GB2469840A

GB2469840A - Combined mobile cattle feeder and pen

Info

Publication number: GB2469840A
Application number: GB0907366A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Michael Midgley
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2009-04-29
Filing date: 2009-04-29
Publication date: 2010-11-03
Anticipated expiration: 2029-04-29
Also published as: GB2469840B; GB0907366D0

Abstract

A combined mobile cattle feeder and pen comprises a vehicle or trailer having a feeding surface or trough 5 on which cattle feed can be spread, the vehicle providing access for the animals to that surface on at least one side thereof and preferably also comprising a central gangway 4. A set of at least two pen panels 8 hingedly attached one to the other is mounted on the vehicle, such that the panels can be folded flat against the vehicle side for transport between use and extended out from the vehicle to form a pen to encompass animals feeding from the feeding surface. The panels may be mounted at front and rear ends of the vehicle on one or both sides and each set preferably comprises three pen panels connected in a chain. A jacking means may also be provided to facilitate lifting and lowering of the panels into position.

Description

COMBINED MOBILE CATTLE FEEDER AND PEN

Field of the Invention

This invention relates to a combined mobile cattle feeder and pen.

Background to the Invention

Penning cattle to move them to another location, for example, is not a job readily undertaken by one person, and it runs the risk of injury, not only to the cattle if they panic and try to escape, for example attempting to jump barriers or fences, but also to the operator.

Mobile cattle feeders, in the form of trailers in which the cattle feed can be spread for access by the cattle around the trailer, are well-known. The ani- mals readily become accustomed to feeding at the feeder. The present inven-tion seeks to exploit this by using a mobile feeder to entice the animals into a location where they can be readily penned.

Summary of the Invention

According to the invention, there is provided a combined mobile cattle feeder and pen, comprising a trailer vehicle having a feeding surface on which cattle feed can be spread, the vehicle providing access for the animals to that surface on at least one side thereof, the vehicle also hingedly mounting a set of at least two pen panels hingedly attached one to the other, whereby the panels can be folded flat against the vehicle side for transport between use and ex-tended out from the vehicle to form a part of a pen surrounding animals feeding from the feeding surface.

Preferably, a first set of pen panels is hingedly mounted at the leading end of the vehicle, and a second set is hingedly mounted at the rear end of the vehicle.

The vehicle preferably has access for animal feeding along each side thereof between the leading end and the rear end. A central longitudinal gang-way may separate two feeding surfaces, which are suitably in the form of troughs.

A set of pen panels may be hingedly mounted at the leading end and the rear end on both sides of the vehicle. The or each set preferably comprises at least three pen panels connected in a chain.

The vehicle, which is suitably a trailer vehicle, is preferably adapted to carry one or more additional pen panels hingedly linkable to the end of the set to extend the length thereof when extended. The pen panels suitably comprise steel frames, but other materials, such as wood or polypropylene, may be em- ployed. The panels may comprise at least one ground-engaging wheel to facili-tate movement over the ground when extending the panels to form a pen. The or each set is preferably mounted on the vehicle in such a manner that the pan- els are elevated from the ground when folded against the vehicle, and are low-ered into contact with the ground in a controlled manner when extended out from the vehicle.

At least one of the panels may incorporate an openable gate, which may be remotely-operable to close, for example by means of a rope or cable release operable from the vehicle.

The combined mobile cattle feeder and pen of the invention permits a lone operator safely to pen a number of cattle for transport or other purposes, while minimising the risk of harm or distress to the animals. It can readily be transported to any location.

Brief Description of the Drawings

In the drawings, which illustrate an exemplary embodiment of the inven-tion: Figure 1 is a perspective view of the trailer vehicle; Figure 2 is a sectional elevation; and Figure 3 is a top plan view of the vehicle showing the pen panels partially deployed on one side thereof to form a pen.

Detailed Description of the Illustrated Embodiment

Referring to the drawings, the trailer vehicle has wheels 1 mounted on axles 2 supporting a body 3 formed of sheet steel shaped to provide a central longitudinal walkway 4 flanked on either side by a trough 5 whose outer wall 5a slopes obliquely upwardly and outwardly to the side of the vehicle. The walk-way 4 and troughs 5 extend over the full length of the body of the vehicle. On each side of the vehicle railings 6 extend upwardly from the body on three sides of each trough 5, leaving a gap 7 at each end to provide access to the walkway 4. The railings 6 each consist of a plurality of spaced uprights 6a at intervals sufficient to allow an animal to reach its head through to access the feed in the trough. A top rail 6b joins the uprights 6a together. A safety rail 6c also ex-tends over the length of the vehicle body on either side of the walkway 4. The safety rail 6c may be mounted in such a manner as to be removable, permitting the trailer vehicle to be used to carry additional materials such as feed bales or the like.

At each corner of the vehicle, the railings 6 carry an additional upright 6d of circular cross-section, on which is mounted a pen panel or gate 8 having brackets 8a which are rotatable around, and slidable along, the respective add i- tional upright 6d, so that they can be raised to pivot against the side of the vehi-cle and lowered towards the ground when pivoted outwardly from the vehicle.

Jacking means, for example a screw jack or hydraulic jack, may be provided associated with each set of pen panels to facilitate their lifting and lowering, as the weight of the panels, especially when made of steel, is typically such that an individual would be unable to lift a set of them. The jack would be arranged to lift the set to the travelling height, at which a locking pin or the like could be used to hold the set while it is rotated into position against the side of the vehi-cle, where they are held in place by straps or hooks, for example, mounted such that, when cattle are feeding at the side of the vehicle, there are no projections on which the cattle might injure themselves.

