FARROWING CRATE WITH A LOW PROFILE FEEDER

CAGE DE MISE-BAS A DISTRIBUTEUR D'ALIMENTS SURBAISSE

English Abstract

A farrowing crate is defined by a cage having a main central flooring section fro the sow and two side sections for the piglets. A feeder is located at the front wall for supplying feed to the sow when standing and includes a hopper mounted on a front gate outside the crate for and a trough for receiving feed discharged from the hopper. The trough is formed by a base plate lying substantially flat on the flooring from the hopper rearwardly to a raised transverse restricting member to restrict the escape of feed formed by an inverted V-shaped rib formed in the base plate spaced from the front wall and extending generally across the base plate to define a trough area of a height which allows the sow to lie with its neck and head over the restricting member without discomfort. The gate panel includes guards each side of the opening to restrict side to side movement of the sow's head. The trough is restricted by sides at the sides of the sow flooring.

French Abstract

Case de parturition formée par une cage dotée d'une section centrale principale de revêtement de sol pour la truie et de deux sections latérales pour les porcelets. Un dispositif d'alimentation se trouve au niveau de la paroi avant et sert à la distribution d'aliments à la truie lorsque celle-ci est debout. Le dispositif d'alimentation comprend également une trémie montée sur une porte avant à l'extérieur de la case ainsi qu'une auge pour recevoir des aliments déchargés de la trémie. L'auge est formée par un plateau de base reposant principalement à plat sur le sol, partant de la trémie et se prolongeant vers l'arrière en direction d'un élément de restriction transversal surélevé servant à limiter l'écoulement des aliments. L'élément de restriction est doté d'une nervure en forme de V inversé placée dans le plateau de base, espacée de la paroi avant et s'étendant généralement à travers le plateau de base afin de définir une zone d'auge d'une hauteur permettant à la truie d'être couchée alors que son cou et sa tête reposent sur l'élément de restriction tout en permettant à la truie d'être confortable. Le panneau d'ouverture comprend des dispositifs de protection de chaque côté de l'ouverture afin de limiter le mouvement latéral de la tête de la truie. L'auge est restreinte par des parois sur les côtés du revêtement de sol dans la section pour la truie.

Claims

14
CLAIMS:
1. A feeder comprising;
a hopper for containing feed for supply to the sow,
a trough for receiving feed discharged from the hopper for taking by
the sow while standing;
the trough comprising a base plate arranged to lie substantially flat on
the flooring and extend from the front wall rearwardly over the flooring;
the base plate forming the trough having a raised transverse restricting
member spaced from the front wall and extending generally across the base
plate to
define a trough area of the base plate forwardly of the transverse restricting
member;
the transverse restricting member being shaped so as to have a height
which tends to restrain feed from escaping from the trough area rearwardly;
and the transverse restricting member being shaped so as to allow the
sow to lie on the flooring with its head extending over the transverse
restricting
member into the trough area without causing discomfort to the lying sow.
2. The feeder according to Claim 1 wherein the base plate is flat.
3. The feeder according to Claim 1 or 2 wherein the hopper and
the discharge opening are arranged relative to the base plate so that an angle
of
repose of the feed material acts to restrict flow of feed from the hopper onto
the base
plate and to replace fresh feed only when feed is taken away.

15
4. The feeder according to any one of Claims 1 to 3 wherein the
base plate includes a portion extending rearwards from the transverse
restricting
member for receiving any feed escaping over the transverse restricting member.
5. The feeder according to any one of Claims 1 to 4 wherein the
raised transverse restriction member includes a front surface, a rear surface
and a
smoothly curved top edge.
6. The feeder according to Claim 5 wherein the front surface and
the rear surface are inclined to form an inverted V-shape in cross-section.
7. The feeder according to any one of Claims 1 to 6 wherein the
raised transverse restricting member has a height no greater than 2.0 inches
from
the base plate.
8. A farrowing crate comprising;
a cage defined by a front wall, a rear wall and two side walls shaped
and arranged to contain a farrowing sow and its piglets;
a flooring on which the sow can lie within the cage and can stand at
will for taking feed and water;
and a feeder according to any one of Claims 1 to 7 arranged at the
front wall for supplying feed to the sow when standing.
9. The farrowing crate according Claim 8 wherein the flooring
includes a sow section for receiving the sow when lying or standing and at
least one
side portion for receiving the piglets and wherein the trough includes
upstanding side
walls at or adjacent the sides of the sow section to restrict feed from
escaping over
the sides of the trough.

