Veterinarian with Memorial-area practice scores patent for pet diet control device

Rachel Addleman

Pet owners know it can be very difficult to prevent a dog or cat on a diet from eating another pet's food. Now veterinarian with a Memorial-area practice claims to have devised a simple solution to the problem.

The U.S. government acknowledged her invention with a patent last week.

The veterinarian, Rachel Addleman, describes in the patent a magnetic pendant that can be placed on an animal's collar. When the animal moves close to the food container, access to the food is shut off. The food, however, remains accessible to other animals. The patent claims the new device is superior to previous inventions because of its simplicity and inexpensiveness. It also can be "highly decorative."

The official patent number for the new device is 7,874,265 and Addleman is listed as the sole inventor. The patent was originally filed on Jan. 8, 2009. Addleman was represented in the process by California-based intellectual property attorney Thomas I. Rozsa.

Addleman is part of the animal care team at Memorial Cat Hospital, 12424 Memorial Drive in Houston, which, according to its website, is "the only feline practice in the world with four board-certified feline specialists." She also offers animal acupuncture and other services in the West University area at 2715 Bissonnet St., Suite 505.