Abstract:
A pet chew toy has a body which is formed from an elastic plastic/elastomer and has an opening extending into an associated internal cavity in the body into which treats larger than the opening can be inserted due to the elasticity of the material and returned therein due to the relaxed size of the opening. Chewing by the pet fragments the treats and allows the smaller fragments to fall out through the opening. The opening can be slots, rounded holes, or other openings to vary the technique needed to extract the treats from the toy.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    This application claims the benefit of U.S. provisional application No. 61/757,769 filed on Jan. 29, 2013. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    This invention concerns pet toys and more particularly so called “chew” toys, particularly for dogs. 
         [0003]    Chew toys are designed to entertain pets and also to help keep their teeth and gums healthy. It has therefore been known to provide slots in a rigid body into which treats can be inserted to encourage pets to chew the toy in order to extract the treats. 
         [0004]    Typical chew toys are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,506,614; 6,546,896 and 7,032,541. 
         [0005]    Such an arrangement offers only minimal interest to the pet in efforts to extract the treats. 
         [0006]    Only minimal space for treats is provided by the surface grooves, and secure retention of the treats is often not achieved. 
         [0007]    The extraction of the treats may be relatively difficult as only small fragments can be extracted from the grooves but also simply fall out 
         [0008]    Also, the stiffness of construction of these solid toys may be a discouragement to pets which are smaller and have less jaw strength. 
         [0009]    Those chew toys do not involve a substantial penetration of a pet&#39;s teeth into the toy such that cleaning of the pet&#39;s teeth is minimal. 
         [0010]    It is an object of the present invention to provide a pet chew toy which requires a significant effort by the pet to extract the treats, providing a sustained interest. 
         [0011]    It is another object to provide a chew toy which may be loaded with more treats than conventional chew toys. 
         [0012]    It is another object to provide a chew toy which is more effective in cleaning the pet&#39;s teeth. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0013]    The above recited objects of the invention and other objects which will be understood by those skilled in the art are achieved by a chew toy which includes a hollow body constructed of a tough but flexible plastic which is readily flexed upon being chewed on by a pet. 
         [0014]    The hollow body has one or more internal cavities of various configurations such as elongated straight or curved chambers or short cavities of a rounded shape. 
         [0015]    Slots or holes extend through an outer wall of the toy into each of the cavities creating walls inclined so as to partially overlie the associated internal cavity. The slots or holes provide an opening of a smaller size than the treats and internal cavities into which they extend. 
         [0016]    The walls are readily stretchable to allow insertion of treats larger than the opening and also allow the walls to be pulled apart to create a larger opening to thereby enable placement of treats substantially larger than the slot into the associated cavity. 
         [0017]    The readily flexed plastic walls are easily forced inwardly by the pet biting on the chew toy which causes the walls to engage and crush the treat into smaller pieces able to drop out through the slot or round opening to allow it to be retrieved by the pet. 
         [0018]    The relatively large inward displacement of the walls during chewing enhances the tooth cleaning effect of the chewing action. 
         [0019]    The various configurations of the openings and cavities require different extraction techniques by the pet to hold the pet&#39;s interest for extended periods. 
     
    
     
       DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0020]      FIG. 1  is a pictorial view of a wishbone shaped pet chew toy according to a first embodiment of the invention. 
           [0021]      FIG. 2  is a view of the section A-A taken in  FIG. 1 . 
           [0022]      FIG. 3  is a left end view of the pet chew toy embodiment shown in  FIG. 1 . 
           [0023]      FIG. 4  is a top view of the pet chew toy embodiment shown in  FIG. 1 . 
           [0024]      FIG. 5  is a right end view of the pet chew toy embodiment in the direction A-A in  FIG. 4 . 
           [0025]      FIG. 6  is a right side view in the direction B-B in  FIG. 5 , the left side being a mirror image. 
           [0026]      FIG. 7  is a pictorial view of a dog bone shaped second pet chew toy embodiment according to the invention. 
           [0027]      FIG. 8  is a plan view of the pet chew toy embodiment shown in  FIG. 7 . 
           [0028]      FIG. 9  is a right end view of the pet chew toy embodiment shown in  FIG. 7 , the right end being a mirror image. 
           [0029]      FIG. 10  is a front view of the pet chew toy embodiment shown in  FIG. 8 , the rear view being a mirror image. 
           [0030]      FIG. 11  is a view of the section A-A taken in  FIG. 8 . 
