VARIABLE-WIDTH KICK GATE

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to livestock squeeze chutes, also known as cattle crushes, and more particularly to a livestock squeeze chute with a kick gate at the admission end of the squeeze area to protect a user against rearward kicking by an animal held therein.

BACKGROUND

In the field of livestock squeeze chutes, it is known to construct a squeeze chute in which a veterinary cage resides behind the squeeze area of the crush and is accessed by a split veterinary gate whose lower gate features solid cladding and can be swung inwardly into a deployed position reaching across the rear end of the squeeze area to provide protection for the veterinarian against rearward kicking by the animal held in the squeeze area.

To prevent risk of injury to the operator, it is known to design foot-operated kick gates that are kicked by the operator into the closed position, whereupon the kick gate will automatically lock itself in place using a spring-loaded latch or lock bolt. The operator therefore doesn’t risk injury by having to reach into the veterinary cage to deploy the kick gate.

However, there remains room for improvement in foot-operated kick gates, in which response to which Applicant has developed a novel and inventive kick gate design.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a livestock squeeze chute comprising:

a frame having an entrance at one end an exit at an opposing end spaced therefrom in a longitudinal direction;

first and second squeeze panels movably supported on the frame between the entrance and the exit in positions residing opposite one another in a lateral direction that lies transverse to said longitudinal direction, said pair of squeeze panels being movable away from one another to widen a squeeze area between said squeeze panels for admission of an animal to said squeeze area through an admission end of said squeeze area that is situated opposite the exit, and also being movable toward one another to constrict said squeeze area and hold said animal between said squeeze panels;

a kick gate movable between a deployed position lying across a lower area of the admission end of the squeeze area in order to obstruct rearward kicking by the animal once received in the squeeze area, and a retracted position opening up said lower area of the admission end of the squeeze area to admit the animal into said squeeze area; and

a lock and release mechanism operable to lock the kick gate in the retracted and deployed positions, said lock and release mechanism comprising:

an upright lock bolt carried on the kick gate and displaceable upwardly and downwardly between a locking position and a release position, said upright lock bolt being biased toward the locking position; and

a foot lever coupled to the upright lock bolt and selectively actuable by a user’s foot to drive the upright lock bolt into the release position.

According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a livestock squeeze chute comprising:

a frame having an entrance at one end an exit at an opposing end spaced therefrom in a longitudinal direction;

first and second squeeze panels movably supported on the frame between the entrance and the exit in positions residing opposite one another in a lateral direction that lies transverse to said longitudinal direction, said pair of squeeze panels being movable away from one another to widen a squeeze area between said squeeze panels for admission of an animal to said squeeze area, and movable toward one another to constrict said squeeze area and hold said animal between said squeeze panels;

a kick gate movable between a deployed position lying across a lower area of the admission end of the squeeze area in order to obstruct rearward kicking by the animal once received in the squeeze area, and a retracted position opening up said lower area of the admission end of the squeeze area to admit the animal into said squeeze area;

an upper gate mounted above the kick gate and sharing a common pivot axis therewith;

a coupling mechanism operable between a coupling position connecting the upper gate and the kick gate to one another for swinging movement thereof as a singular unit about the common pivot axis, and a decoupling position disconnecting the upper gate and the kick gate from one another for independent movement thereof about the common pivot axis; and

a lock and release mechanism comprising:

a lock bolt carried on the kick gate and displaceable in opposite directions between a locking position and a release position, said lock bolt being biased toward the locking position to automatically lock the kick gate in one or- both of the deployed and retracted positions; and

a lock control movable between a lock-enabling position allowing displacement of the lock bolt between the locking and release positions, and a lock- preventing position blocking displacement of the lock bolt out of the release position.

According to a third aspect of the invention, there is provided a livestock squeeze chute comprising:

a frame having an entrance at one end an exit at an opposing end spaced therefrom in a longitudinal direction;

first and second squeeze panels movably supported on the frame between the entrance and the exit in positions residing opposite one another in a lateral direction that lies transverse to said longitudinal direction, said pair of squeeze panels being movable away from one another to widen a squeeze area between said squeeze panels for admission of an animal to said squeeze area through an admission end of said squeeze area that is situated opposite the exit, and also being movable toward one another to constrict said squeeze area and hold said animal between said squeeze panels; and a kick gate movable between a deployed position lying across a lower area of the admission end of the squeeze area in order to obstruct rearward kicking by the animal once received in the squeeze area, and a retracted position opening up said lower area of the admission end of the squeeze area to admit the animal into said squeeze area;

wherein the kick gate is adjustable in width to vary a distance spanned by said kick gate in the lateral direction of the squeeze chute in the deployed position.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

One embodiment of the invention will now be described in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a livestock squeeze chute featuring a veterinary cage with a unique kick gate configuration according to the present invention.

