Animal pen flooring system

Abstract

An animal confinement pen flooring system, particularly adapted for swine farrowing operations, includes at least first and third rows of spaced-apart molded plastic foraminous flooring panels and an intermediate row of cast iron foraminous flooring panels, all of the panels being supported on spaced-apart elongated support rails in a stand off position above a subfloor. The plastic and cast iron panels each include opposed sets of hooked-shaped flanges for engagement with support rails, respectively, for supporting the panels thereon. The cast iron panels each include a boss and an opposed recess disposed on opposite sides thereof for interconnecting adjacent panels by cooperating hook portions formed on the boss and in the recess of the adjacent panel, respectively. The combination of the cast iron and molded plastic flooring panels provides enhanced comfort for swine in farrowing operations.

1 - 13 . (canceled)  
   
   
       14 . A set of plastic and metal flooring panels for providing a flooring system, the flooring panels adapted to be interconnected with one another, said set comprising: 
 (a) at least one plastic foraminous panel, said plastic foraminous panel having spaced apart support flanges on at least one of the opposite sides of said plastic panel, and    (b) at least one metal foraminous panel, said metal foraminous panel having spaced apart support flanges on at least one of the opposite sides of said metal panel,    (c) the support flanges on a plastic panel and the support flanges on a metal panel of such set having dimensions and shapes enabling the interfit and interlock between said plastic panel and said metal panel.    
   
   
       15 . The set of panels as defined by  claim 14  in which the plastic and metal panels of said set are of identical dimensions, both the plastic and metal panels include half length flanges, and the support flanges on the at least one plastic panel define recesses in which the support flanges of the metal panel are adapted to fit.  
   
   
       16 . The set of panels as defined by  claim 14  in which the at least one metal foraminous panel is of cast iron and the plastic and cast iron panels have elongated slots to enable animal waste to drop therethrough.  
   
   
       17 . The set of panels as defined by  claim 14  in which each of the plastic panels of a set are adapted to interlock with one another and each of the metal panels of a set are adapted to interlock with one another.