GB2212045A

GB2212045A - Improvements in animal feeders

Info

Publication number: GB2212045A
Application number: GB8726089A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Peter John Leverett
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1987-11-06
Filing date: 1987-11-06
Publication date: 1989-07-19
Also published as: GB8726089D0

Abstract

An animal feeder has a hopper (10) from which dry food is fed downwardly through apertures (12) into a compartmented trough (14), and the supply of food through each aperture is controllable by an associated control plate (28) carried by an agitating member in the form of a hollow tube (16) terminating at its lower end in a drinking nozzle (18) accessible from the trough. The agitating member and drinking nozzle are animal actuated. <IMAGE>

Description

Improvements in Animal Feeders This invention relates to an animal feeder, more especially but not exclusively for feeding pigs.

Pig feeders in the form of sub-divided hoppers are well known. A pig hopper essentially comprises a partially sub-divided housing which feeds generally dry food downwardly under gravity into a trough extending along the front of the base of the housing. The trough is often compartmented so that a number of pigs can take food simultaneously without mutual interference, in effect each from its own food supply.

It is an object of this invention to provide an improved animal feeder generally in the form of a modified pig hopper.

According to the invention, an animal feeder comprises a hopper for supplying essentially dry food into a feeding trough, wherein the trough is adapted to receive food downwardly through at least one food supply aperture through which extends an agitating member carrying, just below but adjacent to the aperture, a food supply control plate, wherein the agitating member is mounted in the hopper in a manner enabling limited movement of at least the lower part of said member below the control plate, said lower part of the agitating member being accessible from the front of the trough to enable an animal to agitate said member and control plate carried thereby and thereby control the supply of food into the trough.

The trough may be a compartmented trough, having a controllable supply aperture and associated control plate for each compartment. Even if not compartmented, the trough will usually be intended for use by more than one animal at a time, and will therefore have a plurality of supply apertures with associated control plates.

In one practical arrangement, the agitating member is a rod or tube located substantially vertically in the hopper against movement relative thereto at two vertically spaced positions substantially above the control plate, whereby the agitating movement of said rod or tube is enabled by flexure of the part thereof below the two mounting locations.

In the aforesaid arrangement, vertical adjustment of the position of the rod or tube, and thereby of the vertical position of the food supply control plate relative to the food supply aperture, is preferably made possible by an adjustment element which is removable from or slidable along the rod or tube and can be fixed relative thereto in a chosen position of adjustment thereon, said adjustment element then acting as a stop cooperating with the hopper mounting for the rod or tube to locate said rod or tube in the vertical direction, thus positioning the control plate at a chosen spacing from the food supply aperture. The adjustment element preferably locates between two mounting members which define the aforementioned two vertically spaced mounting locations which locate the rod or tube vertically in the hopper.Said two mounting members may conveniently be constituted by cross members extending internally across the hopper, from side to side and from front to back, whilst the adjustment element is preferably a detachable clip.

Vertical adjustment of the position of the control plate is advantageous for efficiently controlling the supply of food of differing natures and consistencies, having due regard to the species and characteristics of the animals using the feeder.

In a preferred arrangement, the agitating member takes the form of a tube which at the top is adapted for connection to a low pressure water supply and at the bottom is provided with a drinking nipple. This enables an animal readily to drink during a feeding session and/or also to add water to the food in the trough. Foods such as dry meal or powders are found to be more palatable by some animals when said food is moist.

According to another aspect of the invention, therefore, there is provided an animal feeder comprising a hopper for supplying essentially dry food into a feeding trough wherein the supply of said food into the trough is controllable by movement of an agitating member which comprises a hollow tube through which water can flow to a drinking nozzle accessible to an animal feeding at the trough.

The animal is thus not only able to drink during a feeding session, but by means of the same member through which water is supplied effect an agitating movement of said member which controls the food supply. The animal is also able to moisten the food, when this is desirable, to make it more palatable. For the purpose of controlling the food supply, the agitating tube preferably carries a food supply control plate cooperating with an aperture through which the food is fed from the hopper into the trough or into a corresponding compartment of the trough.Desirably, the hopper incorporates a fixed shield positioned between the cooperating food supply aperture and control plate and the front of the trough, so that the animal only has access to the lowermost region of the water tube below said shield, and is therefore unable to contaminate fresh food yet to fall into the trough with dirt or water, possibly thereby congealing the food and preventing proper operation of the feeder.

A practical animal feeder in accordance with the invention is exemplified in the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a cross-sectional view through a pig hopper, looking from the front and taken on the line 1 - 1 of Figure 2; and Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view of the hopper, looking from the side and taken on the line 2 - 2 of Figure 1.