           [0031]      FIG. 12  is a pictorial view of a star shaped third embodiment of a pet chew toy according to the invention. 
           [0032]      FIG. 13  is a front view of the third pet chew toy embodiment shown in  FIG. 12 , the rear view being identical. 
           [0033]      FIG. 14  is a bottom view of the pet chew toy shown in  FIG. 12 , the top view being a minor image thereof. 
           [0034]      FIG. 15  is a view of the section A-A shown in  FIG. 14 . 
           [0035]      FIG. 16  is a pictorial view of a fanciful fish shaped pet chew toy according to a fourth embodiment of the invention. 
           [0036]      FIG. 17  is a plan view of the pet chew toy shown in  FIG. 16 . 
           [0037]      FIG. 18  is a front end view of the pet chew toy shown in  FIG. 16 . 
           [0038]      FIG. 19  is a front view of the pet chew toy shown in  FIG. 16 , the rear view being a minor image. 
           [0039]      FIG. 20  is a pictorial view of a ring shaped fifth embodiment of the pet chew toy according to the invention. 
           [0040]      FIG. 21  is a plan view of the pet chew toy shown in  FIG. 20 . 
           [0041]      FIG. 22  is a view of the section A-A in  FIG. 21 . 
           [0042]      FIG. 23  is a pictorial view of a sixth embodiment of a pet chew toy according to the invention. 
           [0043]      FIG. 24  is a side view of the pet chew toy shown in  FIG. 23 . 
           [0044]      FIGS. 25 and 26  are views of the sections A-A and B-B respectively taken in  FIG. 24 . 
           [0045]      FIG. 27  is a plan view of the pet chew toy shown in  FIG. 23 . 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0046]    In the following detailed description, certain specific terminology will be employed for the sake of clarity and a particular embodiment described in accordance with the requirements of 35 USC 112, but it is to be understood that the same is not intended to be limiting and should not be so construed inasmuch as the invention is capable of taking many forms and variations within the scope of the appended claims. 
         [0047]    Referring to  FIGS. 1-6 , a first embodiment of a pet chew toy  10  according to the invention is shown therein. This embodiment comprises a body of a general “wishbone” shape, having an elongated hollow straight stem portion  12  terminating in a hollow enlarged knob end  14 , and a pair of hollow curved elongated branch portions  16  both integral with one end of the stem portion  12 , the branches  16  also both terminating in hollow enlarged knob ends  18 . 
         [0048]    The pet chew toy  10  is preferably molded from a tough abrasion resistant plastic such as a TPU (thermoplastic polyurethane) or a TPE (thermoplastic elastomers) to withstand abrasion and sustained chewing by dogs or other pets. 
         [0049]    The plastic used must be formulated so that the outer portions of the chew  10  are readily flexed inwardly by the pet in biting down on the chew toy  10 . 
         [0050]    Each of the straight stem portion  12 , the enlarged ends  14 , branches  16  and enlarged ends  14  and  18  thereof are hollow, having pairs of internal cavities, each on one side of a common internal partition ( FIG. 2 ). The pairs of internal cavities  12 A,  14 A,  16 A and  18 A are defined by opposing pairs of curved walls  12 B,  14 B,  16 B and  18 B extending towards each other and over the respective cavities  12 A,  14 A,  16 A and  18 A. 
         [0051]    A pair of central slots  12 C and  16 C extend between each of the outer pairs of walls  12 B and  16 B opening into a respective cavity  12 B,  16 B. 
         [0052]    The enlarged ends  14 ,  18  have rounded pairs of openings  14 C and  18 C extending into the respective cavities  14 A,  18 A. 
         [0053]    The slots  12 C and  16 C and holes  14 C and  18 C are smaller than the cavities  12 A,  14 A,  16 A and  18 A with which they are associated such as to enable treats inserted therein to be retained. The pairs of walls  12 B,  14 B,  16 B and  18 B can be readily pulled apart to allow insertion of a treat  22  larger than the slots or holes or the larger treats may also be inserted by being pushed in through the same, stretching of the plastic allowing passage of the treat. 
         [0054]    The pet chewing on the toy  10  will cause the walls  12 B,  14 B,  16 B and  18 B to be compressed inwardly to crush the treats  22  into smaller pieces which can then drop out through the various slots and holes to be able to be eaten by the pet. 
         [0055]    The relatively gross deformations of the walls  12 B,  14 B,  16 B and  18 B caused by chewing enhance the cleaning action on the pet&#39;s teeth and also stimulation of the pet&#39;s gums. 
