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On November 15, 2024, I received an official copy of U.S. Design Patent #D1,050,634 from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). The Notice of Allowance for U.S. Design Application #29888619, titled “Rope Throw Dog Toy” was issued on September 18, 2024, and the patent was issued on November 5, 2024. And on Friday, I received my official patent in the mail. This invention was inspired by our dog, Luna, a super athlete who LOVES to chase balls—especially squeaky ones. You can never throw the ball enough for Luna!
While there are tons of squeaky rubber dog toys (they have to be somewhat chew proof) on the market, the ones I (and Luna) liked the best, had holes through the center. I couldn’t throw them very far, and they were too big for the ball launching stick we have. Not to mention that, after a couple of throws, the balls very quickly became extremely yucky to hold. So, being the handy and creative person I am, I wanted to come up with a better way to play with Luna and her favorite balls. I decided that if I put a rope through the existing hole that went through the ball, not only would that allow me to throw the balls much farther, but it would also help keep my hands from getting slobbery and gross.
Thinking regular nylon rope would hold moisture and dirt, I found some plastic rope in my garage, fed it through the hole, and tied a knot at the end. And we started to play! Very quickly, I noticed that the plastic knot had come undone. So, I used a flame to melt the plastic rope knot so it would not so easily separate. And so we tried again! What I found was that, not only was I able to throw the ball much further, but the knot stayed firmly tied and my hands were significantly cleaner. Not only that, but my other dog, Dusty, who doesn’t really play with toys, would play with these. He and Luna would play tug with one another, and Dusty would throw it up in the air for himself, catch it and then run around with it. Because of my new innovative dog toy, my big boy was playing again!
We thought about applying for a Utility Patent for my “Self-Playing Rope Throw Dog Toy,” but after discussing it further, we didn’t think that we’d be able to get a patent like that issued. However, our friend, John White, suggested I apply for a Design Patent, and he even volunteered to do the leg work on it. So, I sent my prototype off to a design patent illustrator and after getting the designs exactly as we wanted them, we filed U.S. Design Application #29888619 on April 3, 2023.
Here’s a video of Dusty and Luna playing with the toy together:
