Patent Application
20210154100
The present invention relates to pet treats and medications. More particularly, the present invention provides for a pet-safe ingestible material which includes a pocket. The present invention can be offered by itself as a healthy treat to a pet, or a pill can be inserted into the pocket and the material hand molded to encapsulate the pill within the pocket. The pet-safe ingestible material can block or mask odors from the pill such that a pet in unable to detect the presence of the pill within the pocket.
Many people have pets who require medication for maintenance or improvement of their health or well-being. However, such medications are often challenging to feed to these pets. Some pets refuse direct ingestion of medications. In such circumstances, it may be difficult or impossible to administer the medications. Some pets are able to detect medications by smell even when hidden within food and may eat around the medication.
Devices have been disclosed in the known art that relate to pet treats and medications. These include devices that have been patented and disclosed in patent application publications. However, the devices in the known art have several drawbacks. Some devices include an opening in which a pill can be placed. However, these devices may not secure the pill and the pill can fall out. Other devices may not prevent the pet from detecting the presence of the pill, either by sight or smell. Other devices may be ingestible but contain chemicals and ingredients that are harsh on the pet's digestive system and do not provide much nutritional value.
The present invention substantially diverges in design elements from the known art and consequently it is clear that there is a need in the art for an improvement to existing pet treat and medication devices. In this regard the present invention substantially fulfills these needs.
In view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the known types of pet treat and medication devices now present in the art, the present invention provides a pet-safe ingestible material which includes a pocket. The present invention can be offered by itself as a healthy treat to a pet, or a pill can be inserted into the pocket and the material hand molded to encapsulate the pill within the pocket. The pet-safe ingestible material can block or mask odors from the pill such that a pet in unable to detect the presence of the pill within the pocket. The present pet treat pocket comprises a flexible member including a pocket disposed on a top surface of the flexible member. The pocket defines an interior volume and the interior volume is sized to encapsulate a pill. An exterior length of the pocket is less than a length of the flexible member, and an exterior width of the pocket is less than a width of the flexible member such that the flexible member extends beyond the exterior dimensions of the pocket forming a lip surrounding a circumference of the pocket. The flexible member and the pocket are both composed of an ingestible and pet-safe material. The ingestible and pet-safe material can adhere to itself such that the flexible material can be molded to completely envelope the pocket and maintain a sealed configuration.
Other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
Although the characteristic features of this invention will be particularly pointed out in the claims, the invention itself and manner in which it may be made and used may be better understood after a review of the following description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings wherein like numeral annotations are provided throughout.
Reference is made herein to the attached drawings. Like reference numerals are used throughout the drawings to depict like or similar elements of the pet treat pocket. For the purposes of presenting a brief and clear description of the present invention, a preferred embodiment will be discussed as used for the pet treat pocket. The figures are intended for representative purposes only and should not be considered to be limiting in any respect.
Referring now to
The pocket 120 defines an interior volume 130. The interior volume 130 is sized to encapsulate at least one pill 140. As one object of the present invention is to hide and mask the appearance and odors from the pill 140, one of ordinary skill in the art will understand the interior volume 130 dimensions can vary from one embodiment to another based on the size of the pill 140. In the shown embodiment, the pocket 120 is connected to the flexible member 110 on three of four sides. The fourth, open side, enables a user to slide the pill 140 into the pocket 120. In the shown embodiment, the entirety of the fourth side is open, however, in other embodiments, only a portion of the fourth side is open with the rest of the fourth side connected to the flexible member 110. In the shown embodiment, the pocket 120 comprises an arcuate shape in order to facilitate easier insertion of the pill 140 into the pocket 120.