         [0056]    The differing shapes of the slots and holes require different techniques to extract the treats, lengthen the time of interest in the toy. 
         [0057]      FIGS. 7-11  show a “dog bone” shape form of the body of a chew toy  24  according to a second embodiment of the invention, with a hollow curved elongated portion  26  at the middle, and hollow rounded end portions  28 ,  30 ,  32 ,  34 , attached at each end of the elongated portion  26 . 
         [0058]    A single cavity  36  extends within the elongated portion  26  with a single slot  38  defined between two curved walls  40 ,  42  extending towards each other and opening into the cavity  32 . 
         [0059]    Each hollow rounded end portion  28 ,  30 ,  32 ,  34  has a rounded cavity  44 ,  46 ,  48 ,  50  defined therein with a large circular opening  52 ,  54 ,  56 ,  58  opening into each respective cavity from the top of the chew toy  24 . 
         [0060]    A small venting opening  60 ,  62 ,  64 ,  66  is at the back of each end portion  28 ,  30 ,  32 ,  34  to prevent a vacuum from being crated. 
         [0061]    Curving walls extend around each large opening  52 ,  54 ,  56 , and  58 . 
         [0062]    The flexibility of each of the walls  40 ,  42  and around each large opening allows pushing insertion of a larger sized treat by stretching of the plastic material. A compression of the walls  40 ,  42  crushes the treats to allow the fragments to drop out in a similar fashion to the first described embodiment. 
         [0063]      FIGS. 12-15  show a body of a star pattern chew toy  68 , in which a hollow flattened spherical central portion  70  is surrounded by a ring of smaller hollow flattened spherical portions  72 A- 72 H. 
         [0064]    The spherical portions  70 ,  72 A- 72 H are approximately shaped as spheres which are flattened somewhat as can be seen in  FIGS. 13 and 15 . Each has an interior cavity  74 ,  76 A- 76 H large circular opening  78 ,  80 A- 80 H in the top allows access to the associated cavity  74 ,  76 A- 76 H. 
         [0065]    The exterior top wall  32  of each rounded portion  70 ,  72 A- 72 H arches over the associated interior cavity  74 ,  76 A- 76 H at the top thereof. 
         [0066]    Treats larger than the openings  78 ,  80 A- 80 H can be inserted into these openings  74 ,  76 A- 76 H therein due to the flexibility and stretchability of the wall  80 ??,  82 A- 82 H. 
         [0067]    Smaller vent openings  86 ,  88 A- 88 H are also included to prevent development of a vacuum. 
         [0068]    Rounded protrusions  90  extending from the outer diameter are provided in alternate portions  72 A,  72 C,  72 E,  72 G to create features for tooth cleaning. 
         [0069]    A fanciful fish shaped embodiment of a chew toy  92  is shown in  FIGS. 16-19  which has hollow flattened spherical portions  94  and  96  similar to those of chew toy  68  but molded into a circular solid portion  98 . 
         [0070]    A hollow tail portion  100  has slotted openings  102  extending into a cavity  102 . A solid “eye”  104  and small mouth ridge  106  add to the fanciful fish shape. 
         [0071]      FIGS. 20-22  show a ring shaped chew toy  108  having an upper ring cavity  110  and lower ring cavity  112  separated by an intermediate web  115 . Annular slots  114 ,  118  with spaced partially circular enlarge vents  116 ,  120  allow treats to be inserted into the annular cavities  110  and  112  by stretching of the flexible walls of the ring shaped surface, and protrusions  122  can be provided. 
         [0072]      FIGS. 23-27  depict a curved stick form of a chew toy  124 . This embodiment combines a hollow end  126  which has an internal cavity  128  with an oval opening  130  into which treats  132  can be inserted to be held in the cavity. 
         [0073]    The flexible wall  134  can be easily crushed by the pet chewing on the toy to enable fragments to drop out through the opening  130  as in the other embodiments. 
         [0074]    The chew toy  124  has a slotted portion  136  at the other end which is formed with a central slot  138  on each side. 
         [0075]    A pair of flexible plastic walls  140  is angled towards each other to create an enlarged bottom of the slot  138  to retain inserted treats  132  therein. 
         [0076]    Again, the dog in biting on the toy  124  can collapse the walls down to crush the treats  138  and allow the fragments to easily pass out of the narrow part of the slot.