Figure 2 is an overhead plan view of the livestock squeeze chute of Figure

1.

Figure 3A is an isolated perspective view of one of the squeeze panels from the livestock squeeze chute of Figure 1 , showing the kick plate in a collapsed state of reduced width while in a retracted and locked position.

Figure 3B is a closeup detail view of the encircled area of Figure 3A.

Figure 3C is an isolated perspective view of the squeeze panel of Figure 3A, but with the kick plate thereof in a deployed and locked position.

Figure 3D is a closeup detail view of the encircled area of Figure 3C

Figure 4 is an isolated elevational view of the kick gate while in the collapsed state with a lock bolt thereof in a release position and a lock release handle in a lock-preventing position blocking deployment of the lock bolt into a locking position.

Figure 5 is an isolated elevational view of the kick gate while in the collapsed state with the lock release handle swung into a lock-enabling position and with the lock bolt deployed into the locking position.

Figure 6 is an isolated elevational view of the kick gate of Figure 4, but in an expanded state of increased width. Figure 7 is an isolated perspective view of the kick gate of Figure 6.

Figure 8 is a partially sectioned elevational view of the kick gate, with the lock bolt in the release position and the lock release handle in the lock-preventing position, like Figure 4.

Figure 9 is a partially sectioned elevational view of the kick gate of Figure

8 after swinging of the lock release handle into the lock-enabling position, but prior to deployment of the lock bolt to the locking position.

Figure 10 is a partially sectioned elevational view of the kick gate of Figure

9 after deployment of the lock bolt into the locking position.

Figure 10A is a closeup detail view of the encircled area of Figure 10. Figure 1 1 is a partially sectioned elevational view of the kick gate of Figure

10 after actuation of a foot lever to lift the lock bolt back into the release position.

Figure 1 1 A is a closeup detail view of the encircled area of Figure 11. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Figure 1 shows a squeeze chute 10 according to the present invention. In a known manner, the chute 10 has a stationary rigid frame with a rectangular ground- level base 12 featuring two elongated side beams 14 that lie parallel to one another in a longitudinal direction of the chute 10 and two shorter end beams 16 (one of which can be seen in Figure 1 ) that perpendicularly interconnect the side beams 14 at respective ends thereof. These end beams 16 lie perpendicularly transverse to the side beams in a lateral direction of the chute, and denote longitudinally opposing front and rear ends 18, 20 of the chute 10. At the corners of the rectangular base 12, four respective posts 22 stands vertically upward therefrom to carry an upper subframe 12a of generally matching rectangular configuration to the base 12, thus having two longitudinal side beams 14a lying parallel to and above those of the base 12, and two shorter end beams 16a lying parallel to and above those of the base 12. At the rear end 20 of the chute, the end beams 16, 16a and the upright posts 22 delimit a rectangular entrance 23 at which a laterally sliding entrance door 24 is installed to selectively enable entrance of an individual livestock animal into the chute by opening the sliding entrance door 24 via a door control handle 24a. Likewise, at the front end of the chute, the end beams 16, 16a and the upright posts 22 delimit a rectangular exit through which a livestock animal can exit the chute. This front end of the chute is also equipped with a head gate 26 operable to close against opposing sides of the animal’s neck via a head gate actuating lever 26a. A head holder is also installed at the front end of the chute to additionally stabilize the animals neck from above and below when closed via a head holder actuating lever 27a.