16
10. The farrowing crate according to Claim 9 wherein the transverse
restricting member extends fully across the trough from one side to the other
side.
11. The farrowing crate according to any one of Claims 8 to 10
wherein the hopper includes a discharge opening for discharging the feed into
the
trough at the front wall.
12. The farrowing crate according to Claim 11 wherein there are
provided side restriction members on each side of the discharge opening at the
front
wall to restrict side to side movement of the head of the sow during feeding.
13. The farrowing crate according Claim 11 or 12 wherein the
hopper is located outside the front wall and the discharge opening extends
through
the front wall.
14. The farrowing crate according to any one of Claims 8 to 13
wherein the front wall includes a gate on which the hopper is mounted and
wherein
the trough is fixed to the flooring such that the opening of the gate moves
the hopper
away from a front edge of the trough.

Description

CA 02461965 2006-09-13
FARROWING CRATE WITH A LOW PROFILE FEEDER
This invention relates to a farnawing crate with a feeder for the sow
which allows the sow to lie in the crate and at least partly into the feeder
for lying
comfort, and to a feeder for mounting in a farrowing crate.
BACKGROUND OF THE 1NVENTION
In the business of raising hogs, one of the operations involves the
placement of the sow in a farrowing crate for berthing and raising the piglets
during
their initial phase of life until they can be weaned and moved away from the
sow to
continue the cycle.
Farrowing crates therefore have been designed and built for many
years to contain the sow in a central elongate area of the farrowing crate and
to
contain the piglets in two side areas where they can move at will and access
the sow
when lying for feeding,
The sow also must be able to stand and feed while in the farrowing
crate so the feeder is generally placed at the forward end of the farrowing
crate to
allow the sow to take feed at will to maintain body weight for subsequent
procedures.
Such farrowing crates are manufactured at minimum dimensions so as
to maximize the number of sows contained in a particular area. There is
pressure
therefore to maintain the length of the crate as short as possible in new
crates
manufactured at this time and in addition there are existing crates which have
been
manufactured previously at a predetermined size.

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2
In the meantime, improved breeding of the animals has led to an
increase in size so that they sows tend to be bigger and longer than previous
times
when the dimensions of the crate were developed.
It is common for the sows in a gestation stall to be fed simply by a drop
tube which deposits a measured quantity of feed onto the floor of the stall.
An
example of an arrangement of the type is shown in as fully described and
claimed in
United States Patent 6,748,901 issued June 15th 2004 entitled "PEN AND
ATTACHED FEEDING APPARATUS FOR AN ANIMAL", and in corresponding
Canadian application filed March 12, 2004, Serial No: 2,460,880. The deposit
of
feed onto the floor in this manner is possible using a drop tube which drops
substantially all of the feed simultaneously onto the floor in a measured
quantity.
However this system tends for feed to be wasted and requires control of the
measurement of the quantities.
An alternative arrangement utilises a feeder of the type comprising a
hopper which drops feed into a trough with the amount of feed in the trough
being
controlled by the repose angle of the feed so only a certain quantity of the
feed from
the hopper discharges into trough at any one time until further feed is
removed
allowing the repose angle to change and further feed to fall. Commonly feeders
of
this type are mounted on the front gate where the hopper is carried on the
front gate
and the trough is formed as a bowl with a peripheral lip and a bottom wall
extending
downwardly from the peripheral lip to catch the feed. The trough is carried on
the
front gate at a height above the floor and projects into the crate by a
distance of the

