Automatic injection apparatus

In an automatic apparatus for injecting fluids into animals, having:

• a housing having a planar work surface;
• a reservoir of fluid;
• a hypodermic syringe supplied with fluid by said reservoir, the hypodermic needle of said syringe being positioned opposite an opening in said planar work surface, the axis of stroke of said hypodermic needle being at an acute angle with respect to said work surface;
• syringe drive means for cyclically moving said syringe from a retracted to an extended position so as to reciprocate said needle through said opening, said drive means actuating said syringe while in said extended position;
• switch means for cycling said syringe drive means, the actuating member of said switch means protruding through said work surface adjacent said opening;
• the improvement comprising:
• a rigid retention plate hindedly joined at its bottom end to said work surface, said retention plate being pivotable about said hinged joint from a lowered position against said work surface, said retention plate having,
• a planar bottom surface which conforms generally to said planar work surface when said retention plate is in said lowered position,
• a cylindrically curved top surface for accepting the animal member to be injected,
• side retaining walls extending upwardly from opposite sides of said planar bottom surface,
• a spring member for biasing said retention plate away from said lowered position, and
• an elongated aperture through said retention plate,
• said retention plate being located on said sloped surface whereby said aperture is aligned with said opening to allow passage of said needle therethrough, and whereby lowering said retention plate to said lowered position causes said retention plate botton surface to operate said actuating member of said switch means.