SCRATCHING POSTS

Abstract: A cylindrical carrier 1 is covered by a length of rope 3 which is helically close-wound between end cheeks 2a, 2b. A backing plate 4 for attachment to a wall has two support walls 6a and 6b extending from its front face, and the walls have opposed recesses 9 and 10 to receive the end cheeks 2a, 2b. The upper wall 6a receives a pin 12 secured to a knob 13, and the pin is received in a corresponding hole in the upper end cheek 2a. The pin 12 normally prevents the carrier 1 from rotating, but provision is also made for the carrier to be rotated to ensure even wear, and for the carrier to be removed for replacement.

Description: This invention relates to scratching posts for cats and other animals. BACKGROUND Cats have a habit of standing on their hind legs and using their front paws to scratch any convenient object which their claws will dig into. This appears to help them to keep their claws in good condition and also enables them to exercise by stretching their body and leg muscles. This habit can be very annoying when the animal chooses to scratch against an item of furniture or a decorated part of the house. United States Patent No. 4 253 423 discloses a common form of scratching post in which an elongate carrier is wound with rope, and the carrier is upstanding from a base. The ends of the rope are pinned to the carrier so that the rope is not easily replaced. The main disadvantages of such a post are that the post takes up floor space, is easily overturned, and has a limited life. European Patent Specification No. 0 201 932 discloses a scratching post in accordance with the prior art portion of claim 1 which includes a wall-mounting backing plate and a pair of spaced support plates projecting from the backing plate. A series of cork elements are supported on a rod between the support plates, rather like a kebab. Although the cork elements can be removed from the rod for replacement they are not as effective as a length of rope wound on a carrier. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention may be viewed as being to provide a form of scratching post which includes a length of rope or similar flexible element wound on a carrier, which does not take up floor space, and which is of longer life than existing rope scratching posts. The present invention as defined in claim 1 is intended to achieve this object, and proposes that a carrier member, wound with a flexible element is removably mounted between support plates projecting from a backing plate, and the ends of the flexible element are releasably secured to cheek members mounted at each end of the carrier member. Thus, by removing the carrier member from the support plates the length of rope can easily be replaced, thereby extending the life of the scratching post indefinitely. In a particularly simple arrangement each cheek member preferably includes an inner wall and an outer wall which contains an aperture through which the end of the flexible element can be inserted to be retained in an annular recess formed between the said walls. In order to obtain the maximum useable life from one length of flexible element the carrier member is preferably mounted for rotation about its length, and locking means are provided for securing the carrier member in a plurality of different rotational positions. The locking means may comprise a screw threaded pin which is inserted through one of the support plates into a co-operatively screw-threaded aperture in one of the cheek members, so that the carrier member can be drawn into engagement with the said support plate. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The invention is exemplified in the accompanying drawings, wherein: Figure 1 is a side view of a scratching post in accordance with the invention; Figure 2 is a front view of the scratching post of Figure 1; Figure 3 is a plan view of the scratching post of Figure 1; Figure 4 is a longitudinal section through a modified end cheek for a scratching post in accordance with the invention; Figure 5 is an end view of the modified end cheek of Figure 4; Figure 6 is a detail on section VI-VI of Figure 5; Figure 7 is a longitudinal section through the upper part of a second embodiment of a scratching post in accordance with the invention, incorporating the modified end cheek of Figures 4, 5 and 6; Figure 8 shows the underside of the support plate of the scratching post of Figure 7; Figure 9 is a side view of a further modified end cheek for a scratching post in accordance with the invention; and Figure 10 is a plan view of the further modified end cheek of Figure 9. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In Fig.s 1 and 2 part of the length of the post has been omitted for purposes of illustration. The scratching post comprises an elongate cylindrical carrier 1 which may for example be in the form of a hollow cardboard tube or a solid timber post. Each end of the carrier 1 is secured to a circular end cheek 2a, 2b, and the carrier is covered by a length of rope 3 which is helically close-wound between the end cheeks. The rope is formed from natural fibres such as those obtained from hemp or jute plants. A particularly suitable natural fibre is known as sisal. The diameter of the end cheeks 2a, 2b is substantially the same as that of the carrier plus the rope winding. A flat elongate backing plate 4, containing screw holes 5 for attachment to a wall, has a profiled upper edge 4a. Two support plates 6a and 6b are secured by fixing screws 15 (Fig.s 2 and 3) or by other suitable means in two transversely extending slots in the front face of the backing plate, to project from the front of the backing plate in a parallel spaced relationship. The opposed inner faces 7 and 8 of the two support plates have a pair of opposed circular recesses 9 and 10 to receive the end cheeks 2a, 2b of the carrier 1. The recess 9 of the uppermost support plate 6a is deeper than that of the other plate 6b, and in addition, the upper plate 6a contains an axial through-hole 11 of square section (see Fig. 3) disposed centrally of the respective recess 9. A square section pin 12 secured to a knob 13 is received within this hole 11 and locates in a corresponding square-section hole in the corresponding upper end cheek 2a. The pin thus prevents the carrier 1 from rotating about its axis within the recesses 9 and 10. However, if the pin 12 is withdrawn from the holes the carrier can be rotated to any of three further positions which are mutually spaced by 90°, whereupon the pin can then be reinserted. The carrier can thus be rotated at intervals to ensure even wear. When the rope winding 3 becomes badly worn the pin can be removed and the carrier can in turn be lifted and removed from the recesses 9 and 10 for replacement. The rope winding on the carrier provides a hard-wearing scratching post which is much loved by cats and which is not prone to shed material. The backing plate 4 and the support plates 6a and 6b could have decorative corner mouldings applied to their edges for an enhanced visual appeal. The carrier could be held captive in the recesses 9 and 10 and the carrier removed for replacement by unscrewing one of the end plates 6a or 6b. In this case the recesses 9 and 10 could be of the same depth. The modified end cheek of Fig.s 4 to 6 is an injection moulded plastics component and includes a generally cup shaped part 16 with a cylindrical spigot 17 projecting from its bottom wall for insertion into the end of the tubular carrier 1. The opposite end of the cup shaped part 16 has an outwardly extending annular bearing flange 18, and has four circumferentially spaced holes 19 in its side wall 20. In addition, the cup shaped part 16 contains a central, internally threaded tubular boss 21. Between each adjacent pair of holes 19 the cup shaped part contains a pair of radially aligned flexible webs 22 (Fig.s 5 and 6) which project towards each other from the side wall 20 and the threaded boss 21. A pair of such end cheek components are secured to opposite ends of the carrier 1. These components provide a simple means of terminating the ends of the rope 3, which are inserted through a convenient hole 19 and pressed between one or more pairs of webs 22 which resiliently grip the rope, as shown in Fig. 5. The lower end component may be mounted in an end plate 6b similar to that of Fig.s 1 to 3, but as shown in Fig.s 7 and 8, the upper end plate 6a has been modified by the provision of a circular aperture 11′ in place of the square aperture 11. This circular aperture contains a tubular liner 25, and the pin 12′ secured to knob 13 is now of circular section with an externally screw-threaded lower end 26. The pin 12′ has a circumferential groove 27 which receives a slotted washer 28 (Fig. 8) secured to the end plate 6a. The knob 13 and pin 12′ are thus held captive in the recess 11′ by the washer 28. Alternatively, the pin 12′ could be held captive by an E-clip pressed directly into the thread of end 26. The carrier is held in a certain rotational position by rotating the knob 13 to screw the pin 12 into the boss 21 and hence clamp the end cheek tightly against the end plate 6a. To rotate the carrier, the knob 13 is slackened, the carrier is rotated to its new position, and the knob re-tightened. In addition, by removing the lower end plate 6b the carrier can be unscrewed from the pin 12′, inverted, and then refitted to permit equalisation of wear between the upper and lower ends of the rope. The end cheek of Fig.s 9 and 10 is similar to that of Fig.s 4 to 7, similar parts having corresponding reference numerals. The four holes of the side wall 20 are replaced by three rope-receiving holes 19′ which open through the flange 18 and are inclined in the direction of winding of the rope 3. The pairs of webs 22 are omitted but the dimensions of the annular recess 30 formed between the wall 20 and boss 21 are adjusted to receive the tail end of the rope 3 as a close fit. The end of the rope is inserted through any convenient hole 19′ and is then inserted, back-wound, into the recess 30. The rope ends are thus held just as securely as in the embodiment of Fig.s 4 to 7, but the rope ends are easier to secure and the end cheeks are cheaper to manufacture.

