COVER MEMBER FOR ASSEMBLY WITH A BEAK PART AND METHOD FOR ATTACHING THEREOF

Abstract: The invention relates to a cover member (5) for assembly with a beak part (3) of a poultry animal, in particular a chicken, comprising an at least partly rounded peripheral edge. The invention also relates to a method for attaching a cover member (5) as described above onto a beak part (3) of a poultry animal.

Description: Cover member for assembly with a beak part and method for attaching thereof The invention relates to a cover member for assembly with a beak part of a poultry animal and a method for attaching such a cover member. In the farming of poultry, such as for instance chickens, the animals will peck at each other if no measures are taken. The pecking behaviour occurs irrespective of the conditions under which the animals are kept, thus in cage accommodation, aviary systems, free-range houses, and even in the case of animals foraging freely outside. Pecking results in debilitation and death among the animals and therefore in reduced production. An effective solution for making the pecking behaviour less harmful is to trim (shorten) the upper and/or lower beak of the animals. In the Netherlands at least there is a social trend and a judicial framework ("ingrepenbesluit" of 1 September 1996) whereby shortening of beaks is at least less than desirable. The most important argument herefor is animal welfare. Trimming of the beak results in many cases in phantom limb pain during further life. A known alternative to shortening of beaks is selection of less aggressive poultry breeds; such selection has the drawback however that there is less possibility of selection on the basis of economic factors. The American patent US 1,877,897 describes a device for preventing feather-pulling among poultry. This device consists of a cap for arranging on an upper beak part having edges which fit between the upper and lower beak part whereby these cannot be placed onto one another. It thus becomes impossible to grip feathers with the beak which is always open over at least a limited distance. The French patent application FR 2 304 286 describes a device for preventing pecking of poultry. The application describes for this purpose a cover member which can be attached to an upper beak part of a bird by means of a pin which is placed through the nostrils and apertures specially arranged for this purpose in the cover member. The invention has for its object to provide a solution for making the pecking behaviour of poultry less harmful without physical operations on the animals, such as for instance by trimming the beak, without necessary selection of less aggressive breeds and without disrupting the eating and living patterns of the poultry. The invention provides for this purpose a cover member for assembly with a beak part of a poultry animal, in particular a chicken, comprising an at least partly rounded peripheral edge, which cover member can be attached without operating on the poultry animal in a manner such that the contact side of the beak part is left clear by the cover member. The pecking behaviour of a poultry animal provided with such a cover member will be less harmful to other animals since the rounded peripheral edge will prevent damage to feathers or even cannibalism. It is also unnecessary to remove one or more beak portions or to drill through nostrils or beak parts, so that phantom limb pains will no longer occur. The cover member is embodied such that it can be attached without severing tissues of the animal. The cover member according to the invention thus provides an economic, effective and animal-friendly solution for making the pecking behaviour of poultry harmless. The cover member must of course be embodied such that it does not endanger the food-gathering of the animals and upkeep of the plumage remains possible. This is realized in that the contact side of the beak part with cover member remains free so that it is possible to put together the beak parts properly despite the presence of the cover member. The cover member does not therefore impede collection of food or other desirable natural behaviour. A further advantage of the cover member according to the invention is that the intrinsic value of the animals thereby remains higher than when the beaks are trimmed. The economic lifespan can also increase. In a preferred embodiment the cover member is provided with a preformed surface part which fits onto the exterior form of a beak part. In another preferred embodiment the surface part can be brought counter to a bias into a form which fits onto the exterior form of a beak part. One option is to include engaging elements for engaging on the nostrils. A good fit of the cover member on a beak part can prevent an empty space being created between cover member and beak part with the associated hazard of contamination. A good fit of the cover member on a beak part is also desirable for a firm attachment of the cover member on the beak part. Placing the cover member counter to a bias into the fitting form for instance also generates a force with which the cover member can be attached to the beak part. When a cover member is attached at an early age it is possible that it will grow fixedly onto or fuse with a beak part and use can for instance be made herein of a fastening member which decomposes in the course of time. The cover member can for instance be manufactured from plastic such as a thermoplastic plastic. It is also possible for the cover member to be manufactured at least partly from a material which is flexible at room temperature. A plastic can provide the desired strength in inexpensive manner. A thermoplastic plastic can for instance be made deformable with heat such that the cover member can be formed to the shape of a beak part, whereafter it is firmly attached after cooling. Use of a flexible material in the cover member can result in the advantage that pecking of a poultry animal is elastically decelerated. In another preferred embodiment the cover member is provided with engaging means for attaching the cover member to a beak part. It is possible here to envisage one or more lips which can be bent, a clamping construction such as for instance a clamping edge, a close-fitting recess which can be placed around the beak part, and so on. Such a cover member can for instance be arranged close-fittingly on the beak part, which can for instance be realized using a biasing - as already indicated above -, temperature, or plastically deformable parts of the cover member. The invention also provides a method for attaching a cover member as described above to a beak part, for instance by means of an adhesive or using separate attaching means. The optimum solution can be chosen subject to the circumstances. It is thus possible for instance to attach a cover member to a beak part using glue or using a clamping member, bolted connection, rivet and so on. The drawback of these latter means however is that they cause severing of tissue in the animal, this being less desirable with a view to the welfare of the animal. The present invention will be further elucidated with reference to the following shown non-limitative embodiments. Herein: figure 1 shows a view of a chicken head with untrimmed beak, figure 2 shows a view of the chicken head of figure 1 with a cover member according to the invention attached to the upper beak part, figure 3a shows a side view of a beak with a cover member according to the invention glued onto the upper beak part, figure 3b shows a side view of a beak with a cover member according to the invention screwed fixedly onto the upper beak part, figure 3c shows a side view of a beak with a cover member according to the invention clamped onto the upper beak part, figure 4 is a top view of a poultry beak with a cover member according to the invention attached thereto, figure 5a is a side view of a chicken head with a cover member attached to the upper beak part and engaging in the nostrils, figure 5b shows a cross-section through the beak with cover member as shown in figure 5 a, and figure 6 is a side view of a chicken head with yet another variant of the cover member according to the invention. Figure 1 shows a chicken head 1 with an untrimmed beak 2. it can be seen clearly that an upper beak part 3 ends in a sharp point 4. The sharp point 4 results in damage soon being caused when other animals are pecked. The chicken head 1 with untrimmed beak 2 shown in figure 2 is provided with a cover member 5 which is attached to the upper beak part 3 and with which the sharp point 4 as shown in figure 1 is shielded. With a cover member 5 pecking at other animals will result less quickly or even not at all in damage to feather cover, cannibalism and so on. Figure 3a shows a side view of an untrimmed beak 2, on the upper beak part 3 of which a cover member 6 is glued via an adhesive layer 7. Shown clearly is that the sharp point 4 of upper beak part 3 is covered by a curved edge part 8 of cover member 6. Figure 3b shows an untrimmed beak 2, on the upper beak part 3 of which a cover member 9 is attached using a screw or bolt 10. This variant is less desirable from the viewpoint of the welfare of the animal but nevertheless falls within the scope of protection of this application. Figure 3c shows the untrimmed beak 2 with a cover member 11 clamped onto upper beak part 3. Cover member 11 is provided for this purpose with deformable lips 12 which are folded round the edges of upper beak part 3. Figure 4 shows a top view of an upper beak part 3 with a cover member 13 attached thereto. This cover member 13 is provided with a flattened front part 14 to limit even further the risk of possible damage resulting from pecking. Figure 5 a shows chicken head 1 with a cover member 15 attached to the upper beak part 3 and engaging on nostrils, which in this figure are no longer visible. Figure 5b shows cover member 15 in cross-section, wherein protruding elements 16 are also shown which engage in nostrils 17 which are part of upper beak part 3. Finally, figure 6 shows a side view of chicken head 1 with a cover member 18 which engages with an elastic wire 19 on nostrils 17. The elastic wire 19 can be manufactured from a material which decomposes in the course of time when cover member 18 is formed and attached to the upper beak part 3 at a moment in time such that as the upper beak part 3 grows the cover member 18 becomes rigidly secured without wire 19 still being required for this purpose. Although the invention is elucidated with reference to only a few embodiments, it will be apparent to all that the invention is in no way limited to the described and shown embodiments. On the contrary, many variations are still possible for the skilled person within the scope of the invention.

