GB2575677A

GB2575677A - Humane multicatch rodent trap

Info

Publication number: GB2575677A
Application number: GB1811832.3A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Toule Keith
Original assignee: Doddington R&d Ltd
Current assignee: Doddington R&d Ltd
Priority date: 2018-07-19
Filing date: 2018-07-19
Publication date: 2020-01-22
Also published as: GB201811832D0

Abstract

A rodent trap 1 for catching, killing and storing one or more rodents comprises a pivotable ramp 34 in an opening 32 of a partition wall 30 between a first chamber 10 for receiving the rodents and a second chamber 20 comprising a liquid reservoir 22 for storing the rodents. In use, the rodents pivot the ramp 34 downwards and are urged into contact with electrical prongs 39 on the ramp 34, electrocuting the rodents which are stunned and urged to fall into the liquid reservoir 22. A cover 38 which hangs from the ramp 34 closes the opening in the partition wall 30 when the ramp 34 is tilted to prevent other rodents from getting underneath the ramp 34 and preventing it from returning. A run 50 leading up to the trap may have one-way gates 52. Covered openings 42 may be positioned in the chamber walls to entice the rodents towards the light. An indexing counter linked to the pivoting ramp or a reservoir liquid level float may indicate how many rodents have been caught.

Description

HUMANE MULTICATCH RODENT TRAP

Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a rodent trap, in particular a rodent trap for catching, killing and storing a plurality of rodents.

Background to the Invention

Rodent traps are well known in the art and range from the simple spring loaded mouse trap to more elaborate solutions for trapping rodents alive for future release. Although trapping and release is more humane than killing it does not solve a problem of rodent infestation as often the released rodents will find their way back to the location they were trapped in. Devices that kill rodents are often capable of only killing one rodent before being reset and accordingly are not practical where large numbers of rodents are present. Furthermore if the dead rodents are not quickly cleared from the traps then a health risk can occur. For example they will very rapidly attract flies which are known carriers of infections and diseases from decaying animal corpses into, domestic environments. Rodents caught live, particularly in cage traps are often killed by immersing the cage in water. This prolonged method of killing causes distress to the rodent as it fights to swim to the surface.

Other forms of killing such as pesticides and poisons are now the least preferred method of killing. This method presents a risk to other types of animals such as hedgehogs and birds. There is a risk of exposure to humans by deploying such a method. An unpleasant side-effect is carcass infestation by flies which often occurs when the rodent is eventually killed by the use of pesticides and poisons.

Previous attempts to solve the above problems have been described in GB2423002 and GB2481247, however the devices described in these documents are complicated rotating chamber devices, which due to the plurality of moving parts are prone to break down, and also do not solve the problem of a humane trap.

It is the purpose of the present invention to provide an improved rodent trap that kills and stores a plurality of rodents.

Summary of the Invention

According to a first aspect of the invention there is provided a rodent trap for catching, killing and storing one or more rodents comprising;

a first chamber to receive one or more rodents, a second chamber comprising a liquid reservoir to store one or more rodents, the first chamber and the second chamber being separated by a partition wall, the partition wall comprising an opening which receives there through a pivotable ramp, the ramp being movable from a first position wherein the ramp is accessible by one or more rodents from the first chamber to a second position wherein the ramp is pivoted downwards from the first position and the one or more rodents thereon are urged into contact with a stunning means on the ramp for electrocuting the rodent and urged to fall into the reservoir.

The rodent trap according to the invention is advantageous primarily because as soon as the rodents access the ramp the ramp tilts downwards which causes the rodent to fall further down the ramp into the liquid reservoir within the second chamber. This uses minimal moving parts and once on the ramp there is no way the rodents can escape. As the rodent slides down the ramp it is electrocuted by the stunning means and is dead before it enters the liquid in the reservoir. There is none of the prolonged struggling by the rodent that is seen in conventional rodent traps.

The ramp map comprise a cover member which hangs downwards from the ramp when the ramp is in the first position and when the ramp is in the second position the cover member closes the opening in the partition wall. This prevents any more rodents within the first chamber from moving through the opening in the partition wall, whilst the ramp is in the second position. If this were possible then rodents could escape through the opening and not fall into the reservoir. Or similarly if more than one rodent is on the ramp at any one time then it is possible that the ramp may bias from the second position back to the first position, and therefore the cover member is in place to prevent this.

