Abstract: A fish spear (1) has a function to lure a fish (17) effectively underwater. The fish spear has a spearhead (2) and a shaft (3) connected to the spearhead. The spearhead has a spearing tip (5) to be thrust into a target fish, and a bait holder (6) for holding a baitfish (16) for luring a target fish.

Abstract: A changeable-floor type rearing cage for rearing small animals includes a hexahedral cage body having a top wall, four side walls and a bottom wall, and defining a space for rearing small animals therein. Upper and lower floor boards are inserted into the cage body through respective slots at the bottom of the front side wall. The upper and lower floor boards are independently removed from the cage body for cleaning. The animal is normally supported by the upper floor body except during cleaning when it is removed and then the animal is supported by the lower floor board. The upper floor board is perforated and the lower floor board is solid.

Abstract: A body protector comprises a plastic sheet provided with numerous air cells on one of its surfaces, and plane fastening members attached at least to the opposite end edge parts, respectively, of the plastic sheet. The plastic sheet is wound around a desired part of a human body in a tubular shape, and the plane fastening members are joined together to hold the plastic sheet on the desired part of the human body. A gap is formed between the opposite end edges of the plastic sheet when the body protector is put on the desired part.

Abstract: A changeable-floor type rearing cage for rearing small animals includes a hexahedral cage body having a top wall, four side walls and a bottom wall, and defining a space for rearing small animals therein, and a drawer-type floor board inserted through a slot formed in the front side wall into the cage body and placed in the cage body so as to be cover the bottom wall and to be drawn out of the cage body, and providing a surface with which the small animals come directly into contact. At least a part of the floor board is perforated or meshed to let liquid excrements excreted by the small animals drip from the floor board.

Abstract: A small animal rearing apparatus (1) has a frame (2) of a rectangular shape, a rearing unit having a plurality of rearing sections (4) formed in vertical arrangement and provided respectively with floor boards (15) sloping down toward the front. Spray nozzles (18) are disposed respectively above the high rear ends of the floor boards (15) to spray washing water from the high rear ends of the floor boards (15) toward the low front ends of the same along the upper surfaces of the same, respectively. The high rear end of the floor board (15) of each rearing division (4) underlying the spray nozzle (18) does not have any raised part. The spray nozzle (18) can be disposed with its axis extended substantially in parallel to the upper surface of the floor board (15). A downward rear rim (15a) is formed by bending downward a rear edge portion of each floor board (15).

Abstract: A water feed device for small animal rearing apparatus has a water feed member (2) and a closing valve (5) operated by the water feed member (2). The water feed member (2) is sheathed in a sheathing pipe (3) so that a thin annular space (M) is formed between the water feed member (2) and the sheathing pipe (3). The sheathing pipe (3) is disposed coaxially in a protective pipe (4) so that a thick annular space (N) is formed between the sheathing pipe (3) and the protective pipe (4). When a small animal touches a fore end portion (2a) of the water feed member (2) projecting from the extremity of the sheathing pipe (3), the valve (5) is opened to permit water flow along the water feed member (2) toward the fore end portion (2a) to enable the small animal drink water.

Abstract: A small animal breeding apparatus has a frame structure in which a number of breeding spaces are defined. Each breeding space is provided with a pair of parallel guide rails fixed to the opposite inner sides of the breeding space and extending from the front side to the rear side. A breeding box provided in each breeding space has on opposite outer sides protrusions which are supported on the guide rails, respectively, for guided sliding movement. A breeding cage having an upper opening is placed on the bottom floor of the breeding box. An air supply pipe and an air exhaust pipe extend forward from the rear of the frame structure. When the breeding box is pushed rearward into the breeding space in guided movement along the guide rails, the air supply and exhaust pipes are caused to extend into the breeding box through insertion holes formed in a rear wall of the breeding box.

Abstract: An air supply/exhaust device to be joined to a box-shaped rearing cage included in an experimental animal rearing apparatus to supply or exhaust air into or from the rearing cage. The air supply/exhaust device comprises an air supply pipe having a front end section provided with air supply/exhaust holes, and a stop ring mounted on a section of the air supply pipe behind the front end section provided with the air supply/exhaust holes. An elastic plug is mounted on a section of the air supply pipe extending behind the stop ring so as to be in contact with a back surface of the stop ring. The elastic plug has the shape of a truncated cone tapered toward an extremity of the air supply/exhaust pipe, and a spring holder is provided on the air supply pipe, and an elastic pressing member is mounted on a section of the air supply pipe between the elastic plug and the spring holder to press the elastic plug continuously toward the stop ring.

Abstract: In an apparatus for raising experimental animals, a cage for confining animals is placed in a received position within a cage rack. The cage includes a casing and a lid separate from the casing, for closing an open top of the casing. Slide rails are mounted to the cage rack for sliding the casing of the cage in a guiding direction to the received position within the cage rack. Downwardly concave leaf springs are mounted to the cage rack for resiliently depressing the upper surface of the lid of the cage toward the slide rails for positively holding the lid and the casing against movement when the cage is in the received position.

