Tool For Administering Pills To Animals

Abstract

An elongated hollow sleeve having a split sleeve member constructed of resilient material telescoped over one end thereof and including a plunger insertable in the other end of the sleeve. The other end of the sleeve and the plunger include coacting portions for support of the tool in one hand and manipulation of the plunger for projecting the latter through the sleeve and into the sleeve member whereby a tablet or capsule frictionally supported within the split sleeve member may be ejected therefrom by the plunger when the tool has been positioned with the split sleeve member disposed in the back of the mouth of an animal to which a medicant is to be administered. In addition, the tool further includes a squeeze bulb removably engageable with the end of the sleeve remote from the sleeve member after removal of the plunger in order that the tool may also be used in the manner of an eye dropper for administering liquid medicants.

Description

The tool of the instant invention has been primarily designed for administering liquid as well as tablet and capsule medicants to felines. It is very difficult to administer oral medicants to cats. In most cases when capsule or tablet medicants are to be administered the tablet or capsule must be placed in the back of the cat's mouth with the fingers. This of course presents one or more of the fingers of the person administering the medicants in full exposure to the fangs of the cat which can result in those fingers being bitten. In addition, placement of the hands of the person administering medicants to felines closely adjacent to the head of the feline also presents the hand in eacy reach of the front claws of the feline.

It is accordingly the main object of this invention to provide a tool for administering medicants to felines with the tool constructed and operational in a manner whereby the person administering the medicants may maintain their hands out of reach of the fangs or front claws of the felines.

Another object of this invention is to provide a tool whereby capsule and tablet medicants may be more efficiently placed in the back of the mouth of a cat so as to ensure that the cat will not repeatedly spit out the medicant being administered.

Another object of the present invention, in accordance with the immediately preceding object, is to provide an elongated medicant administering tool including a soft tip for insertion into the back of the mouth of the feline having medicants administered thereto whereby there will be little chance of injury to the feline.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a tool in accordance with the preceding objects that may be readily dismantled for cleaning and sterilizing.

Another important object of this invention is to provide a tool including structural and operational features enabling the tools to be utilized by untrained personnel as well as professionals.

A final object of this invention to be specifically enumerated herein is to provide a medicant administering tool specifically designed for use in conjunction with felines and which will conform to conventional forms of manufacture, be of simple construction and easy to use so as to provide a device that will be economically feasible, long lasting and relatively trouble free.

These together with other objects and advantages which will become subsequently apparent reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the tool in its form for administering capsule and tablet medicants;

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view taken substantially upon a plane passing through the longitudinal center line of the tool;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary sectional view comprising an enlargement of the left hand portion of FIG. 2 and with a tablet supported within the split sleeve portion of the tool and the plunger of the tool disposed immediately adjacent to the tablet for expelling the latter from the split sleeve tool portion;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a squeeze bulb attachment for the tool for adapting the latter to administer liquid medicants upon removal of the plunger and the split sleeve portion of the tool;

And FIG. 5 is a side elevational view of the tool with the squeeze bulb attachment applied thereto, portions of the main sleeve body of the tool being broken away and illustrated in vertical section.

Referring now more specifically to the drawings the numeral 10 generally designates the animal pill administering tool of the instant invention. The tool 10 includes an elongated tubular body 12 including first and second ends 14 and 16 and provided with a longitudinal bore 18. The bore 18 extends through the body 12 and is of substantially constant diameter, except in the first end 14 of the body 12 wherein the bore is slightly tapered as at 20.

The second end 16 of the body 12 includes a circumferentially extending and slightly radially outwardly projecting retaining flange 22 and also a considerably diametrically enlarged portion 24 spaced slightly toward the first end 14 from the retaining flange 22. The diametrically enlarged portion 24 includes a wide and relatively deep circumferentially extending semi-circular groove 26.

An elongated plunger 28 is reciprocal through the bore 18 and includes a diametrically enlarged head 30 on its end projecting outwardly of the second end 16 of the body 12. The head 30 is circular in cross sectional shape and the end of the plunger 28 remote from the head 30 includes a diametrically reduced terminal end 32 for reciprocation through the tapered end of the bore 18 formed in the first end of the body 12.