This size of the liquid reservoir may vary according to the requirement for the number of rodents to be caught and stored within the trap. The liquid within the reservoir may be a medium such as water. Additional liquids may be added to restrict decomposition of the submerged rodents, slow evaporation rate of the liquid and which have minimal or no detriment to the environment when the liquid is disposed. The liquid within the reservoir may comprise, but is not restricted to ethylene glycol.

The rodent trap may also comprise a removal means located within said reservoir for removing rodents therefrom. Alternatively, the reservoir may be enclosed with a sealable lid so permitting the reservoir and the contents within to be removed, being replaced with a new reservoir filled with fluid.

The rodent trap preferably comprises a lid to cover the first and second chambers to prevent escape of the captured rodents, and for the purposes of safety to the operator.

One or more windows may be provided in the lid above the second chamber to allow daylight into the second chamber. This attracts rodents from the first chamber, through the opening in the partition wall, onto the ramp and into the second chamber.

In a preferred embodiment the rodent trap comprises a run leading up to the first chamber. The run has an entrance and may further comprise one or more non-return gates therein to prevent rodents from exiting the run via the entrance.

The rodent trap may comprise a reservoir for containing bait to attract rodents into the trap. Bait may be placed in a reservoir within the first chamber and/or the second chamber.

One or more windows may be provided at the end and/or sides of the second chamber to allow daylight into the second chamber to attract rodents from the first chamber, through the opening in the partition wall, onto the ramp and into the second chamber.

The stunning means may comprise one or more of a live and a ground electrical contact on the ramp so that when the rodent touches across any of the live and ground contacts, electrical current flows through the rodent and it is electrocuted. Supply of the electrical power to the contacts may be through the ramp pivot or may be a separate isolated supply. In this way the rodent is dead before it enters the liquid reservoir and therefore there is no lengthy painful struggling by the rodent within the liquid.

The trap may further include an overflow in said liquid reservoir and an overflow tank for receiving fluid via said overflow.

The rodent trap may comprise a counter to indicate the number of rodents caught in the trap. The counter may comprise an indexing means which indicates the number of rodents caught and which is indexed by mechanical or electronic means by the number of times the ramp is tilted from the first position, each index representing one rodent caught in the trap. An alternative form of counter is a calibrated float chamber within the reservoir which is visible externally. As each rodent is deposited within the reservoir, the level of fluid rises, such a rise being indicated by the float within the float chamber, indicating a rodent or plurality of rodents caught within the trap. An alternative form of counter is an electronic counter which counts the number of rodents caught in the trap based on the number of rodent electrocution events that have occurred.

A gate or other means of entry prevention may be placed across the entrance to the trap when a pre-prescribed number of rodents are caught in the trap to prevent overflow of the reservoir or further entry of rodents.

According to a second aspect of the invention there is provided a method of trapping and killing one or more rodents comprising the steps of: providing a rodent trap substantially as described above, enticing a rodent to enter the first chamber; enticing a rodent onto a pivotable ramp positioned within an opening in a partition wall between the first chamber and the second chamber, allowing the ramp to pivot downwards and urging the rodent to contact the stunning means and to fall into the reservoir of liquid in the second chamber.

Brief Description of the Drawings

Specific embodiments of the invention will now be described by way of example only, in which:

Figure 1 shows a cross section of an embodiment of the rodent trap in accordance with the invention with the ramp in the first position.

Figure 2 shows a cross section of the rodent trap of Figure 1, but with the ramp in the second position.

Detailed Description of the Illustrated Embodiment

Referring to Figures 1 and 2 a rodent trap 1 is shown. The trap 1 substantially comprises two sections, a first chamber 10 and a second chamber 20. The first and second chambers 10, 20 are separated by a partition wall 30. The second chamber 20 comprises a liquid reservoir 22 which may contain water or other suitable liquid, such as ethylene glycol. Both the first and second chambers 10, 20 are covered by a hinged lid 40.

The exterior wall of the first chamber 10 comprises an opening 12 which receives one end of a run 50. The run 50 creates an access pathway to the opening 12 in the first chamber 10. The run 50 may be open but preferably comprises an enclosed tunnel like structure that has gates 52 therein that allow a rodent to pass in one direction but prevent the rodent from exiting the run 50. The gates 52 comprise wire barriers that can pivot about an axis in a first direction but are prevented from rotation in the opposite direction due to their length being longer than the depth of the run 50. At the opposite end of the run 50 there is an opening 54 to enable the rodent to enter the trap 1. In another embodiment, the gates 52 may be doors.