CA 02461965 2006-09-13
3
order of 12 inches so as to provide a trough of a sufficient size that the
animal can
reach into the trough for taking feed from the base of the trough. As the
hopper and
the trough are on the inside of the gate, this arrangement takes up space
within the
crate and locates the lip of the trough approximately one foot from the gate
within
the crate so that it crowds the animal rearwardly and reduces the space
available for
the animal to lie. The trough therefore can be a discomfort to the animal,
particularly
where the animal is relatively large and of course such discomfort is to be
avoided.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is one object of the invention to provide a farrowing crate and a
feeder therefor which allows increased lying area for the sow.
According to one aspect of the invention there is provided a feeder
comprising;
a hopper for containing feed for supply to the sow,
a trough for receiving feed discharged from the hopper for taking by
the sow while standing;
the trough comprising a base plate arranged to lie substantially flat on
the flooring and extend from the front wall rearwardly over the flooring;
the base plate forming the trough having a raised transverse restricting
member spaoed from the front wall and extending generally across the base
plate to
define a trough area of the base plate forwardly of the transverse restricting
member;

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4
the transverse restricting member being shaped so as to have a height
which tends to restrain feed from escaping from the trough area rearwardly;
and the transverse restricting member being shaped so as to allow the
sow to lie on the flooring with its head extending over the transverse
restricting
member into the trough area without causing discomfort to the lying sow.
Preferably the feeder is used as part of a farrowing crate comprising;
a cage defined by a front wall, a rear wall and two side wails shaped
and arranged to contain a farrowing sow and its piglets;
a flooring on which the sow can lie within the cage and can stand at
will for taking feed and water;
and the feeder at the front wall for supplying feed to the sow when
standing.
Preferably the base plate is flat.
Preferably the base plate lies directly on the flooring.
Preferably the hopper and the discharge opening are arranged relative
to the base plate so that an angle of repose of the feed material acts to
restriict flow
of feed from the hopper onto the base plate and to replace fresh feed only
when
feed is taken away.
Preferably the base plate includes a portion extending rearwards from
the transverse restricting member for receiving any feed escaping over the
transverse restricting member.

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~J
Preferably the flooring includes a sow section for receiving the sow
when lying or standing and at least one side portion for receiving the piglets
and
wherein the trough includes upstanding side walls at or adjacent the sides of
the sow
section to restrict feed from escaping over the sides of the trough.
Preferably the transverse restricting member extends fully across the
trough from one side to the other side.
Preferably the hopper includes a discharge opening for discharging the
feed into the trough at the front wall.
Preferably there are provided side restriction members on each side of
the discharge opening at the front wall to restrict side to side movement of
the head
of the sow during feeding.
Preferably the hopper is located outside the front wall and the
discharge opening extends through the front wall.
Preferably the front wall includes a gate and wherein the hopper is
mounted on the gate.
Preferably the trough is fixed to the flooring such that the opening of
the gate moves the hopper away from a front edge of the trough.
Preferably the raised transverse restriction member includes a front
surface, a rear surface and a smoothly curved top edge.
Preferably the front surface and the rear surface are inclined to form an
inverted V-shape in cross-section, although the V-shape may not be equally
inclined
on both sides of the apex. .

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6
Preferably the raised transverse restricting member has a height no
greater than 2.0 inches from the base plate and more preferably about 1.0
inches.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
One embodiment of the invention wil) now be described in conjunction
with the accompanying drawings in which:
Figure 1 is an isometric view of the forward end of a farrowing crate
showing a feeder according to the present invention located at the front of
the crate
with the hopper mounted onto the front gate of the crate.
Figure 2 is a similar isometric view with the adjacent side of the crate
removed for convenience of illustration and showing the front gate in a partly
opened
condition.
Figure 3 is a longitudinal cross sectional view of the farrowing crate of
Figure 1.
Figure 4 is a longitudinal cross sectional view similar to that of Figure 3
showing the gate in the opened position.
Figure 5 is an isometric view of the crate from the front showing the
gate in a opened condition.
Figure 6 is a top plan view of the crate again with the gate in the
opened condition.
In the drawings like characters of reference indicate corresponding
parts in the different figures.

