Teat tube

Claim 1

IN COMBINATION, A THIN-WALLED, FLEXIBLE, TUBULAR MEMBER FOR INSERTION THROUGH A TEAT ORIFICE AND SPHINCTER MUSCLE INTO THE STREAK CANAL OF A MILK ANIMAL, COMPRISING: AN UPPER END SHAPED FOR EASY INSERTION THROUGH THE TEAT ORIFICE AND SPHINCTER MUSCLE; A CENTRAL BODY PORTION; A LOWER SECTION COMPOSED OF A SUBSTANTIALLY RIGID NECK ADAPTED TO BE RETAINED IN A POSITION EXTENDING THROUGH THE TEAT ORIFICE, SAID RIGID NECK BEING SLIGHTLY LARGER AT THE END NEAREST THE CENTRAL BODY PORTION THAN AT THE LOWER END TO HELP RETAIN THE TUBULAR MEMBER HIGHER IN THE SPHINCTER MUSCLE AND HAVING AN OUTSIDE DIAMETER ADAPTED TO BE SUFFICIENTLY SMALL TO PREVENT TEARING OR STRETCHING OF THE SPHINCTER MUSCLE; SAID CENTRAL BODY PORTION HAVING PLIABLE WALLS AND A BULBOUS CONFIGURATION WITH A NORMAL OUTER DIAMETER AT ONE REGION WHICH IS LARGER THAN THE OUTER DIAMETER OF SAID NECK BEFORE INSERTION OF SAID TUBULAR MEMBER INTO STREAK CANAL, SAID WALLS BEING CONTOURED BETWEEN SAID NECK AND SAID ONE REGION TO FIT ALONG AND HOLD THE INNER WALLS OF THE STREAK CANAL IN PROPER POSITION FOR HEALING AFTER INSERTION; MEANS FOR INSERTING SAID TUBULAR MEMBER THROUGH SAID TEAT ORIFICE INTO SAID STREAK CANAL COMPRISING MEANS FOR PLACING SAID TUBULAR MEMBER UNDER AXIAL TENSION AND THEREBY REDUCING THE DIAMETER OF THE CENTRAL BODY PORTION TO FACILITATE INSERTION OF THE TUBULAR MEMBER THROUGH THE TEAT ORIFICE, AND MEANS FOR RELEASING THE AXIAL TENSION ON SAID TUBULAR MEMBER AFTER SAID TUBULAR MEMBER HAS BEEN INSERTED INTO THE STREAK CANAL SO THAT THE CENTRAL BODY PORTION WILL TEND TO RETURN TO ITS NORMAL SHAPE TO THEREBY HOLD THE STREAK CANAL WALLS AT AND ABOVE THE SPHINCTER MUSCLE IN PROPER POSITION.