FR2778818A1 - Installation for rearing hares - Google Patents

Abstract

The installation for rearing hares in a field comprises a frame (1) on which are mounted a hutch (10) and a pen (13). The pen is connected to the hutch such that it communicates with it and the ground (6). A device (16) connected to the frame by a chain coupling (14) enables its translational displacement. The device comprises a pinion (18) for pulling the coupling driven by a reduction motor or crank (19).

Description

i 2778818 The present invention relates to an installation for breeding

  animals, especially rabbits in a field. Such an installation is intended in particular for

  housing, birth and fattening of these small animals.

  The French patent document FR-A-2 350 785 discloses a hare breeding facility in a plot of a field having a reduced area. This installation consists of a cage and an enclosure connected to said cage, this enclosure being intended to allow hares to eat grass from said plot. Said cage has a mesh bottom and a lateral opening intended to make it communicate with the enclosure. In addition, it has several doors on one of its faces adjacent to that comprising said opening, and this face provided with doors is extensible with respect to the other three faces of the cage. The whole cage and lenclos is mounted on casters so as to be movable in rotation

  around a fixed vertical axis integral with the cage, on its face opposite to said enclosure.

  In this way, the installation can be moved periodically for the

  cleaning of the soil which is soiled by the droppings of hares.

  A major drawback of this breeding facility lies in particular in the reduced area of the plot which is chosen once and for all to serve as food for the hares. This effectively requires rapid and continuous disinfection of the circular sector recently soiled by hares, due to the

  periodicity of movement required on said plot.

  The object of the present invention is to provide an installation for breeding animals in a field which is of the type comprising at least one frame on which are mounted at least one cage and an enclosure which is connected to said cage so as to communicating with it and with the ground of said field, and comprising a device connected to said frame to allow its movement over said ground, which makes it possible to remedy this drawback. To this end, an installation according to the invention is characterized in that said device is provided for displacing with respect to itself the whole of said frame according to

a translational movement.

  According to another characteristic of the invention, said device is connected to said frame by a coupling means, such as a chain, and is designed to modify the length

  of said coupling means during said translational movement.

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  According to another characteristic of the invention, said device is designed to exert traction on said coupling means and to receive it during said traction. According to another characteristic of the invention, said device comprises means for pulling said coupling means, such as a chain sprocket, which are driven by actuation means, such as a geared motor group or a crank, a reduction system being provided to connect said means

  actuation to said traction means.

  According to another characteristic of the invention, said device is provided with

  means for immobilizing it on said ground during said traction.

  According to another characteristic of the invention, said device is provided with retractable wheels to allow its positioning in locations

  different from said field, between two translational movements.

  According to another characteristic of the invention, said frame is mounted on a frame provided with means for guiding in translation on said ground, such as a roller and / or wheels, said frame being provided for lifting when it is the seat of 'a

  traction via said coupling means, and to lower itself when said traction ceases.

  According to another characteristic of the invention, said chassis is provided with two lateral beams which are symmetrically connected to said coupling means, link systems being articulated on each lateral beam, on said chassis, and on the axes respective of said guide means, so that said rod systems facing the same side of said chassis form

deformable parallelograms.

  According to another characteristic of the invention, said cage consists of a

thermally insulating material.

  According to another characteristic of the invention, said cage comprises, at its upper wall, a removable cover and, at its wall opposite to said enclosure, a

  hatch pivotally mounted relative to an axis provided parallel to said upper wall.

  According to another characteristic of the invention, said cage has a wall

  bottom mounted removable by sliding on lateral bases of said cage.

  In a second embodiment, an installation will be described

  particular equipped with manual drive means.

  The features of the invention mentioned above, as well as others,

  will appear more clearly on reading the following description of an example of

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  realization, said description being made in relation to the accompanying drawings, in

  which: Fig. 1 is a schematic top view of an installation for breeding animals in the open air according to an exemplary embodiment of the invention, FIG. 2 is a side view of the installation of FIG. 1, FIG. 3 is a top view and in horizontal section of a cage that includes said installation, FIG. 4 is a front view of said cage, FIG. 5 is a sectional view along the plane V-V of FIG. 3 of said cage

o10 containing two rabbits.

  Fig. 6 is a top view of an individual installation with a manual drive means, FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the installation of FIG. 6, FIG. 8 is a top view of a multiple installation with manual drive means, and

  Fig. 9 is a perspective view of a multiple installation of FIG. 8.

  As can be seen in Fig. 1 of this first exemplary embodiment, an installation 1 for the breeding of animals, in particular of rabbits in the open air according to the invention comprises a frame 1 intended to receive a plurality of identical housings 2 for rabbits and a system 3 provided for moving in translation said frame 1

  provided with said housings 2 at a determined speed.

  In this exemplary embodiment, the housings 2 each have a parallelepiped shape and they are mounted in a contiguous manner in juxtaposition on a chassis 4 which comprises the frame 1. This chassis 4 is provided with means 5 for guiding in translation the frame 1 on the ground 6. These guide means 5 consist for example of wheels 7 mounted at the rear of the chassis 4, and of a roller 8 mounted integral with the front end of the chassis 4 over the entire width of that -this and

  provided parallel to the axis joining said wheels 7.

  Each housing 2 consists of a breeding or maternity cage 10 intended for example to receive two rabbits 11 (see Fig. 5) and their young, which communicates by one of its faces 12 with a mesh enclosure 13 intended for

  feeding rabbits and open on the ground 6.

  Enclosure 13 is preferably delimited by a welded steel mesh

  stainless, except in its lower part.

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  The system 3 for moving the frame 1 consists of a coupling means 14, such as a metal chain or cable, which is connected via two coupling arms 15 to the front end of the chassis 4, and d 'a traction device 16 of said connecting means 14. This device 16 is designed to move relative to itself the whole of said frame 1. As for the chain 14, it is coupled to the point of competition of the two arms

  coupling 15, which form a "V".

  Advantageously, garden hoses 14a are mounted integral with rings 14b of the chain 14, for the water supply and irrigation of the plot

  after grazing thus promoting the disintegration of excrement.

  In the example of FIG. 1, the traction device 16 consists of a chassis 17 on which are mounted means 18 for exerting traction on the chain 14, such as chain sprockets driven by a crank 19, and a receptacle 20 for the chain 14 during winding. A gear system

  1l9a is provided for connecting the crank 19 to said traction means 18.

  The device 16 also includes mechanical declutching means (not shown) which are provided to stop winding of the chain 14 at the end

of its traction.

  It should be noted however that said winding means could be driven by an electric geared motor group, for example supplied by the network.

  electric, an accumulator or a solar collector.

  The side walls 20a of the receptacle 20 are preferably such that they converge obliquely towards its bottom 20b. In addition, the chassis 17 is provided with wheels 21 at its end opposite the frame 1. Preferably, these wheels are provided for

  be able to be retracted with respect to said chassis 17.

  The traction device 16 is for example provided to be able to be moved manually on the ground 6 by means of lateral gripping arms 22 at its end opposite to the previous one, and it is provided with means 23, such as metal rods (visible at Fig. 2), provided to immobilize it on the ground 6 in each of its corners

  perforated 24, during a traction operation.

  This device 16 is advantageously provided with a programming unit (not shown) comprising for example a clock or software, and provided for

  determine in advance its traction speed and / or its displacement on the ground 6.

  As can be seen in Fig. 2, each coupling arm 15 is connected to a lateral spar 25 extending from one side of the frame 1. Each spar 25 is connected by a first system of articulated links 26a, 26b to the axis of revolution 8a of the roller 8, and by a second system 27a, 27b similar to the previous to the axis 7a of the corresponding wheel 7. More specifically, each link system 26a, 26b or 27a, 27b consists of an upper link 26a or 27a which is articulated at its respective ends on the corresponding spar 25 and on a pivot 28 of the chassis 4, and of a link lower 26b or 27b which is articulated at its respective ends on said

pivot 28 and on said axis 7a or 8a.

  As can be seen in FIG. 2, each of the links 26a, 26b forms a deformable parallelogram with the link 27a, 27b provided on the same side of the frame l, and the assembly is provided for slightly lifting the chassis 4 and the housings 2 which it contains, when exerts traction on said chassis 4 via the

chain 14.

  The cage 10 of each housing 2 which is shown in FIG. 3 is advantageously made of a thermally insulating material. According to an exemplary embodiment, the wall 29 of each cage 10 consists of an insulating core of polyurethane and a polyester coating provided on each face of said

wall 29.

  As can be seen in Fig. 3, this wall 29 has a bottom face and side walls 31, 32, 33 and 34, the latter being assembled together and at right angles by angles 35. Each angle 35 has for example a shaped section square with two branches 36 and 37 which have a

  same length on their outer faces.

  We see that one of the branches 36 forms over its entire external length a "U" shaped housing of constant width, while the other branch 37 forms a "U" shaped housing of the same width, the core 37a and a wing 37b of said branch 37 being respectively formed on a wing 36a and in the extension of the core 36b of

said branch 36.

  The front wall 31 of each cage 10, which is opposite to said enclosure 13, has an opening 38 the edge of which is covered with a section 39 of "U" section. As can be seen in Fig. 4, a hatch 40, for example pivotally mounted about a horizontal axis 40a parallel to said bottom wall 30, is intended to

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  close the opening 38. This hatch 40 is advantageously provided with means for

  locking 41 in the closed position.