Suspended between the base and the upper subframe are a pair of movable squeeze panels 28a, 28b of the chute, each lying longitudinally of the frame along a respective side thereof. The squeeze panels 28a, 28b are supported on the frame by a series of movable links that cooperate with a squeeze panel actuating lever 28c near the front end 18 of the chute to form a control linkage by which the squeeze panels 28a, 28b are movable toward and away from one another in the lateral direction of the chute. A squeeze area 29 between the two squeeze panels 28a, 28b is thus adjustable in width via the control linkage. Moving the squeeze panels away from one another widens the squeeze area 29 to enable initial admission of an animal to said squeeze area, while moving the squeeze panels toward one another constricts said squeeze area 29 after the animal has been admitted thereto. The two squeeze panels 28a, 28b thus push against the sides of the animal’s body, thereby cooperating with the closed head gate 26 and head holder 27 to hold the animal still in the squeeze area 29 of the chute 10.

With reference to the individual squeeze panel 28a shown in Figure 3, each squeeze panel 28a, 28b features a rectangular perimeter structure 30 having horizontal upper and lower beams 32a, 32b lying parallel to the side beams 14, 14a of the frame, and vertical end posts 34a, 34b perpendicularly connecting the upper and lower beams 32a, 32b at the front and rear ends thereof. Access gates collectively and substantially fill the interior panel space bound by the perimeter structure. The illustrated example includes a pair of vertically hinged and optionally removable partial- access upper access gates 36a, 36b of skeletal ladder-shaped construction that are both mounted inside the open frame of a larger full-access upper gate 37 that is vertically hinged to one of the end posts 34b. A solid lower access gate 40 is likewise hinged to one of the end posts 34b. Depending on whether upper body, lower body or full body access to the animal is required, a different combination of one or more of these access gates of the squeeze panel 28a, 28b may be opened.

The rear end posts 34b of the squeeze panels denote a rear end of the squeeze area 29. This rear end of the squeeze area 29 is also referred to herein as the admission end of the squeeze area 29 since it is through this end that the animal is admitted to the squeeze area. Between this rear admission end of the squeeze area and the rear entrance 23 of the overall chute 10 is a veterinary cage 37 by which a veterinarian can inspect and treat the rear of the animal that is being held in the squeeze area 29. Opposing side walls of the veterinary cage are defined by a pair of cage panels 42a, 42b, each of which is carried by and forms an extension of, a respective one of the squeeze panels 28a, 48b. Like the squeeze area between the squeeze panels, the cage area 38 between the cage panels is thus of a variable width that expands under separation of the squeeze panels 28a, 28b away from one another when the control linkage is operated in a squeeze-opening direction, and contracts under convergence of the squeeze panels 28a, 28b toward one another when the control linkage is operated in a squeeze-closing direction.

In the illustrated embodiment, each cage panel 42a, 42b features a rectangular perimeter structure featuring upper and lower beams 48, 50 that lie horizontally parallel to the upper and lower beams 32a, 32b of the respective squeeze panel 28a, 28b, and that reach rearwardly from the rear post 34b of the respective squeeze panel. A rear post 51 of each cage panel’s perimeter structure vertically and perpendicularly connects the upper and lower beams 48, 50 at the rear ends thereof furthest from the post 34b shared by the respective squeeze panel. The perimeter structure of each cage panel 42a, 42b is coplanar with the respective squeeze panel 28a, 28b and thus forms an in-line extension thereof running along the same side of the squeeze chute frame. One of the two cage panels 42a, particularly that which is shown in Figure 3, features a split gate comprised of an unclad skeletal upper gate 52 and a cladded adjustable-width kick gate 54 mounted beneath the unclad skeletal upper gate 52. The upper gate 52 features a vertically upright hollow front post 55 rotatably disposed around a vertically upright pivot shaft that spans between the upper and lower beams 48, 50 of the cage panel 42a, and a series of cross-bars 56 extending horizontally from the front post 55 at different elevations thereon to a rear post 57 of the upper gate 52. One of the cross-bars 56 carries a spring-loaded latch 58, whose latch bolt 58a is engageable with a respective latch lug mounted on the cage panel’s rear post 51 to normally lock this upper gate 52 in a closed position spanning across an upper area of the open interior space of the cage panel’s perimeter structure, thus closing off access to the respective side of the cage area 38. The closed position of the upper gate 52 is shown in Figure 3. To gain access to the veterinary cage, the operator must release the latch 58 and swing the upper gate 52 outwardly from the cage panel 42a into an open position, as shown in Figures 1 and 2.

The cladded kick gate 54 features a vertically upright hollow tubular post 60 rotatably disposed around the same vertically upright pivot shaft as the hollow front post 55 of the upper gate 52, whereby the upper gate 52 and the kick gate 54 both have a hinged connection to the same upright pivot shaft for pivotal movement about a common pivot axis.

Turning to Figures 4 through 7, the kick gate 54 is a variable width gate formed of two sections, namely a mounting section 62 that includes the hollow tubular post 60 of the kick gate’s hinged connection, and a moveable section 64 that slidably mated with the mounting section 62. The mounting section features an upper beam 66 projecting perpendicularly and horizontally from the hollow tubular post 60 at or adjacent to the top end thereof, and a parallel lower beam 68 projecting perpendicularly and horizontally from the hollow tubular post 60 at or adjacent to the bottom end thereof. At or near the distal ends of its parallel upper and lower beams 66, 68, the mounting section 62 features a vertically upright brace 70 spanning perpendicularly between the upper and lower beams 66, 68. A sheet of solid cladding material 72 is affixed to an inner side of the kick gate’s mounting section to fully close off the rectangular area bound by the hollow tubular post 60, upper and lower beams 66, 68 and brace 70.

The movable section 64 of the kick gate 54 features a horizontally- extending open-bottomed upper channel 74 slidably embracing over the upper beam 66 of the mounting section 62, a horizontal open-topped lower channel 76 slidably embracing the underside of the lower beam 68 of the mounting section 62, and a terminal upright 78 joining together the two channels 74, 76 at the distal ends thereof furthest from the hollow tubular post 60 of the mounting section 62. By sliding the channels 74, 76 back and forth along the beams 66, 68 of the mounting section 62, the distance by which the movable section 64 extends beyond the distal end of the mounting section is varied, thus adjusting the overall width of the gate measured from the hollow tubular post 60 at the of proximal end of the mounting section to the terminal upright 78 at the distal end of the movable section. The inner side of the movable section 64 features another sheet of solid cladding material 80 affixed thereto in overlying relation to the cladding 72 of the mounting section 62, whereby the movable section’s cladding 80 is slidable over the mounting sections cladding 72 during extension and retraction of the movable section to expand and collapse the overall gate width.

The floor of the movable section’s lower channel 76 features a series of holes therein so that passage of a lock pin 79 through a selected one of these holes via a corresponding lock pin hole passing vertically through the lower beam 68 of the mounting section is operable to lock the kick gate 54 at a selected width. The kick gate 54 can thus be locked at any one of a plurality of incremental widths, each corresponding to alignment of a selected one of the movable section’s series of pin holes with the corresponding pin hole in the mounting section 62. A pull handle 82 is mounted to an outer side of the kick gate’s movable section 62, for example in the form of a down-turned handle that is affixed to the upper rail 74, and projects outward therefrom and turns downwardly toward the lower rail 76. As shown, the handle 82 may feature a hand grip 84 with finger notches on the inner side of the grip that faces the kick gate 54.

Figures 1 , 2 and 3C show the kick gate 54 in a deployed position spanning across the admission end of the squeeze area 29, whereby the cladded kick gate protects an occupant of the veterinary cage 37 against rear kicking by the animal occupying the squeeze area 29. Using its hinged connection, the kick gate 54 is also movable into a retracted position spanning across the cage panel 42a beneath the closed upper gate 52 so that the upper gate and kick gate collectively close off the full area bound by the perimeter structure of the cage panel 42a.

The mounted section 62 of the kick gate 54 carries a lock and release mechanism by which the kick gate 54 is lockable in both the deployed and retracted positions. The lock and release mechanism features a vertically oriented cylindrically tubular lock housing 86 that is affixed to and spans between the upper and lower beams 66, 68 of the kick gate’s mounted section at the outer side thereof that faces longitudinally outward from the squeeze area 29 in the kick gate’s deployed position, and faces laterally outwardly from the cage area 38 in the kick gate’s retracted position. The tubular lock housing 86 is situated at or closely adjacent the proximal ends of the upper and lower beams 66, 68 that connect to the hollow post 60, whereby the lock housing 86 closely neighbours the hollow post 60 at the proximal end of the kick gate 54. A hollow tubular lock bolt 88 is disposed inside the lock housing 86 and is axially slidable therealong. This enables downward sliding of the lock bolt 88 into a locking position shown in Figures 3A, 3B, 5 and 10, where the lock bolt 88 projects downwardly out of the open bottom end of the lock housing, and upward sliding into a release position shown in Figures 4 and 6-9, where the lock bolt 88 is fully retracted into the lock housing 86.

The lock bolt 88 is gravitationally biased into the locking position. As shown in the cross-sectional views of Figures 8 to 1 1 , one or more inserts may be supported within the hollow interior of the lock bolt to reduce damage thereto under impact, and to increase the effective weight of the lock bolt 88, thereby increasing the gravitational force that biases the lock bolt 88 into the lowered locking position. The illustrated embodiment features one such insert 90 mounted inside the hollow lock bolt at the bottom end thereof, where the otherwise hollow lock bolt would otherwise be the most susceptible to damage under the locking scenarios described further below. Just above the bottom beam 68 of the kick gate’s mounting section 62, the lock housing 86 features a vertical slot-shaped opening 92 cut through its circumferential wall on the distal side thereof that faces away from the tubular post 60 at the proximal end of the kick gate toward the terminal upright 78 at the distal end of the kick gate. The hollow lock bolt 88 features a larger window-like opening 94 cut through its circumferential wall and positioned to reside behind the smaller slot-shaped opening in the lock housing.

Pivotably mounted to the lower beam 68 of the kick gate’s mounting section 62 a short distance outward from distal side of the lock housing 86 is a lock release foot lever 96 carried by a pivot pin 98 that passes horizontally through an upright support lug 100 mounted to the outer side of the lower beam 68 of the kick gate’s mounting section 62. The pivot pin 98 lies cross-wise to the lower beam 68, thereby defining a pivot axis lying horizontally perpendicular to the kick gate 54. The pivot pin 98 passes through the foot lever 96 at a location situated intermediately between opposing ends of the foot lever 96. From this intermediately located pivot point, a working leg 102 of the foot lever 96 reaches into the interior of the hollow lock bolt 88 through the aligned slot and window openings 92, 94 in the lock housing 86 and the lock bolt 88. An actuation leg 104 of the foot lever 96 resides on the opposite side of the foot lever’s pivot point, and is connected to the working leg 102 by a connection leg 106. The pivot point of the foot lever resides at the meeting point of the working and connections legs 102, 106 thereof. The working and actuation legs 102, 104 are parallel to one another, while the connection leg 106 is angled relative to the other two legs in order to offset the actuation leg 104 from the working leg 102. The working leg 102 reaches into the lock housing 86 to engage the lock bolt 88, while the actuation leg 104 remains exposed and accessible outside of the lock housing 86 and above the lower beam 68 of the kick gate so that actuation of the foot lever 96 can be performed by depressing the actuation leg 104 of the foot lever 96 with the toe end of a user’s foot in order to lift the lock bolt 88 from the locking position to the release position.

In addition to foot-actuated release of the lock bolt 88 with the foot lever 96, a manual lock release handle 108 is also provided for manual withdrawal of the lock bolt 88 from its locking position. The lock release handle 108 is affixed to the lock bolt 88 near the top end thereof, where the lock release handle 108 projects radially outward from the lock bolt 88 through a dog-legged lock handle slot 1 10 in the circumferential wall of the lock housing 86 near the top end thereof. The lock handle slot 110 features an upright leg 1 10a running longitudinally of the lock housing, and a lateral leg 110b spanning circumferentially of the lock housing at the top end of the upright leg 1 10a.

The lock bolt 88 is rotatable inside the lock housing 86 around the same central longitudinal axis thereof on which the lock bolt axially slides between the locking and release positions. The lock release handle 108 can thus be swung about the lock housing axis from a lock-preventing position in the lateral leg 1 10b of the lock handle slot 1 10 into a lock-enabling position in the upright leg 1 10a of the lock handle slot 1 10. In order to swing into the lock-preventing position in the lateral leg 1 10b, the lock release handle 108 must be lifted up to the top end of the upright leg 1 10a, thereby lifting the lock bolt 88 into the release position fully retracted into the lock housing 86. In the lock preventing position, the lock release handle 108 rests on the bottom edge of the slot’s lateral leg 1 10b, thereby blocking the lock bolt 88 and attached lock release handle 108 from sliding down into the locking position. On the other hand, when the lock release handle 108 is swung angularly about the lock housing axis out of the lateral leg 1 10b o the lock handle slot 10 into the upright leg 1 10a thereof, the lock bolt 88 will automatically fall into the locking position under gravitational action, thus pulling the lock release handle 108 down toward the bottom end of the slot’s upright leg 1 10a. To prevent inadvertent slippage of the lock release handle 108 out of the lock-preventing position in the lateral leg 1 10b of the lock handle slot 1 10, the lateral leg 1 10b grows deeper as it reaches further from the upright leg 1 10a of the slot 1 10 so that the release handle 108 will gravitationally settle in the deeper part of the lateral leg 1 10b. The bottom edge of the lateral leg 1 10b thus has an upward slope in its approach to the upright leg 1 10a, thereby providing resistance that must be overcome with a slight raising of the release handle 108 in order to enter the upright leg of the lock handle slot 1 10.

The window opening 94 in the lock bolt 88 is wider than the slot opening 92 in the lock housing, and thus spans a greater circumferential distance around the lock housing axis in order to be able to accommodate the working leg 102 inside the lock bolt 88 in the different rotational positions occupied by the lock bolt 88 around said lock housing axis depending on whether the release handle 108 is in the lock-enabling position or the lock-preventing position. With reference to Figures 8 and 9, when the release handle 108 is swung out of the lock-preventing position into the top end of the upright leg 1 10a of lock handle slot 1 10, as shown by the solid head arrow in Figure 8, release of the lock release handle 108 from the operator’s hand will allow the lock bolt 88 to gravitationally slide downward into the locking position, thus also carrying the release handle downward in the upright leg of the lock handle slot 1 10, as shown by the solid head arrows in Figure 9. The release handle 1 10 now rests at the bottom end of the upright leg 1 10a of the slot 1 10, as shown in Figure 10.

The lowered locking position of the lock bolt 88 holds down the working leg 102 of the foot lever 96, as the upper end of the window opening 94 in the lock bolt’s circumferential wall rests atop the working leg 104 and holds the working leg down against the bottom end of the slot-shaped opening 92 in the lock housing 86, as shown in Figure 10A. This holds the foot lever 96 in a ready state, where the working leg 102 reaches horizontally from the pivot point into the lock bolt 88, while the offset actuation leg 104 is held in a raised position of greater elevation above the lower beam 68 of the kick gate’s mounting section 62.

To raise the lock bolt 88 into the release position, the operator can use his or her foot to depress the actuation leg 104 of the foot lever 96 downwardly toward the lower beam 68 of the kick gate’s mounting section 62, as shown by the solid head arrow in Figure 10. This foot-based action pivots the working leg 102 of the foot lever 96 upwardly about the pivot point, which pushes against the upper end of the lock bolt’s window opening 94 and drives the lock bolt 88 upwardly into the release position.

The upper gate 52 and kick gate 54 of the veterinary cage’s split gate can selectively be coupled together for movement together as a singular unit about the common pivot axis defined by their shared pivot shaft. A coupling mechanism provided for this purpose features a coupling bolt 1 15 slidably mounted within the hollow rear post 57 of the upper gate 57 near the bottom end thereof. This coupling bolt 1 15 is slidable upwardly and downwardly between a raised decoupling position retracted fully into the hollow rear post 57 through an open bottom end thereof, and a lowered coupling position extending downwardly beyond the bottom end of the hollow rear post 57 to engage in a bolt opening 1 12 provided in the topside of the upper rail 74 of the kick gate’s movable section. The coupling bolt is shown deployed in the coupling position in Figures 3A and 3C. An operating handle 114 juts radially from the coupling bolt 115 through an operating handle slot 1 16 in the outer side of the upper gate’s hollow rear post 57. This operating handle slot 116 is a dog-legged slot like that found in the lock housing 86, and thus features a vertically upright primary leg 1 16a allowing upward and downwardly displacement of the coupling pin and the attached operating handle 1 14 between the coupling and decoupling positions, and a secondary leg 1 16b that extends laterally from the top end of the primary leg 1 16a and blocks downward displacement of the of the operating handle 1 14 to prevent lowering of the coupling pin 1 15 into the coupling position.

To couple together the upper gate and kick gate for operation as a singular gate unit, the lock release handle 108 of the kick gate 54 is lifted up to raise the lock bolt 88 into the release position, and then swung over into the lock-preventing position in order to hold the lock bolt 88 in this released position. With the upper gate 52 in the closed position latched to the rear post 51 of the cage panel, and with the kick gate 54 in the retracted position aligned beneath the closed upper gate 52, the coupling bolt operating handle 1 14 is swung out of the secondary leg 1 16b of the coupling bolt slot 1 16 into the primary leg 1 16a thereof, whereupon the coupling pin 115 will automatically fall into the coupling position engaged in the bolt hole 1 12 at the top of the kick gate 54. At this point, upon release of the upper gate latch 58, the upper gate 52 and kick gate 54 can be swung together as a singular gate unit about their common pivot axis due to the engagement of the upper gate’s coupling bolt 1 15 with the kick gate 54, without the lock bolt interfering with swinging of the singular gate unit into a closed position properly aligning the spring-loaded latch 58 of the upper gate with the latch lug. Accordingly, the singular gate unit relies solely on the latch 58 of the upper gate for locking the singular gate in the closed position. The manual release handle serves as a lock control by which the automatic locking of the foot-released lock bolt can be disabled as desired in the event that singular swing gate functionality at the side of the veterinary cage is desired over kick gate functionality.

On the other hand, when the kick gate 54 is to be used independently of the upper gate 52, the kick gate 54 is placed into the retracted position, and the lock release handle 108 is swung into the lock-enabling position, whereupon the lock bolt 88 will fall into the locking position projecting downwardly past the bottom of the kick gate 54 and into a strike opening 1 18 of a strike plate 120 that is mounted atop and is cantilevered outward from the lower beam 50 of the cage panel 42a to align with the lock bolt 88 in the kick gate’s retracted position. The kick gate is thus locked in the retracted position by engagement of the lock bolt 88 into the strike opening 1 18. The insert 90 in the bottom end of the otherwise hollow lock bolt protects the lock bolt against damage when dropping down into the strike opening. With the kick gate 54 locked in place, the coupling pin 1 15 is raised into and held in the decoupling position by sliding the coupling pin’s operating handle 1 14 into the secondary leg 1 16b of the coupling pin slot 1 16, thereby disengaging the kick gate 54 from the upper gate 52 to allow independent movement of the kick gate 54 about its hinged connection.

The kick gate 54 is normally left in this locked, retracted position, where it does not obstruct the squeeze and cage areas 29, 38 of the chute, and thus allows a livestock animal to be loaded into the squeeze area 29 by opening the entrance door 24, which is then promptly closed again behind the entering animal. Once the animal has cleared the cage area 38 and fully entered the squeeze area 29, the head gate 26 and head holder 27 are closed via their respective operating handles 26a, 27a, thereby securing the animal in the squeeze area 29. At this point, the operator steps down on the actuating leg 104 of the foot lever 96, which lifts the lock bolt 88 into the release position, thus retracting the lock bolt 88 from the strike opening 1 18 in strike plate 120. As part of the same foot-based action, the operator uses the same foot to kick the released kick gate54 into the cage area 38, through which the kick gate 54 swings into the deployed position across the admission end of the squeeze area 29.

During initial swinging of the foot-released kick gate out of the retracted position, the bottom end of the raised lock bolt 88 rides over the top surface of the strike plate 120, until it clears the terminal edge thereof at the inner side of the lower beam 50 of the cage panel, at which point the lock bolt drops back down to its lowered locking position, which places the bottom end of the lock bolt at a lower elevation than the topside of the lower beam 50. A gate stop mounted on the inner side of the lower beam 50 behind the post 34b beside which the kick gate is hinged to the gate panel 42a limits the degree to which the kick gate can swing inwardly from the retracted position to an amount just sufficient to allow the lock bolt 88 to drop down to the locked position on the inner side of the lower beam, but prevents any notable movement past this point. This defines the deployed position of the kick gate, in which it reaches across admission end of the squeeze area, while the gate stop and the lowered locking position of the lock bolt 88 acts to prevent swinging of the kick gate in either direction from the deployed position. The inner side of the gate abuts against the gate stop to block further inward swinging of the kick gate into the squeeze area, and the lowered lock bolts position closely adjacent the inner side of the lower beam 50 of the gate panel likewise blocks outward swinging of the kick gate back toward the retracted position. In other embodiments, locking of the kick gate in the deployed position may rely on lowering of the lock bolt into a second strike opening suitably positioned for such purposes, but the illustrated embodiment using only a singular strike opening situated outside the cage area and relying on interference of the lowered locking bolt with a structural beam of the cage panel avoids the presence of a strike plate inside the cage area, where it may present a tripping hazard or other detriment.

With the kick gate deployed, the squeeze panels 28a, 28b are then closed together using the respective operating handle 28c in order constrict the squeeze area and hold the animal’s body still between the squeeze panels. The maximum width of the adjustable kick gate 54 from the pivotally supported proximal end thereof to the opposing distal end is less than the maximum attainable width of the squeeze area, i.e. the separation distance between the squeeze panels when opened to a fully retracted state furthest away from one another. This way, the fully opened squeeze panels will not interfere closing of the kick gate, even when the kick gate is expanded to its maximum width. As shown in Figure 1 , the second cage panel 42b opposite to that on which the kick gate 54 is mounted has an upright slot-like opening 126 situated between the rear post 34b of its respective squeeze panel 28b and the hollow post 128 of a full- height gate 130 that spans the entire opening of the second cage panel’s perimeter structure. As shown in Figure 1 , it is this slot-like opening 126 that accommodates the distal end of the deployed kick gate 54 while the squeeze panels 28a, 28b are being closed together across the already deployed kick gate 54. With the animal’s body held secure between the squeeze panels 28a, 28b, and with the kick gate 54 deployed and self-locked to protect against potential rearward kicking by the animal into the cage area 38, the veterinarian can now safely enter veterinarian cage 37.

Once the veterinarian is finished with the animal, he or she can exit the cage area 38 and open up the squeeze panels, head gate and head holder in order to release the animal, which then departs the chute via the exit at the front end thereof. The chute is then prepared for admission of the next animal by returning the kick gate 54 to the retracted position. This is performed by first lifting the lock release handle 108 to the release position that clears the lower beam 50 of the cage panel 42a and the attached strike plate 120, and then swinging the kick gate 54 into the retracted position using the pull handle 82, whereupon the lock release handle 108 is once again released at the top end of the upright leg 1 10a of the lock handle slot 1 10 so that the lock bolt 88 will automatically fall into locked engagement in the strike opening 1 18 in the strike plate 120. The upper gate 52 is likewise closed and locked in place using latch 58 to fully close off the side of the cage area, whereupon the entrance door 24 can be opened to admit the next animal.

The described width-adjustability of the kick gate allows an operator to select an appropriate gate width depending on the general size of animal for which the chute will be used. For example, if the chute is being used to treat young livestock, e.g. calves, then constriction of the squeeze area to a relatively narrow width will be required. In such instances, the adjustable width kick gate 54 can be collapsed down the reduced width state shown in Figures 4-5 and 8-1 1 , as opposed to the expanded full-width state shown in Figures 6 to 7. By reducing the width of the gate, the degree to which the squeeze panels must be retracted away from one another to enable the kick gate to be swung into and out of the deployed position without interference from the squeeze panels is reduced, whereby only partial retraction of the squeeze panels is necessary to allow swinging of the kick gate between unloading of one animal and subsequent loading of the next. The illustrated panels in Figure 3 show use of the kick gate in the collapsed minimum-width state. To enable use of the kick gate in the expanded maximum-width state, the perimeter structure of the cage panel would have to be widened, along with the upper gate so that the coupling bolt of the upper gate will align with the bolt hole in the kick gate in order to enable coupling together of the upper gate and kick gate for use as a combined singular swinging gate.

While the illustrated embodiment relies solely on gravity for automatic downward deployment of the lock bolt, other embodiments may depart from such configuration, and may for example add a compression spring acting on the top end of the lock bolt inside the lock housing to increase the force by which the lock bolt is biased into the locked position.

Since various modifications can be made in my invention as herein above described, and many apparently widely different embodiments of same made, it is intended that all matter contained in the accompanying specification shall be interpreted as illustrative only and not in a limiting sense.