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7
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
In the figures is shown a farrowing crate generally indicated at 10
which is arranged alongside similar farrowing crates each of which contains a
sow
and its piglets in the farrowing process. The farrowing crate 10 is mounted
over a pit
11 formed by concrete walls 12 and a concrete floor 13 defining an alleyway 14
at
the front of the crate 10.
Over the pit 11 is mounted a frame 15 which supports a flooring 16 on
which the sow can lie and stand at will. The flooring 16 is generally a grate
type
structure providing slots and openings to allow waste to fall through the
flooring into
the pit for collection. At the front of the grate type flooring 16 is provided
a floor
panel 17 which extends across the frame 15 at the front of the crate. Along
the
sides of the flooring grate 16 is provided a separate flooring system for the
piglets
which is not shown but is of a conventional nature. The piglet flooring may
also be
perforated with openings and/or slots and may be heated as is well known to
one
skilled in the art.
The crate defines. a cage having side walls 18 and 19 which are carried
on the frame so as to be parallel and along the sides of the flooring grate 16
to
confine the sow to the area over the flooring grate. The shape and arrangement
of
the sides is again of a conventional nature and many different designs can be
provided to restrict the sow from entering into the area defined for the
piglets so as
to prevent the piglets from being crushed when the sow lies. Details of the
construction of the sides therefore will not be described herein except to say
that the

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8
sides are formed by bars defining the cage which confines the sow. A roof
structure
20 bridges the two sides and holds the sides parallel and vertical again to
confine
the animal within the cage. A front gate 21 closes the opening at the front of
the
crate between the side walls and comprises a frame 22 defined by vertical bars
and
horizontal cross bars together with a covering sheet 23 on the front side of
the frame
so as to be presented to the sow as a closure panel covering the front opening
of the
crate and spanning the side walls 18 and 19. The gate panel 21 is pivotally
mounted
on hinge pins 24 mounted on lugs 25 carried on one of the side frames 18 and
19.
A suitable closure member (not shown) locks the gate in the closed position
against
the other of the side panels to hold the gate in the closed position during
normal
operation. The opening of the gate is primarily to allow the release of the
animal
when required or to allow access to the front of the animal should this be
necessary
for any particular reason.
A feeder is provided at the front of the farrowing crate for feeding the
sow on demand while avoiding interference with the sow lying along
substantially the
full length of the crate. The feeder 30 comprises a hopper 31 mounted on the
panel
23 and a trough 32 mounted on the flooring within the crate. A water nipple 33
can
be actuated by the animal to discharge water into the trough from a water
supply 34.
The hopper 31 comprises a front wall 35 which lies generally parallel to
the pane123 and particularly a portion 36 thereof so as to define a hopper
container
37 between the panels 35 and 36 into which feed can be received. Thus the
panel
35 and the hopper 37 are located outside of the sheet 36 so that they do not

CA 02461965 2006-09-13
~
penetrate into the interior of the crate. The hopper further includes two side
wal[s 38
and 39 which converge downwardly and inwardly so that the bottom 40 of the
hopper is much smaller than a top open mouth 41 of the hopper. Thus the panel
35
tapers towards the bottom 40 and also the side walls 38 and 39 taper towards
the
bottom 40. At the bottom 40 of the hopper is provided an opening or
rectangular
hole 43 through the panel 36 so as to allow the feed within the hopper to flow
through the opening 43 into the crate at a position adjacent the flooring. The
dimensions of the hole can be adjusted by moving vertically a plate 44 on a
slide 45
which is adjustable on the outside surface of the panel 36 within the hopper
by a top
adjustment system operable by the user outside the crate. The plate 44 can
also be
moved to a fully closed position abutting the bottom 40 of the hopper so as to
close
off the opening 43 and prevent further escape of feed material when the gate
is
opened to prevent the feed from being discharged and wasted.
Thus the opening 43 defines a slot across a relatively small part of the
width of the panel 23 and at the centre of the panel. A guard arrangement 47
is
mounted on the panel 23 around the slot 43 so as to restrict movement of the
snout
of the sow when at the slot 43. Thus the guard comprises a horizontal bar 48
and
two vertical bars 49 and 50. The horizontal bar 48 is located above the slot
43 and
the vertical bars 49 and 50 on each side of the slot. The bars are mounted at
a
position spaced away from the panel 23 by mounting arms 51 which interconnect
the
ends of the horizontal bar 48 to the panel at the top of the guard and connect
the
bottom of the vertical bars to the panel at the boitom of the guard. This
structure