  We see in Fig. 4 that each cage 10 comprises a cover 42 intended to be mounted astride and in a removable manner on the side walls 31 to 34, by means of one or more cover profiles 43 of inverted "U" section , whose cores 43a are mounted on the tops of said side walls 31 to 34 and whose wings 43b match the internal and external faces of said walls 31

  34 (these cover sections 43 are visible in Fig. 5).

  Fig. 5 also illustrates the relative mounting of the bottom wall 30 and of

  the assembly consisting of side walls 31 to 34.

  This bottom wall 30 consists for example of a metal or plastic piece, for example a sheet which is intended to be removably mounted inside the internal perimeter defined by the side walls 31 to 34. The wall 30 is mounted by sliding and with play on bases 44 of profiles 45 of section in "U't, said profiles 45 being respectively mounted under two opposite side walls 32 and 33. The wings 45a of said" U "are provided to match the faces internal and external of said walls 31 to 34, and core 45b of said "U" is provided

  to match the base 46 thereof, extending by one of said bases 44.

  Optionally, it will be noted that each cage 10 may include a serrated grid (not shown) or a retractable element in its lower part, which is intended to protect the rabbits from predatory animals during the lifting of the

  cage 10 resulting from the traction of the frame 1.

  It will also be noted that each cage 10 may have a removable partition (not shown) between its front wall 31 and its rear wall 34, so as to form two separate maternity compartments for rabbits. We can

  also compartmentalize each enclosure 13 in a similar manner.

  A second example of embodiment of said installation having a means

  manual workout is described below.

  We see in Fig. 6 a compartment 55 of rectangular shape composed of a housing 2 with a mesh enclosure 13, already described. This compartment 55 is provided at the front with a handle 50 with lateral arms 51 connected to the axis of the wheels 52. A stop 53 is further provided fixed to the front of said enclosure 13 then blocking the handle 50 during the movement of bottom up induced by the user during traction. That

  facilitates advancement by lifting the assembly without significant effort.

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  It will be better understood the particular assembly of the manual drive means described in FIG. 6 using the perspective view of FIG. 7. This view

  shows the simplicity of the manual drive means.

  In Fig. 8, there are shown compartments 55 mounted in a contiguous manner with a manual drive means comprising a handle 58 and levers. All of these levers are composed of angled side levers 56, shown at

  Fig. 9, on which are articulated arms 59 connected to the axes of the wheels 57.

  The perspective view of FIG. 9 makes it possible to appreciate all of the multiple compartments 55 juxtaposed with its manual drive means

particular described above.

  An installation according to the invention described in the first exemplary embodiment

works as follows.

  Rabbits and their young are introduced into each of the housings 2 mounted on the frame 1 by removing the cover 42 from the corresponding cage 10, then putting back

this one in place.

  The traction device 16 is fixed to the ground 6 of a field via the rods 23, then the traction of the chain 14 is controlled by means of the crank 19 or of said motor-reduction unit, at a speed which has was for example determined by the programming unit. Note that the reduction which is used for the device 16 allows the movement of the frame 1 at a reduced speed and with a minimum effort to be provided by the operator. Likewise it facilitates the

  travel frequency and duration.

  Note that the presence of a crank 19 in addition to a power unit

  reducer overcomes a possible malfunction of the latter.

  It will also be noted that the oblique walls 20a of the receptacle 20, inside which the chain 14 is wound, allow said chain 14 to be received in

  minimizing the risk of tangling.

  As an indication, when the device 16 is immobilized at a given location in the field, the total traction distance of the chain 14, that is to say of the frame 1, can be close to 45 meters. As for the daily distance traveled by the frame I when it is pulled, it can be determined according to the high species, the age and

  the abundance of the meadow, and for example around 3 meters on average in winter.

  During the summer period, the distance covered by the frame is around one meter.

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  During the movement of the frame 1, the rabbits can evolve in the enclosure 13 in direct contact with the ground 6 and they feed on the plant species which have been seeded in the field, thanks to the opening that said enclosure 13 has on its lower side. These plant species can for example consist of grass, hay, beets, etc. It will be noted that the rabbits are not disturbed or stressed in the housings 2 which they occupy due to the reduced speed of evolution of the frame 1, and that the absence of a floor for said enclosure 13 minimizes the risk of accidents for young rabbits,

  for example due to stuck legs.

  In addition, this mobile enclosure does not have the usual drawbacks of fouling and corrosion of the known feed cages and, due to the reduced forward speed of the frame 1, the rabbits possibly have the possibility of ingesting their droppings. , which allows them to optimize protein transformation and

vitamin from their diet.

  In the event of bad weather or heat waves, rabbits can take refuge in the adjoining cage and, in general, they can rest there in optimal thermal conditions due to the isothermal structure of said cage 10, without these weather conditions in no way affect the continuous advance of the frame 1 and therefore the good

  development of this breeding cycle.