The pen panels 8 are hingedly connected one to another by any conven-ient means, the hinge arrangement being such as to permit the panels to lie flat against each other when folded in for transport, as illustrated in Figure 3. At the desired location, the panels are swung outwards and extended to form the pen.

The trailer vehicle is provided with a conventional draw bar 9 for attach- ment to a towing vehicle, and stabilising legs 10 for use when the vehicle is sta-tionary. While Figure 1 shows only one pen panel attached to each corner of the vehicle for the sake of clarity, it is preferred that sets of at least three pen panels are mounted at each corner of the vehicle, as shown in Figure 3, so as to provide the possibility of creating an adequate holding pen for animals on each side of the vehicle without the need to manhandle additional panels. It will be appreciated, however, that further panels could be added to permit the crea-tion of a larger pen. Typically, the pen panels will be of around 2.4 to 3.lm in length, enabling with this configuration pens of around 24m circumference to be created. The height of the panels is conveniently around 1.5 to 2m, and pref-erably at least 1.8m, to reduce the likelihood of the animals attempting to jump over them, and thus injure themselves, if panicked.

In use, the trailer is towed to the location where the cattle are situated, and from which they are to be removed, and is stabilised with the corner legs 10. The pen panels 8 are swung out to expose the sides of the trailer vehicle, and the operator then distributes cattle feed along the troughs 5 from the walk-way 4. Typically, the trailer vehicle will be left in place for some time to allow the cattle to become accustomed to feeding from it. The pen can then be ex-tended and finally closed while the animals are feeding. In one embodiment, one panel on each side, suitably that nearest the rear of the vehicle, contains a gate 11, permitting the pen to be closed while the gate is left open, to permit the animals to enter and leave. While the Figure shows the gate 11 as extending for substantially the full width of the panel, it will be appreciated that it may be desirable to arrange for the gate to extend over only part of the width of the panel to allow for suitable reinforcement of the panel to carry the weight of the gate. When it is desired to confine the animals to the pen, for example for re-moval, the gate is closed when the animals have all entered to feed. This may be done remotely, for example by means of a rope or cable to pull the gate closed. A conventional spring latch, such as is used on agricultural gates, may be used to secure the gate in the closed position.

The trailer vehicle may be provided with steps, not shown, to enable the user to step up to the walkway safely. The steps may be configured to hinge up to fill the gap between the railings, either at the front or at the rear of the vehicle.

The trailer may also be provided with side skirts to prevent attempted access by the animals to the space beneath the trailer. Where additional pen panels 8 are required, for example for use in directing the animals from one pen to another, or from the pen into a transporting vehicle, these may be carried on the walk-way.

Claims

CLAIMS1. A combined mobile cattle feeder and pen, comprising a vehicle having a feeding surface on which cattle feed can be spread, the vehicle provid- ing access for the animals to that surface on at least one side thereof, the vehi-cle also hingedly mounting a set of at least two pen panels hingedly attached one to the other, whereby the panels can be folded flat against the vehicle side for transport between use and extended out from the vehicle.
2. A combined mobile cattle feeder and pen according to Claim 1, wherein a first set of pen panels is hingedly mounted at the leading end of the vehicle, and a second set is hingedly mounted at the rear end of the vehicle.
3. A combined mobile cattle feeder and pen according to Claim 2, wherein the vehicle has access for animal feeding along each side thereof be-tween the leading end and the rear end.
4. A combined mobile cattle feeder and pen according to Claim 3, comprising a central longitudinal gangway separating two feeding surfaces.
5. A combined mobile cattle feeder and pen according to Claim 2, 3 or 4, wherein a set of pen panels is hingedly mounted at the leading end and the rear end on both sides of the vehicle.
6. A combined mobile cattle feeder and pen according to any pre-ceding claim, wherein the or each set comprises three pen panels connected in a chain.
7. A combined mobile cattle feeder and pen according to any pre-ceding claim, wherein the vehicle is a trailer vehicle.
8. A combined mobile cattle feeder and pen according to any pre-ceding claim, wherein the vehicle is adapted to carry one or more additional pen panels hingedly linkable to the end of the set to extend the length thereof when extended.
9. A combined mobile cattle feeder and pen according to any pre-ceding claim, wherein each pen panel comprises a steel frame.
10. A combined mobile cattle feeder and pen according to any pre-ceding claim, wherein each panel carries a ground-engaging wheel to facilitate movement over the ground.
11. A combined mobile cattle feeder and pen according to any pre- ceding claim, wherein the or each set is mounted on the vehicle in such a man- ner that the panels are elevated from the ground when folded against the vehi-cle, and are lowered into contact with the ground when extended out from the vehicle.
12. A combined mobile cattle feeder and pen according to Claim 11, wherein jacking means are associated with each set of panels to facilitate lifting and lowering thereof.
13. A combined mobile cattle feeder and pen according to any pre-ceding claim, wherein at least one panel includes a closable gate.
14. A combined mobile cattle feeder and pen according to Claim 13, wherein the gate is remotely closable by means of a rope or cable release op-erable from the vehicle.
15. A combined mobile cattle feeder and pen, substantially as de-scribed with reference to, and/or as shown in, the drawings.