PET TOY PRODUCT WITH INTEGRAL TREATS RECEIVING RECEPTACLES

Abstract: A pet toy product (T) is provided for holding one or more animal treats (18) wherein the toy has a body member having an outer surface with one or more recesses (13, 14, 16) for removable holding one or more animal treats. The recesses (13, 14, 16) may be of varying depth so that the treats (18) in the deeper recesses (16) are more difficult for the animal to extract than are the treats in the shallower recesses (13). The recesses (13, 14, 16) may be circular, triangular, irregular, in the form of a groove (20, 22, 24) or any other suitable configuration. The outer surface of the toy may be raised to accommodate the recesses (13, 14, 16, 20, 22, 24) or the recesses may extend into the surface. Finally, the pet toy may have a recess forming an opening (54) which extends through the side wall of the pet toy product for receiving a treat (18). With the structure recited, the pet owner can replenish the treats as often as necessary to maintian the pet's interest in the toy. Different treats can be provided with different nutritional values and tastes. Because some treats will be more difficult for the animal to remove than others, the animal can be kept occupied for several hours before the treats need to be replaced again. The treats (18) may be held in the recesses (13, 14, 16, 20, 22, 24, 54) by friction, adhesive or adhesion.

Description: PET TOY PRODUCT WITH INTEGI RECEIVING RECEPTACLES leghjiifial Fi<?J.<3 This patent application is a continuation-in-part of my U.S. Serial No. 29/044,631 filed September 27, 1995, and entitled "Cat Toy". This invention relates to a pet toy product, and more particularly to a pet toy product having recesses and openings for receiving treats. JELajcj&grjam_iJ-k2-± Chewable pet toys have been available for many years. Many are impregnated with odors or flavoring materials which are attractive to the animal for which the toy is intended. These toys can be made of various materials, such as rawhide, rubber and plastic. The shortcoming of these products is that after a period of time, the flavor and/or odor becomes less strong and the animal loses interest in the toy. No means is provided for subsequently enhancing the flavor and odor of the toy. Tay (U.S. Des. Patent No. 188,179) discloses a pet food holder which has a hollow center for holding food. Allis (U.S. Patent No. 1,149,170); Jones (U.S. Patent No. 260,851); and Edwards (U.S. Patent Nos. 4,513,014 and 4,557,219) each disclose a pet toy having a flavoring material impregnated therein. Fisher (U.S. Patent No. 3,104,648) discloses a pet toy which is odor impregnated. Markham (U.S. Patent No. Re. 34,352) discloses a therapeutic pet toy having parallel peripheral grooves in which oral hygiene substances may be placed. Axlerod (U.S. Patent No. 3,871,334) and Miller (U.S. Patent Nos. 3,899,607 and 4,032,665) each disclose pet toys which are both flavor and odor impregnated. Jungle Talk International sells a product for birds made of wood which has openings in which nuts are firmly fixed. The bird must substantially destroy the wood in order to reach the nuts. Thus, the product cannot be reloaded and reused. A product known as a "Buster Cube" has an opening in which dry dog food is poured. As a dog knocks it over in playing with it, the food runs out so that the dog can eat it. Although each of these inventions is suitable for its intended purpose, none provide means on the exterior surface thereof for holding animal treats for keeping the animal interested in the toy. Disclosure Of The Invention In accordance with the present invention, a pet toy product is provided for holding, by friction or adhesion, one or more animal treats wherein the toy has a body member having an outer surface with one or more recesses for receiving one or more animal treats. The term "treat" is intended to include any items which are attractive to or are consumed by an animal. The recesses may be of varying depth so that the treats in the deeper recesses are more difficult for the animal to extract than are the treats in the shallower recesses. The recesses may be circular, triangular, irregular, or in the form of a groove or any other suitable configuration. The outer surface of the toy may be raised to accommodate the recesses or the recesses may extend into the surface. Finally, the pet toy may have a recess forming an opening which extends completely through the side wall for receiving a treat. With the structure recited, the pet owner can replenish the treats as often as necessary to maintain the pet's interest in the toy. Different treats can be provided with different nutritional values and tastes. Also, because some treats will be harder for the animal to remove than others, the animal can be kept occupied for several hours before the treats need to be replaced again. The toy may be made of molded rigid or flexible material which can accommodate different types of treats. This construction allows the toy to be used repeatedly by refilling the recesses with more treats. Additional advantages will become apparent from the description which follows, taken in conjunction what the accompanying drawings. Brief Description Of The PrawjLngs. Figure 1 is an illustration of an animal playing with one form of the present invention; Figure 2 is a perspective view of a variety of forms of pet toy products embodying the invention; Figure 3 is a fragmentary perspective view of a portion of a first embodiment of the pet toy product of this invention showing recesses of varying depth containing animal treats; Figure 4 is a lateral section, taken along line 4-4 of Figure 3, showing the different depths of the recesses with treats therein; Figure 5 is a fragmentary perspective view of a portion of a second embodiment of the pet toy product of this invention having longitudinal grooves for receiving animal treats and showing a liquid treat being inserted into the grooves; Figure 6 is a lateral section, taken along line 6-6 of Figure 5, showing the different depths of the recesses with treats therein; Figure 7 is a fragmentary perspective view of a portion of a third embodiment of the pet toy product of this invention having longitudinal grooves which are