The first chamber 10 comprises a small reservoir of bait within the chamber to attract the rodents into there from the run 50. The bait is positioned on a suspended floor 14 within the first chamber 10.

The remainder of the chambers 10, 20 are concealed within the trap 1 and cannot be accessed by a rodent from the outside. In the portion of the lid 40 that covers the second chamber 20 there is an opening 42 covered with a piece of mesh or clear acrylic or other plastic so as to allow light into the second chamber 20. The light diffuses through the opening 32 in the partition wall 30 to the first chamber 10. A rodent within the first chamber 10 is able to detect that there is light on the other side of the partition wall 30 and in response they are likely to try to enter the second chamber 20 in the belief that there is an exit ahead of them. In alternative arrangements there may not be an opening for light, but the rodent is lured into the chamber exclusively by other means, for example bait. Bait may be positioned in a convenient place which may, for example be adjacent and on the opposite side of the liquid reservoir 22. In this way the smell of the bait will pass through the opening 32 in the partition wall 30 towards the first chamber 10 thereby attracting rodents through.

In the opening 32 in the partition wall 30 there is mounted a pivotable ramp 34. The ramp 34 is made of nylon or other slippery material. The ramp 34 extends partly into the first chamber 10, but the majority of its length is disposed within the second chamber 20. The ramp 34 is covered by a housing 36 to create a sort of run. The ramp 34 is biased towards a position which is at right angles to the partition wall 30. A cover 38 is hingedly attached to the end of the ramp 34 in the first chamber 10. This cover 38 may be weighted in order to maintain the above biasing force. Thus the cover 38 may be lead or similar heavy material. The ramp 34 is made pivotable by two hinge pins 35 which are embedded within the sides of the ramp 34 and extend into the partition wall 30. The hinge pins 35 are mounted within the nylon ramp 34 approximately 4/5 of the way along its length. Figure 1 shows the ramp 34 in the first position just as the rodent has stepped onto the ramp 34. The end of the ramp 34 disposed within the second chamber 20 has four metal prongs 39 protruding from the end of the ramp 34. Two of the prongs 39 carry a live electrical current, and two of them are connected to ground. To achieve this the ends of the prongs 39 embedded within the nylon are further connected using current carrying wires to a wired powered circuit. In the example shown in figures 1 and 2, the prongs are in electrical communication with a battery power source, which is disposed beneath the floor 14 within the first chamber 10. In the example shown the electrical communication is through the hinge pins 35, the left pin 35 carrying live power and the right pin 35 being connected to ground. A powerful battery (not shown) is connected across the two pins 35.

In use a rodent enters the end of the run 50, attracted by the bait (indicated) on the floor 14 of the first chamber 10. The bait may also have rodent faeces within it which also attracts the rodents, as they are thought to believe that other rodents have been there, and therefore it is safe to enter. The rodent passes under the gates 52 in the run 50 and cannot escape out the run 50 through the opening 54 in the opposite direction. The gates 52 at the top of the run 50 are longer than the gates 52 at the bottom of the run 50, so that both small and large rodents can be contained. The rodent then climbs up the run 50 to the opening 12 in the first chamber 10, and then enters the first chamber 10 attracted by the bait (and faeces) on the floor 14 of the first chamber 10. Upon seeing light through the opening 32 in the partition wall 30, the rodent climbs onto the cover 38 and then onto the ramp 34. As the rodent moves further through the opening the ramp 34 pivots from the first position shown in Figure 1 to the second position shown in Figure 2, due to the weight of the rodent. In the second positon the ramp 34 is tilted downwards towards the reservoir 22. As the ramp 34 is slippery to the rodent cannot escape back into the first chamber 10 and the rodent slides down the ramp 34 into the liquid within the reservoir

22. Whilst the ramp 34 is tilted the cover 38 closes the opening 32 underneath the ramp 34 in order to prevent in further rodents within the first chamber 10 from entering the second chamber 20 underneath the ramp 34. Just as the rodent leaves the end of the ramp 34 and before entering the liquid in the reservoir 22 it’s feet contact the prongs 39. The feet of most rodents are bare, which means that there is a good non-insulative electrical contact between the prongs 39 and rodent. An electrical circuit is then formed through the rodent and the rodent is electrocuted efficiently before it enters the liquid in the reservoir 22. This means that the rodent is dead before it enters the liquid rather than struggling within the liquid.