Claims: A scratching post comprising a backing plate (4), a pair of mutually spaced support plates (6a, 6b) projecting from the backing plate, and a post means removably mounted between the support plates, characterised in that the post means comprises an elongate carrier member (1) having a cheek member (2a, 2b) secured to each end, and a flexible element (3) helically close-wound about the carrier member (1) between the cheek members (2a, 2b) to which the respective ends of the flexible element are releasably secured. A scratching post according to Claim 1, in which each cheek member (2a, 2b) comprises a generally cylindrical side wall (20) containing an aperture (19; 19′) and a generally cylindrical inner wall (21), the two walls (20, 21) together defining an annular recess (30), and a tail end of the flexible element (3) being inserted through the said aperture (19; 19′) and retained in the annular recess (30). A scratching post according to Claim 2, in which the side wall (20) contains a plurality of apertures (19; 19′) at circumferentially spaced positions. A scratching post according to Claim 2 or 3, in which the or each aperture (19′) opens through one edge (18) of the side wall and is inclined in the direction in which the flexible element (3) is wound about the carrier member (1). A scratching post according to any preceding claim, in which the carrier member (1) is mounted between the support plates (6a, 6b) such that it can be rotated about its length, and locking means (12; 12′) are provided for securing the carrier member (1) in a plurality of different rotational positions. A scratching post according to Claim 5, in which the locking means (12′) comprises a screw threaded pin which is inserted through one of the support plates (6a) into a co-operatively screw-threaded aperture in one of the cheek members, whereby the post means (1, 2a, 2b, 3) can be drawn into engagement with the said support plate (6a). A scratching post according to any preceding claim, in which the flexible element (3) comprises a length of rope.

Inventors: HATTEN, ALLEN RICHARD GORDON, HATTEN, JEAN
Applicants: HATTEN, ALLEN RICHARD GORDON, HATTEN, JEAN
Application year: 1990
Main classification: A01K15
IPC codes: A01K15