IES87230Y1 - Animal footbath - Google Patents

Abstract

A foot bath 10 for animals comprises a containment area 12 for foot disinfectant or treatment material and an enticement means 11 to encourage animals to step into and stand within the containment area. The containment area 12 comprises a base and an upright lip or lips (13) about the edges of the base. The foot disinfectant or treatment material is generally contained within the confines of the upright lip or lips (13). The foot bath is left on its own in the field with no gates in order to herd or direct the animals through it. <Figures 1A and 1B>

Description

ANIMAL FOOTBATH Obiect of the Invention This invention relates to footbaths for cleaning and disinfecting animal feet and hooves of animals such as sheep and cattle.

Background to the Invention Foot infections, abscesses or sole ulcers in sheep and cattle are the major reasons for their lameness which in turn causes losses to their breeders and farmers, let alone animal suffering. A lame animal may even lose weight if it spends most of its time lying down rather than grazing or going to feed or water.

Moisture is one driving factor which softens the skin and feet of the animal, and these tissues are more readily nicked or scraped, thus paving way for opportunistic pathogens that cause foot rot or infections. One such commonly found pathogenic bacteria is Fusobacterium necrophorum. These bacteria are almost always present in the environment. Signs of foot rot include swelling at the heel or between the claws, and the swelling sometimes breaks open and drains.

Foot bathing helps in managing such pathogenic infections and scalds by contacting a disinfectant solution or an antibiotic solution with the feet/hooves of the animal during the process. Prevention of infectious lameness is far better, cheaper, and more successful than treatment afterwards and foot bathing is recommended for the control and prevention of hoof infections. During outbreaks, foot bathing is necessary to prevent animals from becoming chronically infected. But footbaths should always be used routinely as a measure to control hoof infections and not to cure them, just as teat dips are used daily to control mastitis. Footbaths are not a substitute for good hygiene management, but they do assist in the control of the environmental factors that make hoof management so complex.

The most widely used formulations for foot bathing include formalin solution (5-10 percent), zinc or copper sulphate and quaternary ammonium compounds, or other commercial multi-compound products, in various strengths. Veterinarians sometimes also prescribe antibiotics for use in footbaths. Formalin is now banned in many countries as it is known to have carcinogenic properties and is very unpleasant to handle, thus use of this product is now being avoided. Heavy metals like copper and zinc salts are also rapidly becoming more tightly controlled due to potential damage both to animals and the environment, as these substances build up and are completely non-biodegradable. To prevent hoof diseases effectively, while limiting the effect on the environment, biodegradable hoof care solutions are generally recommended and used currently.

In common practice, it is seen that, cattle for the purpose of foot bathing are compelled to walk through the footbaths placed either at the exit of the parlours or between the feeding and resting areas in the set-up farms separated by one-way gates. Often, the cattle are observed to be reluctant in passing through these narrow spaces or they pass through quickly without the bathing solution getting enough contact time with the cattle feet or hooves.

Similarly, sheep are also seen as to being reluctant to pass through foot baths following shearing or scanning as they are already agitated. Also, it is not advisable to gather sheep in large numbers in a confined space for foot bathing as it increases the risk of infections.

Keeping in consideration the above stated shortcomings of the routine foot bathing practices, the object of the invention is to alleviate the above disadvantages.

Summary of the Invention The present invention provides a foot bath for animals comprising a containment area for foot disinfectant or treatment material and an enticement means to encourage animals to step into and stand within the containment area, the containment area comprising a base and an upright lip or lips about the edges of the base, whereby the foot disinfectant or treatment material is generally contained within the confines of the upright containment area by the lip or lips.

The present invention provides a free standing foot bath system for cleaning and treating infections or rotting on the feet and hooves of animals such as cattle and sheep, by letting the same come in contact with foot bathing disinfectant solutions or treatment material.

The foot bath according to the invention is left solely on its own in a field or shed with no gates in order to herd or direct the animals through it.

Preferably, the foot bath is unmanned, without any human intervention or human contact needed for the animals to use them.

In one aspect of the invention, a mineral lick bucket is kept within the foot bath in order to entice the animals towards it.

Preferably, the foot bathing solution or treatment material in the containment area is a blend of lime, particularly white rhino lime which acts as foot rot disinfectant.

In a preferred embodiment, a mineral lick bucket can be placed along one side of the foot bath close to a fence so that larger cattle feet can benefit from using it. In another preferred embodiment, foot bath can be placed in front of water troughs in fenced fields so that when cattle or sheep approach to drink water, their feet and hooves are benefitted by coming in contact with the solution or treatment material in the containment area of the foot bath.

In another aspect of the invention, a scratching post is provided on the foot bath so as to entice animals to approach for scratching their bodies where in turn their feet or hooves are benefited by coming in contact with disinfectant solution or treatment material kept in the foot bath in very close proximity to the scratching post.

The foot bath according to the invention may be made from sheet steel that is folded and welded to suit the requirements. The foot bath systems can also be prepared using purpose-built moulds from plastic material.

The scope of the present invention is not limited to just the preferred embodiments but includes all the plausible variants notably those concerning the materials used for the construction of the foot bath systems and the solutions used for disinfecting or treatment purposes.

Detailed Description The invention will hereafter be more particularly described with reference to the accompanying drawings, which show by way of example only, six embodiments of foot baths according to the invention. In the drawings: Figure 1A is a plan view of a square foot bath with a bucket holder unit placed in the middle of it and Figure 1B is a side view of the foot bath; Figure 2A is a plan view of a circular shaped foot bath and Figure 2B is a side view of the foot bath; Figure 3A is a plan view of a foot bath that can surround a water trough with an attached scratching unit and Figure 3B is a side view of the foot bath; Figure 4A is a plan view of a square shaped foot bath with a scratching unit in the foot bath and Figure 4B is a side view of the foot bath; Figure 5A is a plan view of an arcuate foot bath that can be placed around a round hay/silage feeder and Figure 5B is a side view of the foot bath; and Figure 6 is a perspective view of a transportable square shaped foot bath with scratching unit and bucket holder unit.

Figures 1 to 6 show six different embodiments of foot baths in accordance with the invention.

In first embodiment of the invention, the foot bath 10 is square shaped and comprises a holder 11 for a mineral bucket placed in the middle of the foot bath. The foot bath contains a disinfectant or treatment material, preferably in powdered form in the containment area 12 which is defined by raised lips 13 at the edges of the foot bath .

In second embodiment of the invention, the foot bath 20 is circular in shape and comprises a holder 21 for mineral bucket placed in the middle of the foot bath. The foot bath contains a disinfectant or treatment material, preferably in powdered form in the containment area 22 which is defined by a raised lip 23 at the circumference of the foot bath 20.

In third embodiment of the invention, the foot bath 30 includes a containment area 32 for treatment material which is defined by a series of raised lips 33 at the edges of the foot bath 30. A space 35 can be located around a water trough or bowl when placed in a field and the middle of the foot bath contains an upright scratching unit 34.

In fourth embodiment of the invention, the foot bath 40 is square shaped and comprises a scratching unit 44 placed in the middle of the foot bath. It also includes a containment area 42 defined by lips 43.

In fifth embodiment of the invention, the foot bath 50 is arcuate shaped and constructed to surround a round hay/silage feeder when the feeder is kept in the middle and various units of foot bath 50 can align in a circular fashion around the feeder. It includes a containment area 52 defined by lips 53.

In sixth embodiment of the invention, the foot bath 60 is a square shaped transportable unit comprising a holder 61 for mineral bucket in the middle of the foot bath and a scratching unit 64. The frame of the scratching unit 64 has three attachment brackets (65a, 65b and 65c) by which the foot bath can be attached to a tractor or a teleporter for transporting or transferring from one location to another. It includes a containment area 62 defined by lips 63.

It is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the specific details described herein, which are given by way of examples only and various modifications and alterations are possible without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Claims (5)

CLAIMS:

1. An animal foot bath comprising a containment area for foot disinfectant or treatment material and an enticement means to encourage animals to step into and stand within the containment area wherein containment area has a base and an upright lip or lips about the edges of the foot bath; and the enticement means is a means located either within the containment area or in close vicinity of the containment area.

2. An animal foot bath as claimed in claim 1, wherein the enticement means comprises a holder for a mineral container or a water trough or a scratching means.

3. An animal foot bath as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein the enticement means is located either in the middle or towards the edge of the containment area.

4. An animal foot bath as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein the scratching means further comprises attachment brackets for attachment to a teleporter or tractor.

5. An animal foot bath as claimed in any one of the preceding claims in which its shape is selected from the group comprising the following shapes: square, rectangular, circular and arcuate.