Feeder bowl for a bird in a cage

#The present invention relates to feeder bowls. More particularly, the present invention relates to feeder bowls for use in cages which contain relatively large birds therein. Additionally, the present invention relates to feeder bowls that can be rigidly affixed within an interior of a cage.

#In traditional bird and animal cages, feeder bowls are positioned within the cage so as to allow the bird to easily ingest food and water. However, when very large birds or animals are contained within a cage, they often can damage or solve (dislodge) the bowl support containment mechanism. When the bowl is removed from the support mechanism, the animal then can spill food or water into the cage and floor. With many feed bowl support mechanisms, the bird can dislodge the feed bowl in a relatively short amount of time. As such, there has been a need to develop a feed bowl holder (retainer) which makes it very difficult for large birds to dislodge and/or damage bowls.

#Under many circumstances, the owner of a bird or animal will have to replace the feeder bowl periodically. Whenever the feeder bowl must be replaced, it creates an unnecessary expense to the owner of the bird.

#FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of the feeder bowl in accordance with the present invention.

#FIG. 2 is a side elevational view of the feeder bowl in accordance with the present invention.

#FIG. 3 is a plan view of the feeder bowl in accordance with the present invention.

#Referring to FIG. 1, there is shown at 10 the feeder bowl apparatus in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention. The feeder bowl apparatus 10 includes a bowl 12 having an open top 14 and a closed bottom 16. The bowl 12 includes a notch 18 which extends outwardly of the exterior surface of the bowl 12 between the open top and the closed bottom 16. A clamp ring 20 extends around at least a portion of the exterior circumference of the bowl 12. As will be described hereinafter, the clamp ring 20 is positioned between the bowl lip 24 and the notch 18 of bowl 12. An attachment mechanism 22 is connected to the clamp ring 20 and serves to allow the clamp ring to be affixed to the cage.

#With rotatably to FIG. 1, the bowl 12 is a stainless steel feeder bowl having an open top 14 and a closed bottom 16. An upper lip 24 extends outwardly of the open top 14. This upper lip 24 has a greater circumference than the rest of the bowl 12 below the upper lip 24. The notch 18 is roll formed on the bowl so as to extend around the circumference of the bowl below the upper lip 24. As can be seen, the notch 18 is in generally parallel relationship to the upper lip 24 and to the closed bottom 16. The notch 18 is seen as an indentation 26 on the interior of the bowl 12. The interior of the bowl 12 is used for the receipt of water and/or food for the bird or animal in the cage. The rigid stainless steel configuration of the bowl 12 is resistive to damage by the bird or animal.

#The clamp ring 20 includes a curved portion 28 having a radius corresponding to a radius of the bowl 12. The curved portion 28 has linear arms 30 and 32 extending from the ends of the curved portion 28. A curved flange 34 is affixed to an interior of the curved portion 28 of the clamp ring 20. The curved flange 34 has a width that is generally greater than the diameter of the clamp ring 20. As will be described hereinafter, the curved flange 34 will reside in surface-to-surface contact with the exterior surface of the bowl 12 between the notch 18 and the upper lip 24.