CA 02461965 2006-09-13
therefore forms a rectangle generally surrounding the slot 43 and spaced away
from
the slot by a distance of the order of two inches so that the snout of the sow
when
rooting and the slot cannot move freely side to side which could cause the
feed at
the slot to be spread widely and thus potentially wasted.
5 The trough 32 comprises a base plate 50 which is laid over the flooring
so as to cover the edge strip 17 and part of the floor grating 16. The base
plate is
flat on the floor and is fastened to the flooring by bolts 52 passing through
holes 53
in the base plate at some suitable location conveniently engaging into the
openings
in the floor grating 16. The base plate thus lies flat over the flooring and
has a
10 raised lip 54 at the front edge standing upwardly across the full width of
the base
plate as a restraining lip to prevent feed material from falling off the base
plate
forwardly when the gate panel is opened. The inside surface of the front panel
23
buts against the outside surface of the lip or flange 54 when the gate is in
the closed
position so as to provide a seal to prevent the free escape of the feed at the
front of
the base plate. The seal is of course not necessarily watertight but is merely
sufficient to prevent the escape of feed during normal feeing activities.
At the sides of the trough is provided a pair of upstanding side walls 56
and 57 which define sides for the trough and are attached to the base plate 50
so as
to stand upwardly therefrom to prevent feed from escaping over the sides. The
sides are generally triangular so they are higher at the panel 23 but reduce
in height
rearwardly towards the rear edge of the base plate as indicated at 58 on the
flooring
16. Thus the side walls act to confine the material in the area adjacent the
gate but

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11
are reduced in height as they extend into the farrowing crates so as to
prevent their
interfering with the animal or providing uncomfortable raised side edges which
can
injure or hurt the animal.
The water supply 33 provides a pipe which extends through one of the
side walls and is mounted thereto thus holding the nipple 33 in fixed position
adjacent the base plate 50 but operable by the animal to run water into the
trough on
the base plate.
A raised transverse restricting member 60 is provided on the base
plate at a position spaced from the flange 54 and forming a rear edge of the
trough.
The transverse restricting member is generally V-shaped in cross section so as
to
provide a rear side wall 61 facing towards the animal and away from the gate
and a
front side wall 62 which faces away from the animal and towards the front
gate.
The side walls converge to an upper apex 63 which is preferably
smoothly curved so as to avoid presenting a sharp edge. The side walls define
an
angle of the order of 90 degrees or a relatively wide angle so that the upper
apex is
not sharp but is sufficiently angled to avoid cutting into the neck of the
animal in the
event that the animal lies on the flooring with its head in the trough and its
neck
extending over the transverse restricting member. The rear wall 81 is at a
shallower
angle than the front wall 62 again so as to provide a shallow wall adjacent
the animal
and a sharper wall 62 facing the trough. The transverse restricting member
thus
forms a rib across the full width of the trough between the side walls which
acts to
restrain feed material to the trough area between the front wall 62 and the
flange 54.

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12
The height of the apex is preferable of the order of one inch from the base
plate and
preferably no greater than two inches from the base plate so as to avoid
causing a
painful or injurious projection into the neck of the animal when lying over
the
restricting member.
The transverse restricting member is located spaced from the rear
edge 58 of the base plate so as to provide a relatively short piece of the
base plate
beyond the transverse restricting member onto which feed can fall should any
feed
escape over the transverse restricting member.
It is not intended that the transverse restricting member prevent
necessarily all feed from escaping from the trough but instead is a
restriction to
maintain as much as possible of the feed within the trough area so that little
is
wasted. At the same time the transverse restricting member is shaped and
arranged
so that the animal can lie on its side with its neck or head extending over
the
transverse restricting rib so that part of its neck is on the flooring and
part of its neck
or head is within the trough area, without the transverse restricting member
providing any discomfort or injurious effect to the animal. Thus the animal
can lie
with its snout right up against the end sheet 23 providing the maximum amount
of
area within the crate for the animal to lie comfortably on its side,
Since various modifications can be made in my invention as herein
above described, and many apparently widely different embodiments of same made
within the spirit and scope of the claims without department from such spirit
and
scope, it is intended that all matter contained in the accompanying
specification shall

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13
be interpreted as illustrative only and not in a limitiny sense.

Representative Drawing