  Thanks to the removable cover 42 that each cage 10 includes, the elevator can easily access the interior thereof to introduce dry food supplementing the field grass, such as cereals. By temporarily removing this cover 42, the breeder can also remove or

  add rabbits to a cage 10, as well as clean it.

  The pipe 14a can also be used for the distribution of water to rabbits, for example by means of a pipette and a drinker provided in each cage 10. In addition, said pipe 14a can be used to water the plot of seeded field droppings, so as to accelerate their decomposition in order to promote

quickly repels plants.

  It will be noted that these sprinkling and water supply phases can advantageously be programmed via the clock or the software of said programming unit. At the end of the advancement of the frame 1 in the direction of the traction device 16, which gives rise to a disengagement of the traction means 18, the operation of said device 16 is stopped and the entire installation can be moved to another location of the field that has not yet been traversed and, therefore, used by

rabbits for food.

  From the point of view of the storage of the housings 2, it should be noted that the structure open towards the bottom of the enclosures 13 makes it possible to optimize the stacking thereof, which is carried out by interlocking. As for each cage 10 associated with an enclosure 13, it can be provided in its internal part with removable elements from the corresponding frame 1, such as its wheels 7, and each cage 10 is advantageously arranged inside a

enclosure 13.

  This results in optimized packaging of housings 2, in the form of a box comprising for example two superposed enclosures 13 including the two cages 10 which

associated with them.

  As regards the maintenance of these housings 2, it has the advantage of being limited to the aforementioned cleaning of the bottom wall 30 of each cage 10, which cleaning is facilitated by the removable mounting by sliding of said wall 30 on the

bases 44.

  In general, it should be noted that an installation according to the invention allows the breeding of animals in direct contact with their natural environment and in satisfactory conditions of comfort, in particular thanks to each insulated cage 10. In addition, this outdoor breeding has the advantage of eliminating the risks of microbial proliferation that exist in an enclosed environment, and of promoting vigor and

  corpulence of rabbits, poultry and small animals.

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Claims (8)

  1) Installation for breeding animals in a field of the type comprising at least one frame (1) on which are mounted at least one cage (10) and an enclosure (13) which is connected to said cage (10) of so as to communicate with it and with the ground (6) of said field, and comprising a device (16) connected to said frame (1) to allow its movement on said ground (6), characterized in that said device (16) is provided to move relative to itself the whole of said frame (1) in a translational movement. 2) installation for breeding animals according to claim 1, characterized in that said device (16) is connected to said frame (1) by a coupling means (14), such as a chain, and is provided to modify the length of said coupling means (14) during of said translational movement.   3) Installation for breeding animals according to claim 2, characterized in that said device (16) is provided for exerting traction on said means   coupling (14) and to receive it during said traction.   4) Installation for breeding animals according to claim 3, characterized in that said device (16) comprises traction means (18) of said coupling means (14), such as a chain sprocket, which are driven by actuating means (19), such as a geared motor unit or a crank, a reduction system (19a) being provided for connecting said actuating means (19) to said traction means (18).   ) Installation for breeding animals according to claim 3 or 4, characterized in that said device (16) is provided with means (23) for   immobilize it on said ground (6) during said traction.   6) Installation for the breeding of animals according to one of claims 2 to 5,   characterized in that said device (16) is provided with retractable wheels (21) to allow its positioning in different locations of said field, between two translational movements.   7) Installation for the breeding of animals according to one of claims 3 to 6,   characterized in that said frame (1) is mounted on a chassis (4) provided with guide means (7, 8) in translation on said floor (6), such as a roller (8) and / or wheels ( 7), said chassis (4) being designed to lift when it is the seat of a traction   via said coupling means (14), and to lower itself when said traction ceases.   8) Installation for the breeding of animals according to claim 8, characterized in that said chassis (4) is provided with two lateral beams (15) which are symmetrically connected to said coupling means (14), rod systems (26a, 26b and 27a, 27b) being articulated on each lateral spar (15), on said chassis (4), and on the respective axes (7a, 8a) of said guide means (7, 8), in such a way that said link systems (26a, 26b and 27a, 27b) facing one side   of said chassis (4) form deformable parallelograms.   9) Installation for breeding animals according to one of the claims   previous, characterized in that said cage (10) is made of a material o10 thermally insulating.   ) Installation for breeding animals according to one of the claims   previous, characterized in that said cage (10) has, at its upper wall, a removable cover (42) and, at its opposite wall (31) to said enclosure (13), a hatch (40) pivotally mounted relative to a axis (40a) provided parallel to said wall superior.   11) Installation for breeding animals according to one of the claims   previous, characterized in that said cage (10) has a bottom wall (30)   removable mounting sliding on side bases (44) of said cage (10).