Further rodents can enter the trap 1 in the same manner as described above and can be caught, trapped and killed as described. The trap 1 therefore provides a humane multi-catch rodent trap.

In order to tell how many rodents have been caught without lifting the lid 40, there may be a counter (not shown in this example) on the side of the trap 1, which is indexed forward each time the ramp 34 is tilted. Alternatively there may be a float within the reservoir which extends out of the lid 40 and indicates the level of the liquid within the reservoir 22. As more rodents are caught, the level increases incrementally and is indicated on the float.

Another benefit of the invention is that because the rodents are submerged within liquid and the trap is covered with a lid then flies are not able to lay their eggs on the dead rodents. Therefore maggots do not prevail and there is no risk to user health.

For removal of the caught rodents, the lid 40 is simply lifted and the reservoir containing the rodents removed for proper disposal.

Alternatively the reservoir 22 may be removed through a hinged access door 24 in the second chamber 20.

The liquid reservoir 22 may contain any suitable liquid. Liquids which are particularly suitable and beneficial to use are water or glycol solutions both of which, in addition to being highly effective for drowning the rodents are known to attract rodents. In this manner the liquid reservoir 22 also acts as a bait to attract the rodents to the trap 1. Glycol solutions also act as a tissue preservative thereby making the trap 1 safer for people to use. Other fluids, for example anaesthetics or toxic liquids may also be used to accelerate the drowning process or anti-bacterial or other sterilising type liquids could also be used to minimise bacteria within the liquid of the trap 1.

Claims

1. A rodent trap (1) for catching, killing and storing one or more rodents comprising a first chamber (10) to receive one or more rodents, a second chamber (20) comprising a liquid reservoir (22) to store one or more rodents, the first chamber (10) and the second chamber (20) being separated by a partition wall (30), the partition wall (30) comprising an opening (32) which receives there through a pivotable ramp (34), the ramp (34) being movable from a first position wherein the ramp (34) is accessible by one or more rodents from the first chamber (10) to a second position wherein the ramp (34) is pivoted downwards from the first position and the one or more rodents thereon are urged into contact with a stunning means (39) on the ramp (34) for electrocuting the rodent and urged to fall into the reservoir (22).

2. A rodent trap (1) according to claim 1, wherein the ramp (34) comprises a cover (38) member which hangs downwards from the ramp (34) when the ramp (34) is in the first position and when the ramp (34) is in the second position the cover (38) member closes the opening in the partition wall (30).

3. A rodent trap (1) according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the liquid within the liquid reservoir (22) comprises ethylene glycol.

4. A rodent trap (1) according to any preceding claim, wherein a lid (40) covers the first and second chambers (10, 20) to prevent escape of the captured rodents.

5. A rodent trap (1) according to claim 4, wherein there are one or more windows (42) in the lid (40) above the second chamber (20) to allow daylight into the second chamber (20).

6. A rodent trap (1) according to any preceding claim, further comprising a run (50) having an entrance, the run (50) leading up to the first chamber (10).

7. A rodent trap (1) according to claim 6, wherein the run (50) comprises one or more non-return gates (52) therein to prevent rodents from exiting the run (50) via the entrance.

8. A rodent trap (1) according to any preceding claim, wherein one or more windows are provided at the end and/or sides of the second chamber (20) to allow daylight into the second chamber (20).

9. A rodent trap (1) according to claim 1, wherein the stunning means comprises one or more of a live and a ground electrical contact on the ramp (34) so that when the rodent touches across any of the live and ground contacts, electrical current flows through the rodent and it is electrocuted.

10. A rodent trap (1) according to any preceding claim, further comprising a counter to indicate the number of rodents caught in the trap (1), the counter comprising an indexing means which indicates the number of rodents caught and which is indexed by mechanical or electronic means by the number of times the ramp (34) is tilted from the first position, each index representing one rodent caught in the trap 1.

11. A method of trapping and killing one or more rodents comprising the steps of: providing a rodent trap (1) according to any of claims 1 to 10, enticing a rodent to enter a first chamber (10); enticing a rodent onto a pivotable ramp (34) positioned within an opening in a partition wall (30) between the first chamber (10) and the second chamber (20), allowing the ramp (34) to pivot downwards and urging the rodent to contact the stunning means and to fall into the reservoir of liquid in the second chamber (20).