Abstract: A cage well suited for confining and rearing mice, rats and like relatively small animals in a germ free, hygienic atmosphere for experimentation purposes. Included is a boxlike casing with its open top closed by a horizontal lid. There are provided an air supply conduit for supplying germ free air into the casing, and an exhaust conduit for drawing air from within the casing, both extending into the casing through a side wall of the casing. The air supply conduit extends in parallel relation to the inner or lower surface of the lid and is formed with a series of air supply holes directed upwardly, so that supplied air flows upwardly against the lower surface of the lid and is then turned downwardly, whereby the supplied air does not impinge directly upon the animals, thus providing conditions favorable for the rearing of the animals.

Abstract: A cage well suited for confining and rearing mice, rats and like relatively small animals in a germ free, hygienic atmosphere for experimentation purposes. Included is a boxlike casing with its open top closed by a wirework inner lid and further hermetically closed by a solid outer lid. A water dispenser for feeding the confined animal has a spout extending into the casing through a clearance hole in its wall. For connecting the spout to the casing and for hermetically closing the clearance hole, an elastic connector cup is fitted over the spout and held against the outer surface of the casing wall. An air supply conduit for supplying germ free air into the casing, and an exhaust conduit for drawing air from within the casing, both extending into the casing through additional clearance holes defined therein, also have similar connector cups mounted thereon. All the clearance holes can be hermetically sealed simply as the connector cups are relatively pressed against the casing.

Abstract: In a water supplying system for small animal cages, a main pipe connected to a water supply source, and branch pipes connected to the main pipe are made of a transparent, flexible material such as silicone resin. These main pipe and branch pipes are detachable to be disassembled for cleaning and sterilization whereby multiplication of bacteria in these pipes can be prevented.

Abstract: A water dispenser for feeding small animals comprises a support casing supplied with water, a water feed tube supported at its upstream end by the support casing and extending into a cage for the small animals to terminate at the downstream end, a poppet valve provided within the support casing to control water flow into the water feed tube, and a guard tube fixedly supported by the support casing and extending into the cage so as to encompass the water feed tube. The guard tube terminates short of the downstream end of the water feed tube. The free end part of the guard tube supports therebelow a drip trough having a bottom wall sloping downward from the inside of the cage toward the outside of the same, whereby water dripping from the downstream end of the feed tube is caught by the trough and flows to the outside.

Abstract: A cage for small animals has on a wall thereof a mounting plate fixed thereto over an opening in the wall and a holding tube inserted through the mounting plate and fixed thereto with an inclination such that the spout of a water dispenser can be inserted from outside the cage through the holding tube and be thus held in a simple yet securely mounted state with the dispensing end thereof inside the cage. The cage also has a latch device comprising a ring-shaped catch fixed to outer face of a wall and projecting outward and a flexible coil spring fixed at its ends to the free edge of a door to form a closed loop, which is forced under tension to slip around the catch, over-riding the round lobe thereof.

Abstract: An apparatus for rearing small animals comprises a main structure having rearing spaces disposed one above another and having respective inclined floors, and a nozzle unit is disposed alongside the main structure so as to undergo reciprocation along the same. The nozzle unit carries a plurality of nozzles for ejecting cleaning water toward the respective floors and onto filth scraping blades, which are secured to the nozzle unit and are slidable on the floors, to wash away filth scraped off the floors by the scraping blades, whereby the scraping and washing away of the filth are carried out concurrently. Thus cleaning of the floors is carried out automatically after initial adjustments have been made.

Abstract: A water dispenser for feeding small animals comprising a casing supplied with water under positive pressure and having an outlet at its downstream part, a valve for controlling water feed disposed in the outlet, and a water feed tube. The valve comprises an elastic valve seat member having an annular disk portion constituting the valve seat and a cylindrical portion formed coaxially and integrally with the disk portion and a poppet valve normally closed against the valve seat and fixed to the upstream end of the feed tube, which, upon being nudged and moved at its downstream end by a small animal, opens the poppet valve to permit water from a supply to enter the cylindrical portion of the valve and then into the feed tube. A flow control rod with transverse comb-cut grooves is inserted in the feed tube to prevent excessive rushing of water therethrough.

Abstract: In a water dispenser for feeding small animals comprising a casing, water supply means having an outlet, valve means for controlling water feed disposed in the outlet, and a water feed tube, the valve means comprises: an elastic valve seat member having an annular disk portion constituting the valve seat and a cylindrical portion formed coaxially and integrally with the disk portion; a poppet valve normally closed against the valve seat and fixed to the upstream end of the feed tube, which, upon being nudged and moved at its downstream end by a small animal, opens the poppet valve to permit water from the supply means to enter the cylindrical portion of the valve and then into the feed tube; and a coil spring fitted in compressed state around the cylindrical portion to elastically reinforce the same.