Patent ID: 8667929

Claim:
An animal self-care device comprising: a base having an inward surface and an outward surface, wherein a rubbing surface for contact by an animal is disposed on the outward surface of the base, and wherein the inward surface of the base is configured for mounting to a stationary surface, the base defining a stored recess and a deployed recess; an arm extending from a first end to a second end, the first end pivotally attached to the base such that the arm is movable between a stored position in which the second end of the arm is in contact with the base to a deployed position in which an angle between the base and the arm is between 15 and 90 degrees, and having two rubbing surfaces for contact by an animal, the two rubbing surfaces exposed in opposite directions; a bi-stable spring disposed on the arm, the bi-stable spring biasing the arm among the stored position and the deployed position such that the stored recess receives a spring element when the arm is in the stored position and the deployed recess receives the spring element when the arm is in the deployed position; at least one of the base and the at least one arm defining at least one cartridge receptacle configured to receive one of the rubbing surfaces; and at least one rubbing surface being configured as a cartridge and defining at least one cylindrical longitudinal edge sized to be slidably received by the at least one cartridge receptacle.