Claims: Claims 1. Cover member for assembly with a beak part of a poultry animal, in particular a chicken, comprising an at least partly rounded peripheral edge, which cover member can be attached without operating on the poultry animal in a manner such that the contact side of the beak part is left clear by the cover member. 2. Cover member as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cover member is provided with a preformed surface part which fits onto the exterior form of a beak part. 3. Cover member as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein the cover member is provided with a surface part which can be brought counter to a bias into a form which fits onto the exterior form of a beak part. 4. Cover member as claimed in any of the foregoing claims, wherein the cover member is manufactured from a plastic. 5. Cover member as claimed in any of the foregoing claims, wherein the cover member is manufactured from a thermoplastic plastic. 6. Cover member as claimed in any of the foregoing claims, wherein the cover member is manufactured from a material which is flexible at room temperature. 7. Cover member as claimed in any of the foregoing claims, wherein the cover member is provided with engaging means for attaching the cover member to a beak part. 8. Method for attaching a cover member as claimed in any of the foregoing claims by arranging the cover member close-fittingly onto a beak part. 9. Method for attaching a cover member as claimed in any of the claims 1-7 by adhering the cover member to a beak part. 10. Method for attaching a cover member as claimed in any of the claims 1-7 by securing the cover member to a beak part with separate attaching means.

Inventors: JANSEN ALBRECHT HENDRIK, LUTTIKHUIZEN JACOB GERRIT, JANSEN, ALBRECHT, HENDRIK, LUTTIKHUIZEN, JACOB, GERRIT
Applicants: JANSEN ALBRECHT HENDRIK, JANSEN POULTRY EQUIPMENT, LUTTIKHUIZEN JACOB GERRIT, JANSEN, ALBRECHT, HENDRIK, LUTTIKHUIZEN, JACOB, GERRIT
Application year: 2000
Main classification: A01K37
IPC codes: A01K37