Animal litter having the property of detecting diabetes in felines

• US 7,533,630 B2
• Filed: 08/22/2007
• Issued: 05/19/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 08/22/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Healthy Happy Pets, LLC
• Original Assignee: Pet Ecology Brands, Inc.
• Inventors: Murphy, Larry J, Steckel, Ralph J
• Primary Examiner(s): ABBOTT, YVONNE RENEE
• Application Number:
  US11/843,515
• Publication Number:
  US 20080087226A1
• Time in Patent Office: 636 Days
• Field of Search: 119/165, 119/171, 119/172, 119/173, 436/95
• US Class Current: 119/165
• CPC Class Codes: A01K 1/0152 Litter
• CPC Class Codes: C12Q 1/26 involving oxidoreductase
• CPC Class Codes: C12Q 1/54 involving glucose or galactose
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 436/143333 Saccharide [e.g., DNA, etc.]

Abstract

An animal litter composition comprised of a liquid absorbent aggregate impregnated with an agent to indicate the presence of sugar in the urine of felines and other related species includes 88.1 percent +/−5.0 percent by weight of an expanded aggregate, 00.9 percent +/−0.7 percent by weight of an odor control/antistatic agent, 07.0 percent +/−4.0 percent by weight of a clumping agent, 03.0 percent +/−2.5 percent by weight of a surfactant; and 01.0 percent +/−0.90 percent by weight of a glucosuria indicator. A method of detecting glucosuria in a feline includes providing the animal litter in a litter box or in an enclosure in which the feline is restrained until the feline urinates on the litter and then visually observing the litter for a color change.

Claims

1. An animal litter composition comprised of a liquid absorbent aggregate impregnated with an agent to indicate the presence of sugar in the urine of felines and other related species wherein the components of the animal litter composition are present in the following percentages:

88.1 percent +/−

5.0 percent by weight of an expanded aggregate;

00.9 percent +/−

0.7 percent by weight of an odor control/antistatic agent;

07.0 percent +/−

4.0 percent by weight of a clumping agent;

03.0 percent +/−

2.5 percent by weight of a surfactant;

01.0 percent +/−

0.90 percent by weight of a glucosuria indicator comprising one of anthrone or glucose oxidase with one or more hydrogen peroxide reactive reagents; and

wherein the expanded aggregate is impregnated with the glucosuria indicator.

2. The animal litter of claim 1 wherein upon contact with sugar containing urine, a contacted portion of the animal litter composition changes color sufficiently to be visually distinguishable from a non-contacted portion of the animal litter composition.

3. The animal litter of claim 1 in which the aggregate is an expanded aggregate selected from the group consisting of perlite, vermiculite, herculite, rice hulls and zeolite.

4. The animal litter composition of claim 1 wherein the odor control/antistatic agent comprises an n-alkyl dimethyl benzyl ammonium chloride, dialkyl dimethyl ammonium chloride or a combination thereof.

5. The animal litter composition of claim 1 wherein the surfactant comprises an ethoxalated fatty alcohol, an alkylphenol ethoxylate or a combination thereof.

6. An animal litter comprised of a liquid absorbent aggregate impregnated with an agent to indicate the presence of sugar in the urine of felines and other related species, wherein the component parts of the litter are present in the following weight percentages:

88.6 percent by weight of an expanded aggregate;

00.9 percent by weight of an odor control/antistatic agent;

07.0 percent by weight of a clumping agent;

03.0 percent by weight of a surfactant;

00.5 percent by weight of a glucosuria indicator comprising one of anthrone or glucose oxidase with one or more hydrogen peroxide reactive reagents; and

wherein the expanded aggregate is coated with the glucosuria indicator.

7. The animal litter of claim 6 in which the aggregate is an expanded aggregate selected from the group consisting of perlite, vermiculite, herculite, rice hulls and zeolite.

8. The animal litter composition of claim 6 wherein the odor control/antistatic agent comprises an n-alkyl dimethyl benzyl ammonium chloride, dialkyl dimethyl ammonium chloride or a combination thereof.

9. The animal litter composition of claim 6 wherein the surfactant comprises an ethoxalated fatty alcohol, an alkylphenol ethoxylate or a combination thereof.

10. A method of identifying the presence of sugar in the urine of felines and other related species comprising:

providing a litter composition to be used by the feline for the purpose of urination thereon, the litter composition including a major portion of an expanded aggregate and minor portions of an odor control/antistatic agent, a clumping agent, a surfactant and a glucosuria indicator comprising one of anthrone or glucose oxidase with one or more hydrogen peroxide reactive reagents; and

wherein the expanded aggregate is impregnated with the glucosuria indicator

whereby upon contact with sugar containing urine, a contacted portion of the animal litter composition changes color sufficiently to be visually distinguishable from a non-contacted portion of the animal litter composition; and

visually observing the litter composition for a color change after the feline has urinated on the composition.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein the litter composition has a normal color that varies from a pale yellowish gray to white and wherein litter composition contacted with urine containing sugar changes to a color distinguishable from the color of non-contacted litter composition.

12. The method of claim 10 wherein the litter composition contacted with urine containing sugar changes from the normal color to blue.

13. The method of claim 10 wherein the components of the animal litter composition are present in the following percentages:

88.1 percent +/−

5.0 percent by weight of an expanded aggregate;

00.9 percent +/−

0.7 percent by weight of an odor control/antistatic agent;

07.0 percent +/−

4.0 percent by weight of a clumping agent;

03.0 percent +/−

2.5 percent by weight of a surfactant; and

01.0 percent +/−

0.90 percent by weight of a glucosuria indicator.

14. The method of claim 10 wherein the component parts of the litter are present in the following weight percentages:

88.6 percent by weight of an expanded aggregate;

00.9 percent by weight of an odor control/antistatic agent;

07.0 percent by weight of a clumping agent;

03.0 percent by weight of a surfactant; and

00.5 percent by weight of a glucosuria indicator.

15. The method of claim 10 wherein the glucosuria indicating agent is anthrone.

16. The animal litter of claim 10 wherein the glucosuria indicating agent is glucose oxidase and one or more hydrogen peroxide reactive reagents.

17. The method of claim 10 wherein the surfactant comprises an ethoxalated fatty alcohol, an alkylphenol ethoxylate or a combination thereof.