A resilient and slightly radially expandable sleeve 34 is provided and has a first end 36 thereof telescoped over and frictionally retained on the end 14 of the body 12. The second or other end 38 of the sleeve 34 is provided with circumferentially spaced and longitudinally extending tapered slots 40 which render the second end 38 of the sleeve 34 more readily expandable than the end 36 of the sleeve 34. The slots 40 taper in width inwardly of the terminal end of the second end 38 of the sleeve 34 and it may be seen from FIG. 3 of the drawings that a pill or capsule 42 may be frictionally seated between the resilient fingers 44 defined between adjacent slots 40.

In operation, with the pill or capsule 42 frictionally retained between the fingers 44 and the plunger 28 withdrawn to the position thereof illustrated in FIG. 3 of the drawings, a person wishing to administer the pill or capsule to an animal such as a feline may project the first end 14 of the body 12 into the mouth of the animal with the resilient slotted end of the sleeve 34 disposed in the back of the animal's mouth.

In manipulating the tool 10, the first and second fingers of the hand holding the tool are seated in diametrically opposite portions of the groove 26 in order to firmly support the tool 10 from the hand. Then, firm pressure is applied to the head 30 to advance the plunger 28 to the left as viewed in FIG. 2 of the drawings whereby the diametrically reduced terminal end 32 of the plunger 28 will forcibly eject the pill or capsule from the slotted end of the sleeve 34.

By this manner of administering a pill or capsule to a feline, the hand holding the tool 10 is positioned outwardly of the front of the mouth of the feline and out of reach of the claws carried by the front legs of the feline. Therefore, there is little likelihood of the person administering the pill or capsule 42 being bitten or scratched by the feline.

With attention now invited more specifically to FIGS. 4 and 5 of the drawings, there may be seen a resilient squeeze bulb referred to in general by the reference numeral 50. The squeeze bulb 50 is closed at one end 52 and open at its other end 54. In addition, the other end of the squeeze bulb 50 is provided with a radially outwardly projecting and circumferentially extending reinforcing rib 56 whereby the open end 54 of the squeeze bulb 50 may be slightly expanded over the end 16 of the body 12 with the flange 56 disposed inwardly of the retaining flange 22. In this manner, even though the first end 52 of the squeeze bulb 50 is squeezed, the bulb 50 will be frictionally retained on the end 16 of the body 12 in fluid tight engagement therewith.

The body 12 is constructed of transparent material such as plastic and has longitudinally spaced indicia 58 thereon adjacent the first end 14. Accordingly, by removal of the plunger 28 and the application of the squeeze bulb 50 on the end 16 of the body 12, the tool 10 may be utilized in the manner of an eye dropper whereby measured portions of liquid medicants may be administered to felines.

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.

Claims

What is claimed as new is as follows:

1. A straight elongated tubular body having a longitudinal bore extending therethrough, an elongated resilient and slightly radially expandable sleeve, a first end portion of said sleeve being slightly expanded and removably telescoped over one end of said body, the other end portion of said sleeve having circumferentially spaced endwise outwardly opening longitudinally extending radial slots formed therein and projecting endwise outwardly from said one end of said tubular body, a straight elongated plunger having a diametrically enlarged head on one end, the other end of said plunger being removably slidingly telescoped into said bore from said other end of said body and projectable through said bore from said one end of said body into the interior of said other end portion of said sleeve, the length of said plunger, from said other end thereof to said diametrically enlarged portion thereof being generally equal to the length of said body plus the length of the endwise outwardly projecting other end portion of said sleeve, the other end of said body being provided with a radially outwardly projecting circumferentially extending enlargement spaced from the corresponding terminal end of said body and provided with a circumferential groove generally semicircular in cross-sectional shape, the radius of curvature of said groove being such to enable the adjacent sides of the first and second fingers of the user of the tool to be seatingly received in diametrically opposite portions of the groove, the end portion of said bore opening through said one end of said body tapering at least slightly toward its open end, the end of said elongated plunger disposed in said one end of said body being diametrically reduced throughout a longitudinal extent of said plunger greater than the longitudinal extent of the tapering portion of said bore and reciprocal through said tapered portion.

2. The combination of claim 1 wherein said body is constructed of transparent material and said one end of said body includes longitudinally spaced indicia.