the farm for supply several anti-crushing mattresses in parallel in several stalls.

The anti-crushing mattress is fixed (14) to the floor of the whelping cage, in order to prevent it from moving under the feet of the sow and the piglets.

Claims (9)

ResellCATI0S 1- Anti-crushing mattress for newborn piglets, fixed to the floor, in a farrowing cage, characterized in that it consists of a flexible, elastic and resistant envelope (3), placed under the sow (7 ), and kept inflated, under low pressure, in order to prevent the piglets from placing or circulating under the sow, when the sow is standing. 2- Anti-crushing mattress for newborn piglets, according to claim 1, characterized in that, according to the first and second variants of its embodiment, when the sow lies down by deforming the mattress, the volume of fluid (8) or air (9) contained in the envelope (3) is expelled into a reserve (4) or into an air cushion (10), by means of a pipe (13). 3- Anti-crushing mattress for newborn piglets, according to any one of claims 1 and 2, characterized in that, when the sow (7) is raised, the envelope (3) of the mattress is instantly inflated, under the effect of the low pressure of fluid (8) or air (9), which is sent by the reserve (4) or by the air cushion (10). 4 - Anti-crushing mattress for newborn piglets, according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that, according to the first variant of its embodiment, the low pressure which inflates the envelope (3) of the mattress is obtained by the difference in level between the height of the fluid (12) contained in the reserve (4), and the casing (3) to which it is connected by a pipe (13). 5- Anti-crushing mattress for newborn piglets, according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that, according to the second variant of its embodiment, the low pressure which inflates the envelope (3) of the mattress, is obtained by a counterweight (11) which presses on the air cushion (10), to which said envelope is connected by a pipe (13). 6- Anti-crushing mattress for newborn piglets, according to any one of Claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the inflated envelope (3) has a sufficient thickness to prevent the piglets from being placed or to circulate under the sow, without reaching its teats. 7- Anti-crushing mattress for newborn piglets, according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that, according to a third variant of its embodiment, it is connected to a reserve of fluid or to a cushion of air supplying in the same way, several anti-crushing mattresses, in several maternity rooms. 8- Anti-crushing mattress for newborn piglets, according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that it is fixed (14) to the floor of the farrowing cage, in order to avoid that it only moves under the trampling of sows and piglets. 9- Anti-crushing mattress for newborn piglets, according to any one of claims 1 and 8, characterized in that it is integral with a mat (2) which extends beyond the surface of the floor of the placing cage. low, which has the effect of avoiding excoriation of the piglets in contact with said floor, and of allowing them greater comfort of life, around the sow.