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The invention relates to a cervical restraint device for use on a psittacine bird to prevent feather plucking, self-inflicted trauma, and removal of or damage to medically applied healing aids used in the treatment of an injured bird. The device may be applied for short or long periods of time and may be repeatedly placed on or taken off the bird with relative ease.
Prior art forms of avian cervical restraint collars are either constructed in a flat or in a conical structure or a combination of both. The flat or conical circular collar is worn around the neck of the bird and extending outwardly equally in all directions to act as a physical barrier to a bird attempting to reach around the collar. The cylindrical tube collar is similarly positioned around a bird""s neck in partial or full extension to prevent the beak of the bird from reaching lower body parts by restricting the bending motion of the neck. Additionally, cloth padding has been added to prior art forms.
Many birds are able to grasp these collars on the peripheral edges, at overlapping edges, or at exposed fasteners to effectively chew the collar down to an ineffective size, release the fasteners, or endanger themselves with sharp or jagged edges as a result of the chewing. Fasteners include metal snaps, nuts and bolts, plastic strips woven through slots, cloth ties, and tape.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,197,414 illustrates a device mentioned above. This patent shows a dog collar formed as a funnel or a cone and is designated to be primarily used on dogs. The collar is used mainly to prevent a groomer from being bitten or the dog from licking wounds on its body.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,697,328 discloses a therapeutic collar for birds that includes a sheet formed in a rectangular configuration. The sheet is then formed into a cylindrical configuration. The end edges are releasably fastened to each other. The invention at hand is formed into a sphere having a continuously curved outer surface.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,779,828 describes a protective pet collar that is made of two sheets of flexible material and is fastened around an animal""s neck for preventing the animal from bending its neck and thereby prevent the animal from biting or licking an affected injured area. The invention at hand is a rigid sphere.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,787,842 reveals a radially projecting restrictive pet collar using an adjustable fastener to apply it to a pet""s neck. The collar forms a cylindrical shape which impedes the pet from passing through narrow openings or from chewing areas of it""s body under medical treatment. The invention at hand is a sphere with a curved outer surface and a smaller comparable radius.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,915,337 refers to an adjustable tubular or cylindrical shaped cervical pet collar. The invention at hand is a nonadjustable sphere.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,044,802 is a soft, round pillow shaped veterinary recovery collar with a central aperture and draw string to adjust to the size of the neck. The invention at hand is a nonadjustable, rigid sphere with two apertures directly opposed to one another.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,129,054 describes a substantially rectangular padded collar which wraps around and contacts an animal""s entire neck from mandible to scapula. The overlapping ends of the tubular or cylindrical collar are held in place by one or more inelastic bands. The invention at hand is an unpadded, rigid sphere with internal fasteners and or external fasteners additionally having two openings with curved borders that come in contact with only the upper and lower portions of the neck of a bird.
The psittacine bird has a large head relative to a long, slender neck. The neck rests in the shape of an xe2x80x9cSxe2x80x9d curve which may be straightened to increase it""s overall length and reach. This allows for fitting of a semi-rigid, hollow, three dimensional cervical collar in the shape of a round, elliptical, or eccentric oval sphere, to restrict the reach of the bird""s head and beak below the neck, thereby preventing self-destructive actions of feather picking or self mutilation and serving as an effective restraint to help inhibit removal of bandages or other medically applied devices. However, visual capabilities are not impaired. There is no interference with the movement of appendages.
The description below makes reference to a spherical form or shape. A sphere is defined as a shape which is equidistant in all directions from a central point. However, in the context of the invention at hand, the properties of the sphere as it relates to the avian cervical restraint collar, shall represent any of the three-dimensional shapes having a continuous curved surface including round, elliptical, centric and eccentric oval or multiple combination thereof.
The equator of a round or elliptical sphere is equidistant from either pole of the sphere. The equator of an eccentric oval sphere may be closer to one pole or the other thereby creating a top heavy or bottom heavy sphere. The sphere could even take on the general shape of an hour glass with two wide sections separated by a narrow section.
A hollow, spherical avian cervical restraint collar is formed by engaging two halves of a durable, semi-rigid lightweight, non toxic and solid material such as but not limited to plastic. The two halves of the sphere are held securely in place by internal male fasteners positioned on either or both hemispheres that engage corresponding female receptacles located on the opposing hemisphere.
Alternatively, external fasteners are capable of securing the hemispheres together. Each hemisphere would have one or more screw portals that retain the screw head which will be described below in more detail.
A bird must generate sufficient internally or externally applied forces to the two sections of the spherical avian cervical restraint collar simultaneously to distort the sphere to the point of disengaging the fastener from the receptacle of the locking mechanism. Removal of the collar by the bird in this manner is thus hindered by the overall properties and design of the sphere.
Clear, opaque, or colored semi-rigid non toxic materials may be utilized in construction of a sphere. Optional internal surface raised ribbing may be added to improve structural strength while maintaining a light weight characteristic.
As with prior art forms, different sizes of the spherical avian cervical restraint collar will be required to meet the physical variation of different sized birds. One size does not fit all. The avian cervical restraint collar requires selection of an appropriate size to fit an individual bird. As a general rule of thumb, the diameter of the sphere will approximate the widest diameter of the bird""s head excluding the beak. It is further recognized that birds other than psittacines will not necessarily benefit from the application of one or more spherical restraint collars.