raised above the surface of the toy; Figure 8 is a fragmentary perspective view of a portion of a fourth embodiment of the pet toy product of this invention having a plurality of recesses formed in a plurality of raised areas; Figure 9 is a lateral section, taken along line 9-9 of Figure 8, showing the different depths of the recesses with treats therein; Figure 10 is a fragmentary perspective view of a portion of a fifth embodiment of the pet toy product of this invention having a triangular recess; Figure 11 is a fragmentary perspective view of a portion of a sixth embodiment of the pet toy product of this invention having a recess extending through the side wall of the pet toy to form an opening for receiving an animal treat; and Figure 12 is a fragmentary perspective view, similar to Figure 11, but showing a treat positioned within the opening. Best Mode For Carrying Out The Invention In accordance with this invention, an animal, such as dog D, is shown in Figure 1 playing with the pet toy product T of this invention. As best seen in Figure 2, the pet toy product may have a variety of configurations, such as ball τ l f bone-shaped pet toy product T 2 , box-shaped pet toy product T 3 , elongated pet toy product T 4 , star-shaped pet toy product T 5 and annular pet toy product T 6 . The recesses shown in these pet toy products can be of varying depths, as described below. These configurations are exemplary only and other configurations will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art and such other shapes are intended to be included within the scope of this invention. One embodiment of pet toy product T is shown in Figures 3 and 4. The pet toy product T includes a body member 10 with an outer surface 11 which generally defines the shape of the pet toy product T. Body member 10 has a depth defined by side wall 12 which includes a plurality of depressions or recesses, such as shallow recess 13, medium recess 14 and deep recess 16. Each of the respective recesses has an animal treat 18 which may be inserted therein. The treat can be wedged into a recess in a rigid toy product or can be resiliently gripped by the side surfaces of a flexible product. In other words, the treat is releasably and frictionally held in the recess. An adhesive could also be used to attached the treat within the recess. For example, this treat can be dry pet food. The animal can readily remove the treat 18 from shallow recess 13, but must work harder to recover the treat 18 in medium recess 14. Likewise, the animal must work extra hard to remove treat 18 within deep recess 16. Another embodiment of pet toy product T is shown in Figures 5 and 6. Specifically, side wall 12 is provided with a plurality of grooves, such as shallow groove 20, medium groove 22 and deep groove.24. A treat 18 can be placed in each of these grooves so that the animal experiences different levels of difficulty in the recovery of the treats from the respective grooves. Additionally, a second liquid or paste treat 26, such as peanut butter or soft cheese, can be placed in the grooves, as from a dispenser 28. This type of treat will be retained by adhesion. This allows the animal to enjoy more than one treat with the same toy. A further embodiment of the invention is shown in Figure 7 wherein the side wall 12 of pet toy product T is provided with raised portions 30 which form laterally spaced grooves 32, 34 and 36, respectively. As shown, these grooves can be supplied with one or more treats 18. A still further embodiment of this invention is shown in Figures 8 and 9 wherein the side wall 12 of pet toy product T has a plurality of raised portions 38, 40 and 42. Raised portion 38 has a shallow recess 44 formed therein; raised portion 40 has a medium recess 46 formed therein; and raised portion 42 has a deep recess 48 formed therein. As shown, treats 18 can be placed in each of these recesses, thus providing different degrees of difficulty for the animal to remove them. In the embodiment of Figure 10, side wall 12 of pet toy product T is provided with a triangular recess 50 for receiving a hard treat 52, such as a nut. This form of the invention is particularly attractive for birds, such as parrots, which can use their beaks and/or talons in the space between the corners of the recess and the treat to dislodge the treat. Figures 11 and 12 disclose an embodiment wherein side wall 12 has a recess which extends completely therethrough to form an opening 54 through which a treat 56, such as rawhide can be received. Although separate embodiments have been illustrated, it is to be understood that the characteristics of one or more embodiments can be incorporated within the same pet toy product. For example, as shown in pet toy products Tj and T 5 , these toys incorporate a combination of recesses 12, 14, 16, 44, 46, 48 and opening 54. From the foregoing, the advantages of the present invention are readily apparent. A pet toy having various configurations is provided which has recesses or grooves of varying size and depth for releasably receiving one or more animal treats. Because of the varying depth of the recesses, the animal will experience different degrees of difficulty in removing the treats from the pet toy product. Thus, the pet toy product can keep the animal occupied for extended periods of time. The pet toy product can also be used for birds. The owner can replace the treats by inserting them as needed into the recesses. These treats can take the form of dry pet food, liquid or paste snacks, such as peanut butter or soft cheese. Nuts and vegetables pieces can be provided in the recesses when the pet toy product is used for a bird. In other words, any product to which the animal is attracted can be placed in the recesses. Since the toy is not destroyed by the removal of the treats, the toy can be reloaded with additional treats or foods for reuse. Although this invention has been described with respect to use with pets, it is understood that it can be used with other animals not usually considered as pets. This invention has been described in detail with reference to particular embodiments thereof, but it will be understood that various other modifications can be effected within the spirit and scope of this invention.

Claims: Claims What is claimed is: 1. A pet toy product for holding one or more animal treats to induce an animal to play with said pet toy product, said pet toy product comprising: a body member having an outer surface; at least one recess formed in said outer surface for receiving an animal treat; and means for releasably retaining the animal treat in said at least one recess. 2. A pet toy product, as claimed in claim 1, wherein said at least one recess includes: a plurality of recesses formed in said outer surface for receiving the animal treats. 3. A pet toy product, as claimed in claim 2, wherein: said plurality of recesses are of varying depths so that the treats in recesses having deeper depths are more difficult for the animal to extract than are the treats in the recesses having shallower depths. 4. A pet toy product, as claimed in claim 1, wherein: said at least one recess is a generally circular opening. 5. A pet toy product, as claimed in claim 1, wherein: said at least one recess is a groove. 6. A pet toy product, as claimed in claim 1, wherein: said at least one recess is an irregularly shaped opening. 7. A pet toy product, as claimed in claim 6, wherein: said irregularly shaped opening is triangular. 8. A pet toy product, as claimed in claim 1, wherein: said outer surface has at least one raised area and said at least one recess is formed in said at least one raised area. 9. A pet toy product, as claimed in claim 1, wherein: said body member has a side wall and a hollow interior and said at least one recess extends completely through said side wall and forms an opening for receiving the treats. 10. A pet toy product, as claimed in claim 2, wherein said plurality of recesses include: at least one groove; and at least one opening. 11. A pet toy product, as claimed in claim 1, further including: a treat positionable in said at least one recess. 12. A pet toy product, as claimed in claim 3, further including: a first treat positionable in at least one of said recesses; and a second treat positionable in another of said recesses. 13. A pet toy product, as claimed in claim 1, wherein: said retaining means is friction between said recess and the treat. 14. A pet toy product, as claimed in claim 1, wherein: said retaining means is adhesion between the recess and the treat. 15. A pet product comprising: a pet toy having a surface with at least one recess formed therein; and an animal treat releasably secured within said at least one recess to induce an animal to play with said pet toy. 16. A method of entertaining an animal, said method comprising the steps of: providing a pet toy having an outer surface with at least one recess formed therein; inserting an animal treat into the at least one recess so as to be retained within the recess until dislodged by the animal; and giving the pet toy to the animal. 17. A method, as claimed in claim 16, wherein said inserting step includes: frictionally attaching the treat within the at least one recess. 18. A method, as claimed in claim 16, wherein said inserting step includes: using adhesion to secure the treat within the at least one recess. 19. A method, as claimed in claim 16, including the further steps of: reloading the at least one recess with another treat after the treat has been removed by the animal; and returning the pet toy to the animal. 20. A method of entertaining an animal, said method comprising the steps of: providing a pet toy having an outer surface with a plurality of recesses of different depths formed therein; inserting a first pet treat in some of the plurality of recesses so as to be retained within the recess until dislodged by the animal; inserting a second pet treat in other of the plurality of recesses so as to be retained within the recess until dislodged by the animal; and giving the pet toy to the animal. 21. A method, as claimed in claim 19, including the further step of: inserting a plurality of the first or second treats in at least one recess.

Inventors: MARKHAM JOSEPH P, MARKHAM, JOSEPH, P.
Applicants: BOUNCE INC DOING BUSINESS AS T, MARKHAM JOSEPH P, BOUNCE, INC., DOING BUSINESS AS THE KONG COMPANY, MARKHAM, JOSEPH, P.
Application year: 1997
Main classification: A01K15
IPC codes: A01K11, A01K15