Patent Publication Number: US-2020281160-A1

Title: Edible Dog Toy with Internal Treat Cavity

Description:
RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/794,417 for an “Edible Dog Toy with Internal Treat Cavity,” filed Jan. 18, 2019, and currently co-pending, the entirety of which is incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention pertains generally to toys for use in entertaining pets. More particularly, the present invention pertains to an edible dog toy with an internal cavity. The Present invention is particularly, but not exclusively, useful as an edible dog toy with a dog treat inside. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Humans and dogs have associated with each other for thousands of years. Some remains of what are thought to be domesticated dogs date back to the Paleolithic era. Today, dogs may be kept to guard livestock, hunt, or perform other types of labor, but it is also common for dogs to be kept as pets. 
     Dog food and dog toys have become massive industries, with sales in the tens of billions of dollars annually. Over the past two centuries, dog food has taken the forms of kibbles, canned food, and treats. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Disclosed is a dog toy having a cavity for holding a dog treat or another toy. In a preferred embodiment, the dog toy is in the form of a ball and is edible. Several apertures allow a dog to see and smell the contents of the inner cavity and provide motivation for the dog to try to get at the cavity&#39;s contents. 
     The dog toy is made with a formula that results in it being sufficiently hard and durable that it will take time and effort for a dog to break through to get at the contents. The toy will therefore help clean the dog&#39;s teeth and gums as the dog chews at it. A preferred embodiment of the formula comprises wheat and meat and bone meal. Another preferred embodiment of the formula comprises rawhide. Another preferred embodiment of the formula comprises corn starch and meat. 
     Preferred embodiments of the dog toy comprise an upper half and a lower half that are screwed or snapped together, enabling the dog toy to be opened by a human in order to place a toy or treat in the inner cavity. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The novel features of this invention, as well as the invention itself, both as to its structure and its operation, will be best understood from the accompanying drawings, taken in conjunction with the accompanying description, in which similar reference characters refer to similar parts, and in which: 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of an edible dog toy with an internal treat cavity; 
         FIG. 2  is a top plan view of an edible dog toy with an internal treat cavity; 
         FIG. 3  is an elevation view of an edible dog toy with an internal treat cavity; 
         FIG. 4  is a perspective view of a lower half of an edible dog toy with an internal treat cavity; 
         FIG. 5  is a top plan view of a lower half of an edible dog toy with an internal treat cavity; 
         FIG. 6  is a perspective view of an upper half of an edible dog toy with an internal treat cavity; and 
         FIG. 7  is a bottom plan view of an upper half of an edible dog toy with an internal treat cavity. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Referring initially to  FIG. 1 , a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of an edible dog toy with an internal treat cavity (hereinafter “dog toy”) is shown and generally designated  100 . Dog toy  100  comprises an upper half  110  and a lower half  112  that are removably joined together at junction  114 . In a preferred embodiment, upper half  110  and lower half  112  are hemispherical, resulting in a spherical dog toy  100  when joined. The separability of the two halves  110  and  112  allows a toy or treat to be placed inside an internal cavity  116  of the dog toy  100 . Preferred embodiments comprise multiple apertures  118  on each of the two halves  110  and  112  of the dog toy  100 , allowing the contents of the internal cavity  116  to be seen and smelled. 
     While a preferred embodiment of Dog Toy  100  is depicted as spherical in shape, it is to be appreciated that other shapes may be used without departing from the spirit of the present invention. The specific shape of the Dog Toy  100  is virtually limitless, and other shapes could include, but not be limited to geometric shapes, such as conical, tubular, rectangular, cubical, or other more unique shapes such as animal shapes, shoe shapes, hamburger shapes, bone shapes, etc. In such instances, it is possible that upper half  110  and lower half  112  are not symmetrical in shape, but nevertheless joint at a junction  114  formed between the two halves  110  and  112 . 
     Dog toy  100  is made of a material sufficiently durable that a dog will not immediately be able to chew through it. Moreover, in preferred embodiments, dog toy  100  is made of a material edible and digestible by a dog, such as a material comprising corn starch and meat. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 2 , a top view of dog toy  100  is illustrated, presenting an exemplary layout of apertures  118  on upper half  110  of dog toy  100 . In preferred embodiments, lower half  112  of dog toy  100  appears substantially similar to upper half  110  when the two halves  110  and  112  are joined together. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 3 , a front view of dog toy  100  is illustrated, showing the presence of multiple apertures  118  on both upper half  110  and lower half  112  of dog toy  100 . In preferred embodiments, the assembled dog toy  100  appears symmetrical above and below junction  114 , as upper half  110  and lower half  112  of dog toy  100  have a similar appearance and a similar layout of apertures  118 . As indicated above, however, upper half  110  and lower half  112  need not be symmetrical, and can depict a wide variety of shapes while maintaining the presence of apertures  118 , and are formed to create a junction  114  when the upper half  110  and lower half are placed together. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 4 , a perspective view of lower half  112  of dog toy  100  is illustrated. Lower half  112  of dog toy  100  is bowl-shaped, or in the form of a hollowed-out hemisphere. The edge of a bowl-shape, which would be a great circle of the sphere formed by the combination of two hemispheres, is referred to herein as an “orthodromic perimeter” for convenience. In preferred embodiments, around the orthodromic perimeter  120  of lower half  112  is an extruded member  122  configured to be received by upper half  110  of dog toy  100  in order to assemble dog toy  100 . In a preferred embodiment, extruded member  122  is threaded, so that lower half  112  is screwed into upper half  110  to join the two halves together. In another preferred embodiment, extruded member  122  is configured to snap into upper half  110  in order to join the two halves together. For instance, extruded member  122  may be received into a correspondingly sized groove, notch or slot receiver  128 . 
     Alternative embodiments of the present invention could include upper half  110  and lower half  112  being formed with a snug-fitting dimension such that when the two halves are forced together, the orthodromic perimeter  120  of the upper half  110  is closely received in the orthodromic perimeter  124  of lower half  112  such that seam  114  is formed by pressure and friction exerted between the two halves. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 5 , a top plan view of lower half  112  of dog toy  100  is illustrated. Orthodromic perimeter  120  is circular in shape and corresponds to the portion of lower half  112  at junction  114  of dog toy  100  when dog toy  100  is in its assembled configuration. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 6 , a perspective view of upper half  110  of dog toy  100  is illustrated. Like lower half  112 , upper half  110  of dog toy  100  is hemispherical or bowl-shaped. Inside orthodromic perimeter  126  of upper half  110  of dog toy  100  is a receiver  128  configured to receive extruded member  122 . In embodiments in which extruded member  122  is threaded, receiver  128  is also threaded so that lower half  112  screws into upper half  110  to form a spherical shape in the assembled configuration of dog toy  100 . As mentioned previously, extruded member  122  and receiver  128  snap together in another embodiment in order to place dog toy  100  into its assembled configuration. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 7 , a bottom plan view of upper half  110  of dog toy  100  is illustrated. Like orthodromic perimeter  120 , orthodromic perimeter  124  is circular in shape, and corresponds to the portion of upper half  110  at junction  114  of dog toy  100  when dog toy  100  is in its assembled configuration. 
     While there have been shown what are presently considered to be preferred embodiments of the present invention, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications can be made herein without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention.