Collars, leads and harnesses for domestic animals are well known in the art, especially for dogs.

Collars generally take the form, of a length of leather or of nylon webbing which is passed around the neck of an animal and fastened using a buckle or clip or similar mechanical fastening means. Leads are typically formed from similar materials and provided. with a handle for a user and a clip or other means for releasable attachment of the lead to a collar or harness. Harnesses are likewise formed from similar materials to the collars and leads described above but usually take the form of a number of straps passed around the body and fastened to form a support structure.

It is also known for collars, leads and harnesses or portions thereof to be formed from chain or rope.

Indeed, a collar and lead combination may take the form of a unitary member, such as a length of chain or rope, provided with a ring or other means through which part of the unitary member may be passed so as to form the collar and lead. Such an arrangement is commonly referred to as a choker.

A popular material for collars, leads and harnesses is nylon webbing. Whilst nylon webbing offers many advantages in terms of tensile strength, colour fastness and wear resistance, it can be

perceived as uncomfortable, particularly so for people walking large dogs or dogs that pull on the lead. It is also considered that nylon webbing collars can cause irritation to skin, and may be uncomfortable for dogs that pull, despite the fact that the dogs in question continue to pull.

To help overcome these problems, padded collars, leads and harnesses have been developed. Typically, an extruded rubber strip is sewn onto the inside of the collar, harness or handle of the lead. This padding material, whilst soft, suffers from the disadvantage of being impermeable to moisture, resulting in a significant reduction of grip in hot or wet weather. It also degrades, looks unnatural, and the feel of the rubber can be unpleasant to both animals and humans alike. As with nylon and other polymeric materials (and indeed leather), the rubber padding has very limited (in certain cases non- existent) breathability, thus inducing perspiration or causing condensation to form.

The present invention provides, in a first aspect a collar, lead or harness for a domestic animal comprising: a first load bearing material; and a second lining material overlying at least a portion of the first load bearing material, wherein: the second lining material comprises a non-woven composite comprising polyester or polyamide microfibres in a polyurethane matrix.

In a second aspect, the present invention provides a method of adapting an existing collar, lead or harness having a first load bearing material, the method comprising the step of providing a second lining material which overlies at least a portion of

the first load bearing material, the second lining material comprising a non-woven composite comprising polyester or polyamide microfibres in a polyurethane matrix.

In a third aspect, the present invention provides a dog or cat collar comprising: a first load bearing material; and a second lining material overlying at least a portion of the first load bearing material, wherein: the second lining material comprises a non-woven composite comprising polyester or polyamide microfibres in a polyurethane matrix.

In a fourth aspect, the present invention provides a dog or cat lead comprising: a first load bearing material; and a second lining material overlying at least a portion of the first load bearing material, wherein: the second lining material comprises a non-woven composite comprising polyester or polyamide microfibres in a polyurethane matrix.

In a fifth aspect, the present invention provides a dog or cat harness comprising: a first load bearing material; and a second lining material overlying at least a portion of the first load bearing material, wherein: the second lining material comprises a non-woven composite comprising polyester or polyamide microfibres in a polyurethane matrix.

In a sixth aspect, the present invention provides a composite material used as a collar, lead or harness for a domestic animal, the composite material comprising: a first load bearing material; and

a second lining material overlying at least a portion of the first load bearing material, wherein: the second lining material comprises a non-woven composite comprising polyester or polyamide microfibres in a polyurethane matrix.

In a seventh aspect, the present invention provides a composite material for a collar, lead or harness for a domestic animal, the composite material comprising : a first load bearing material; and a second lining material overlying at least a portion of the first load bearing material, wherein: the second lining material comprises a non-woven composite comprising polyester or polyamide microfibres in a polyurethane matrix.

Preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a partial cut away side elevation view of a section of collar according to the present invention ; Figure 2 is top plan view of the section of collar of Figure 1; Figure 3 is a cross section view through the collar of Figures 1 and 2, taken along line X-X; Figure 4 is a perspective view of an exemplary dog collar according to the present invention; and Figure 5 is a perspective view illustrating a handle portion of an exemplary dog lead according to the present invention.

Referring first to Figures 1 and 2, there can be seen a section of a collar 20 formed from a length of composite material 10 in accordance with the present

invention. The composite material 10 comprises a first load bearing material 12 to which a second lining material 14 is attached. Preferably, the first load bearing material 12 is a conventional nylon webbing, readily available in the art. The lining material 14 comprises a non-woven composite comprising polyester or polyamide microfibres in a polyurethane matrix. Preferably, the polyester or polyamide microfibres are ultra-fine microfibres. A particularly suitable lining material 14 of this form is sold under the name Alcantarao, manufactured and supplied by Alcantara of Via Mecenate, 86-20138 Milan, Italy (www. alcantara. it). The lining material 14 is permeable to moisture, washable, colourfast, abrasion resistant, deformable, breathable and has high slip resistance, especially when wet.

Preferably, the lining material 14 is attached to the nylon webbing 12 by stitching. In the preferred embodiment illustrated, the lining material 14 can be seen to be stitched to the nylon webbing 12 along seams 16. With particular reference to the cross section view illustrated in Figure 3, the lining material 14 can be seen to be stitched to the nylon webbing 12 with its cut edges 19 tucked underneath, so as to present a neat edge along the exposed peripheral longitudinal edges 11 of the composite material 10.

This arrangement is achieved by feeding the nylon webbing 12 and the lining material 14 into a sewing machine as discreet entities. Prior to stitching, the lining material 14 is passed over a mandrel which turns and folds the outer cut edges 19 of the lining material 14 underneath the intended exposed outer surface 17 of the lining material 14 so as to form turned or folded portions 18. The turned or folded portions 18 having cut edges 19 are stitched inside (or at least contained), between the nylon webbing 12

and the exposed outer surface 17 of the lining material 14, away from view.

Figure 4 illustrates a collar 20 for a dog made in accordance with the present invention. The collar 20 comprises a length of nylon webbing 12 to which a length of lining material 14 is attached by stitching along seams 16, in the manner described above. A buckle 22 is provided at one end of the collar 20 for engagement with one of a plurality of holes 24 provided in an opposite end region of the collar 20, the holes 24 optionally being reinforced by rivets 26, as is known in the art.

Figure 5 illustrates a handle portion 35 of a lead 30 for a dog made in accordance with the present invention. The lead 30 comprises a length of load bearing material 12. At one end (not shown), a clip may be provided to provide means for releasable attachment of the lead to a collar 20 or harness, as is conventional in the art. At a second opposite end of the lead 30, the load bearing material 12 can be seen to be looped back upon itself and located at a junction 36 by stitching so as to form a handle 35. A length of lining material 14 is attached to both the inner and outer sides of the load bearing material 12 in the handle 35 region by stitching along seams 16 in the manner described above.

In certain applications, it may be preferable for the lining material 14 to be provided on just one side of the load bearing material 12, whereas in other applications it will be desirable to have both sides of the load bearing material 12 provided with the lining material 14. It may also be preferable to have only selected or intermittent regions of one or more sides of the load bearing material 12 provided with the lining material 14. Alternatively, selected

regions or indeed all of the load bearing material 12 may be totally enclosed by the lining material 14.

It will be appreciated that attachment of the lining material 14 to the load bearing material 12 is not limited to stitching. Alternative mechanical fastening means such as rivetting or stapling may be employed, or bonding using an adhesive or hot melt technique. Indeed, any combination of two or more the above techniques may be employed.

Nylon webbing has been described as being of particular utility in the present invention as the first load bearing material 12. However, for the sake of certainty, whilst nylon webbing is a material having a relatively high tensile strength, the use of the terminology load bearing throughout the specification simply means that it is capable of bearing loads. It does not imply any particular or minimum strength characteristic. The function of the load bearing material 12 is to provide support for the lining material 14. The lining material 14 is also load bearing in its own right. It will be appreciated therefore, that the present invention is not so limited and that other materials may be selected for use instead of or as well as nylon webbing. Other suitable materials include polypropylene or other polymeric materials both in their manufactured form or arranged in the form of a webbing. Alternatively, leather, rope, chain or any other material suitable for supporting the lining material 14 may be employed.

Indeed, the load bearing material 12 or composite material 10 may comprise a multi-layer or laminate structure.