Referring to the drawings, the illustrated pig hopper comprises a housing of which an upper part 10 constitutes a storage chamber for dry food. The food is fed downwardly from this chamber 10 through apertures 12 into a feeding trough 14, usually intended for use by more than one animal at a time and which may be compartmented accordingly. The drawings show a small hopper having only two apertures 12, but larger hoppers may have five or more compartments each fed with food through a food supply aperture 12.

Extending vertically through each food supply aperture 12 is a relatively rigid hollow tube 16 terminated at its lowermost end with a drinking nozzle 18. The top end 20 of the tube is adapted for connection to a flexible tube leading from a low pressure water supply.

The drinking tube 16 is mounted in the hopper, substantially above the aperture 12, by means of two cross members 22, 24, respectively extending side to side and front to back within the food storage chamber 10. The tube 16 is vertically slidable through these cross members 22, 24, but is located in the vertical direction by a detachable clip 26 engaged around the tube between said cross members. The detachable clip 26 enables the vertical position of the tube 16 to be adjusted, thereby to vary the spacing between the aperture 12 and a food supply control plate 28 fixedly carried by the tube just below said aperture.

A fixed shield 30 is positioned in the trough just in front of the food supply aperture and associated control plate, so that an animal feeding at the trough only has access to the lowermost region of the drinking tube 16.

In addition to being able to drink during a feeding sesssion, the animal is able to agitate the lower end region of the tube 16 to cause flexure of said tube below its mounting locations at the cross members 22, 24, thereby to agitate the control plate 28 and control the dry food supply. As compared to a simple pivot mounting for the agitating member, the tube 16 can be flexed by the animal in any direction.

The above-described pig hopper may be principally made of sheet metal or plastics material, and incorporate a metal or plastics drinking tube unit.

Various modifications of the above-described arrangement are possible within the scope of the invention hereinbefore defined.

Claims

1. An animal feeder comprising a hopper for supplying essentially dry food into a feeding trough, wherein the trough is adapted to receive food downwardly through at least one food supply aperture through which extends an agitating member carrying, just below but adjacent to the aperture, a food supply control plate, wherein the agitating member is mounted in the hopper in a manner enabling limited movement of at least the lower part of said member below the control plate, said lower part of the agitating member being accessible from the front of the trough to enable an animal to agitate said member and control plate carried thereby and thereby control the supply of food into the trough.

2. An animal feeder according to claim 1, wherein the trough is a compartmented trough, having a controllable supply aperture and associated agitating member and control plate for each compartment.

3. An animal feeder according to claim 1, wherein the trough is not compartmented, but is intended for use by more than one animal at a time, and therefore has a plurality of supply apertures with associated agitating rods and control plates.

4. An animal feeder according to claim 1 or claim 2 or claim 3, wherein the or each agitating member is a rod or tube located substantially vertically in the hopper against movement relative thereto at two vertically spaced positions substantially above the control plate, whereby the agitating movement of said rod or tube is enabled by flexure of the part thereof below the two mounting locations.

5. An animal feeder according to claim 4, wherein vertical adjustment of the position of the rod or tube, and thereby of the vertical position of the food supply control plate relative to the food supply aperture, is enabled by an adjustment element which is removable from or slidable along the rod or tube and can be fixed relative thereto in a chosen position of adjustment thereon, said adjustment element then acting as a stop cooperating with the hopper mounting for the rod or tube to locate said rod or tube in the vertical direction, thus positioning the control plate at a chosen spacing from the food supply aperture.

6. An animal feeder according to claim 5, wherein the adjustment element locates between two mounting members which define the aforementioned two vertically spaced mounting locations which locate the rod or tube vertically in the hopper.

7. An animal feeder according to claim 6, wherein said two mounting members are constituted by cross members extending internally across the hopper, from side to side and from front to back, whilst the adjustment element is a detachable clip.

8. An animal feeder according to any of claims 1 to 7, wherein the agitating member is in the form of a tube which at the top is adapted for connection to a low pressure water supply and at the bottom is provided with a drinking nipple.

9. An animal feeder comprising a hopper for supplying essentially dry food into a feeding trough, wherein the supply of said food into the trough is controllable by movement of an agitating member which comprises a hollow tube through which water can flow to a drinking nozzle accessible to an animal feeding at the trough.

10. An animal feeder according to claim 9, wherein, for the purpose of controlling the food supply, the agitating tube carries a food supply control plate cooperating with an aperture through which the food is fed from the hopper into the trough or into a corresponding compartment of the trough.

11. An animal feeder according to claim 10, wherein the hopper incorporates a fixed shield positioned between the cooperating food supply aperture and control plate and the front of the trough, so that the animal only has access to the lowermost region of the water tube below said shield.

12. An animal feeder substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.