An exterior pocket length 128 is less than a flexible member length 118, and an exterior pocket width 129 is less than a flexible member width 119 such that the flexible member 110 extends beyond the exterior dimensions of the pocket 120, thereby forming a lip 150. In the shown embodiment, the lip 150 surrounds a circumference of the pocket 120. In the preferred embodiment, the lip 150 is sized to completely enrobe an entirety of the pocket 120 when the flexible member 110 is molded over the pocket 120 (as shown in
The flexible member 110 and the pocket 120 are both composed of an ingestible and pet-safe material. In the preferred embodiment, the ingestible and pet-safe material is organic and is palatably flavored in order to minimize inorganic compounds ingested and to promote a pet to eat the pet treat pocket by the nature of its flavor. In some embodiments, the ingestible and pet-safe material is a thin gelatin-based material. An object of the present invention is to enrobe a pill 140 in the pet treat pocket 100 and the thin gelatin-based material enables the invention to be easily folded and molded. In the preferred embodiment, the ingestible and pet-safe material is malleable by hand thereby enabling a user to manipulate and mold the material without any additional tools.
In a preferred formulation, the ingestible and pet-safe material comprises montmorillonite clay and a binding material, such as gelatin. The montmorillonite clay provides significant health benefits to the pet in that it offers 67 different minerals including: calcium, iron, magnesium, potassium, and the like. The montmorillonite clay also has a detoxifying agent which eliminates toxins from the body. It has proven to aid skin and ear allergies, digestive disturbances, thyroid, adrenal and pancreatic disorders, seizures, kidney disease and liver issues. It also relieves arthritic pain, skin infections, allergic reactions, vomit, and diarrhea. The clay can also draw out toxins, allergens, parasites, and bacteria while detoxifying the intestinal tract of the pet. Relatedly, calcium bentonite has been used in similar clays as an anti-caking agent which is added to the formulation to absorb excess moisture and aids in preventing foods from clumping. The present invention does not utilize such anti-caking agents, and thus in the preferred embodiments, the ingestible and pet-safe material does not compromise calcium bentonite.
The ingestible and pet-safe material is configured to adhere to itself. As mentioned previously, an object of the present invention is to enrobe and encapsulate a pill 140 within the invention. As the ingestible and pet-safe material can adhere to itself, upon the material being folded and molded into a desired geometry, the geometry is maintained as a function of this self-adherence. Of particular note is the fact that by virtue of the pocket 120 being disposed on the top surface 115 of the flexible member 110, in various embodiments, the present device provides a double enrobing of the pill 140; the first from the pocket 120 itself, and the second from wrapping the lip 150 and the remaining portions of the flexible member 110 around the pill 140.
Another object of the present invention is to hide, mask, block, or otherwise prevent the pet from detecting the presence of the pill 140 with the pet treat pocket 100. Some pets have difficulty taking pills, typically by virtue of the smell and taste of the pill 140. Thus, one object of the present invention is to eliminate the odor such that the pet will ingest the pet treat pocket without problem. In one embodiment, upon the pill 140 being encapsulated by the pocket 120, the ingestible and pet-safe material blocks odors emanating from the pill 140 from escaping the pocket 120. In this manner, a pet will have a harder time detecting the presence of the pill 140. In another embodiment, upon the pill 140 being encapsulated by the pocket 120, the ingestible and pet-safe material masks odors emanating from the pill 140 from escaping the pocket 120, such as by providing a stronger scent that covers the odors emanating from the pill 140. In this manner, the pet also has a harder time detecting the presence of the pill 140 as the alternate odors can cover the odors emanating from the pill 140. Additionally, by virtue of the double enrobing of the pill 140, odors emanating from the pill 140 are similarly masked or blocked.
Referring now to
In the shown embodiment, a backing material 210 is disposed along a rear surface of the flexible member 110. The backing material 210 is removably secured to the rear surface of the flexible member 110 such that when a user desires to utilize a given pocket 120, they can remove the backing material 210 to expose the rear surface of the flexible material 110. The backing material 210 provides the benefit of reducing the amount of exposure that the flexible material 110 has to the environment, and thus protects the flexible material 110 from becoming dirty, contaminated, or the like. Additionally, such reduction in exposure to the environment can aid in preserving the self-adhesive nature of the flexible member 110.
Referring now to
Referring now to
It is therefore submitted that the instant invention has been shown and described in what is considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiments. It is recognized, however, that departures may be made within the scope of the invention and that obvious modifications will occur to a person skilled in the art. With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of the invention, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by the present invention.
Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention.
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/940,342 filed on Nov. 26, 2019. The above identified patent application is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety to provide continuity of disclosure.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 62940342 | Nov 2019 | US |
