GB2239159A

GB2239159A - Cat scratching post

Info

Publication number: GB2239159A
Application number: GB9013823A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Allen Richard Gordon Hatten; Jean Hatten
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1989-12-23
Filing date: 1990-06-21
Publication date: 1991-06-26
Anticipated expiration: 2010-06-21
Also published as: GB8929190D0; GB9013823D0; GB2239159B

Abstract

A cylindrical carrier 1 is covered by a length of rope 3 which is helically close-wound between end cheeks 2a, 2b. A backing plate 4 for attachment to a wall has two support walls 6a and 6b extending from its front face, and the walls have opposed recesses 9 and 10 to receive the end cheeks 2a, 2b. The upper wall 6a receives a pin 12 secured to a knob 13, and the pin is received in a corresponding hole in the upper end cheek 2a. The pin 12 normally prevents the carrier 1 from rotating, but provision is also made for the carrier to be rotated to ensure even wear, and for the carrier to be removed for replacement. <IMAGE>

Description

SCRATCHING POSTS TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to scratching posts for cats.

BACKGROUND Cats have a habit of standing on their hind legs and using their front paws to scratch any convenient object which their claws will dig into. This appears to help them to keep their claws in good condition and also enables them to exercise by stretching their body and leg muscles. This habit can be very annoying when the animal chooses to scratch against an item of furniture or a decorated part of the house. There have been proposed a number of different forms of freestanding and wall-mounted scratching posts which cats may use in preference to furniture etc., but in general they are not long-lasting, and many tend to shed bits onto the floor.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention proposes a cat scratching post which includes an elongate carrier member and a flexible element which is helically close-wound about the carrier member, in which the carrier member is supported between a pair of support walls mounted on a backing plate for attachment to a wall.

The carrier member is preferably mounted such that it can be rotated about its length. The. carrier member, together with the flexible element, is preferably detachable from the support walls.

Although various forms of flexible element may be used, the preferred form is a length of rope formed of a multiplicity of fibres extending generally lengthwise of the rope. Although these may comprise synthetic fibres, the rope is preferably formed predominantly of natural fibres since these are less liable to become entangled with the cats claws and are thus less prone to damage.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The invention is exemplified in the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a side view of a scratching post of the invention, Figure 2 is a front view of the scratching post, Figure 3 is a plan view of the scratching post, Figure 4 is a longitudinal section through a modified end cheek of the scratching post, Figure 5 is an end view of the modified end cheek, Figure 6 is a detail on section VI-VI of Fig.

5, Figure 7 is a longitudinal section through the upper part of a scratching post incorporating the modified end cheek, Figure 8 shows the underside of the support wall of Fig. 7, Figure 9 is a side view of a third form of end cheek, and Figure 10 is a plan view of the end cheek of Fig. 9.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In Fig.s i and 2 part of the length of the post has been omitted for purposes of illustration.

The scratching post comprises an elongate cylindrical carrier 1 which may for example be in the form of a hollow cardboard tube or a solid timber post. Each end of the carrier I is secured to a circular end cheek 2a, 2b, and the carrier is covered by a length of rope 3 which is helically close-wound between the end cheeks.

The rope is formed from natural fibres such as those obtained from hemp or jute plants. A particularly suitable natural fibre is known as sisal. The diameter of the end cheeks 2a, 2b is substantially the same as that of the carrier plus the rope winding.

A flat elongate backing plate 4, containing screw holes 5 for attachment to a wall, has a profiled upper edge 4a. Two support walls 6a and 6b are secured by fixing screws 15 (Fig.s 2 and 3) or by other suitable means in two transversely extending slots in the front face of the backing plate, to project from the front of the backing plate in a parallel spaced relationship. The opposed inner faces 7 and 8 of the two support walls have a pair of opposed circular recesses 9 and 10 to receive the end cheeks 2a, 2b of the carrier 1. The recess 9 of the uppermost support wall 6a is deeper than that of the other wall 6b, and in addition, the upper wall 6a contains an axial through-hole 11 of square section (see Fig. 3) disposed centrally of the respective recess 9.A square section pin 12 secured to a knob 13 is received within this hole Ii and locates in a corresponding square-section hole in the corresponding upper end cheek 2a. The pin thus prevents the carrier 1 from rotating about its axis within the recesses 9 and 10. However, if the pin 12 is withdrawn from the holes the carrier can be rotated to any of three further positions which are mutually spaced by 900, whereupon the pin can then be reinserted. The carrier can thus be rotated at intervals to ensure even wear. When the rope winding 3 becomes badly worn the pin can be removed and the carrier can in turn be lifted and removed from the recesses 9 and 10 for replacement.

The rope winding on the carrier provides a hard-wearing scratching post which is much loved by cats and which is not prone to shed material.

The backing plate 4 and the support walls 6a and 6b could have decorative corner mouldings applied to their edges for an enhanced visual appeal.

The carrier could be held captive in the recesses 9 and 10 and the carrier removed for replacement by unscrewing one of the end walls 6a or 6b. In this case the recesses 9 and 10 could be of the same depth.

The modified end cheek of Fig.s 4 to 6 is an injection moulded plastics component and includes a generally cup shaped part 16 with a cylindrical spigot 17 projecting from its bottom wall for insertion into the end of the tubular carrier 1. The opposite end of the cup shaped part 16 has an outwardly extending annular bearing flange 18, and has four circumferentially spaced holes 19 in its side wall 20. In addition, the cup shaped part 16 contains a central, internally threaded tubular boss 21. Between each adjacent pair of holes 19 the cup shaped part contains a pair of radially aligned flexible webs 22 (Fig.s 5 and 6) which project towards each other from the side wall 20 and the threaded boss 21.

A pair of such end cheek components are secured to opposite ends of the carrier 1. These components provide a simple means of terminating the ends of the rope 3, which are inserted through a convenient hole 19 and pressed between one or more pairs of webs 22 which resiliently grip the rope, as shown in Fig. 5.

The lower end component may be mounted in an end wall 6b similar to that of Fig.s 1 to 3, but as shown in Fig.s 7 and 8, the upper end wall 6a has been modified by the provision of a circular aperture 11' in place of the square aperture 11. This circular aperture contains a tubular liner 25, and the pin 12' secured to knob 13 is now of circular section with an externally screw-threaded lower end 26. The pin 12' has a circumferential groove 27 which receives a slotted washer 28 (Fig. 8) secured to the end wall 6a. The knob 13 and pin 12' are thus held captive in the recess 11' by the washer 28. Alternatively, the pin 12' could be held captive by an E-clip pressed directly into the thread of end 26. The carrier is held in a certain rotational position by rotating the knob 13 to screw the pin 12 into the boss 21 and hence clamp the end cheek tightly against the end wall 6a.To rotate the carrier, the knob 13 is slackened, the carrier is rotated to its new position, and the knob re-tightened.

In addition, by removing the lower end wall 6b the carrier can be unscrewed from the pin 12', inverted, and then refitted to permit equalisation of wear between the upper and lower ends of the rope.

The end cheek of Fig.s 9 and 10 is similar to that of Fig.s 4 to 7, similar parts having corresponding reference numerals. The four holes of the side wall 20 are replaced by three rope-receiving holes 19' which open through the flange 18 and are inclined in the direction of winding of the rope 3. The pairs of webs 22 are omitted but the dimensions of the annular recess 30 formed between the wall 20 and boss 21 are adjusted to receive the tail end of the rope 3 as a close fit.

The end of the rope is inserted through any convenient hole 19' and is then inserted, back-wound, into the recess 30. The rope ends are thus held just as securely as in the embodiment of Fig.s 4 to 7, but the rope ends are easier to secure and the end cheeks are cheaper to manufacture.

Claims

1. A cat scratching post which includes an elongate carrier member and a flexible element which is helically close-wound about the carrier member, in which the carrier member is supported between a pair of support walls which project from a backing plate.

2. A cat scratching post according to Claim 1, in which the carrier member is mounted such that it can be rotated about its length.

3. A cat scratching post according to Claim 1 or 2, in which the carrier member, together with the flexible element, is detachable from the support walls.

4. A cat scratching post according to any preceding claim, in which the carrier member is secured to end cheeks to which the ends of the flexible element are secured.

5. A cat scratching post according to Claim 4, in which each end cheek comprises a generally cylindrical side wall containing an aperture and a generally cylindrical inner wall, the two walls together defining an annular recess for receiving a tail end of the flexible element which is inserted through the said aperture.

6. A cat scratching post according to Claim 5, in which the side wall contains a plurality of apertures at circumferentially spaced positions.

7. A cat scratching post according to Claim 5 or 6, in which the or each aperture opens through one edge of the side wall and is inclined in the direction in which the flexible element is wound abo.ut the carrier.

8. A cat scratching post which is substantially as described with reference to the drawings.

8. A cat scratching post according to any preceding claim, in which the flexible element comprises a length of rope formed of a multiplicity of fibres extending generally lengthwise of the rope.

9. A cat scratching post according to Claim 8, in which the rope is formed predominantly of natural fibres.

10. A cat scratching post which is substantially as described with reference to the drawings.

Amendments to the claims have been filed as follows 1. A cat scratching post comprising a backing plate, a pair of mutually spaced support walls projecting from the backing plate, an elongate carrier member having a cheek member secured to each end, the carrier member being removably mounted between the support walls, and a flexible element helically closewound about the carrier member between the cheek members to which the respective ends of the flexible element are releasably secured.

2. A cat scratching post according to Claim 1, in which each cheek member comprises a generally cylindrical side wall containing an aperture and a generally cylindrical inner wall, the two walls together defining an annular recess, and a tail end of the flexible element being inserted through the said aperture and retained in the annular recess.

3. A cat scratching post according to Claim 2, in which the side wall contains a plurality of apertures at circumferentially spaced positions.

4. A cat scratching post according to Claim 2 or 3, in which the or each aperture opens through one edge of the side wall and is inclined in the direction in which the flexible element is wound about the carrier.

5. A cat scratching post according to any preceding claim, in which the carrier member is mounted between the support walls such that it can be rotated about its length, and locking means are provided for securing the carrier member in a plurality of different rotational positions.

6. A cat scratching post according to Claim 5, in which the locking means comprises a screw threaded pin which is inserted through one of the support walls into a co-operatively screw-threaded aperture in one of the cheek members, whereby the carrier member can be drawn into engagement with the said support wall.

7. A cat scratching post according to any preceding claim, in which the flexible element comprises a length of rope.