Many Dog owners spend a fortune on their Dogs. From Luxury Personalized Dog Beds to Fancy Collars, Leads and clothing, the amount you can spend on Dog items is vast. For cheap Dog beds and a great selection of the best Dog beds then you really cannot beat the huge selection on Amazon here
As we have another round of all day Laundry here, washing all the various things the Dogs sleep on, it got me thinking about how much we have spent on Dog Beds over the years. Dozer the Dogs quest for a new bed made me think about my three Dogs and what they are happy sleeping on.
Luxury Dog Beds Or Discount Dog Beds?
The Best Bed For Dogs
Of course, most Dog owners will tell you that the best Dog Bed is anything they are not supposed to sleep on! The Sofa is a firm favourite of my Dogs, but the furballs they create are too horrendous to let them go on it all day.
In the past we have bought expensive Dog Beds, cheap Dogs Beds and all have had one thing in common. They got eaten! Three Dogs, when they get each other excited, can reek havoc on any unsuspecting item. As little holes begin to appear in the Beds they would get sewn back up, only to reappear a day or so later.
Whether we bought a posh Dog Bed or a cheap one they all got chewed the same. Trying to stop a puppy biting your hands is one thing, but there was little hope for the Beds when our backs were turned. I really have found no real difference in how long a lovely, quality Dog Bed would last over a discount Dog Bed. One may look a bit better but the lifetime of the Beds was about the same.
The Dogs have had deep padded beds, thin ones, fat ones, everything but a Gold Plated Personalized Dog Bed with their name sewn on it.
Is there such a thing as an indestructible Dog Bed? I have yet to find it if there is. The best I can find is a waterproof, heavy duty Waterproof Dog Bed 
This Luxury Dog Bed (by my standards of what I like to pay!) still has a Foam filling that will eventually be got at. Especially by a young and energetic Dog. I have to say that the Dogs have stopped chewing so much now they are out of adolescence so their destructive nature is quite low, but I would imagine that it still won’t last for ages.
Are Dogs Beds Dangerous?
My concerns with most so called durable Dog Beds is the stuffing. As soon as our Dogs got the stuffing out of their Beds when they were playful Pups we ended up throwing them away. I was worried that the stuffing could be dangerous to them. Not that they would eat it on purpose (hopefully), but a playful Dog can easily ingest something it shouldn’t without meaning to.
I don’t know exactly what is in all Dogs Beds but Polyurethane and other such stuffings must be a concern, surely?
Maybe it is my paranoia. I have never heard of any Dogs in Danger because of eating the stuffing from their bed but I am sure it must have happened.
What Are The Best Dog Beds?
Safe Dog Beds
As I mentioned at the beginning it is a big Dog Bed wash day here today. All their Beds are getting a wash and a good airing in the Spanish Sunshine.
What are the Dogs Beds?
Rugs.
We have totally stopped buying expensive Dog Beds, cheap Dogs Beds, or anything that is sold as a Dog Bed. Although Dogs would love a super expensive, foam filled, luxury Dog Bed I have decided there is no need.
Am I being unfair? I don’t think so. I look at it this way.
In the daytime they are in and out of the house. They would prefer to lie down on the hard concrete (or quite often the bench) outside the front Door than be inside, whatever they had to lie on. When they are inside they will lie on whatever there is available. We have no carpets here in Spain and I am glad for that. The Dogs see a cheap, inexpensive Rug as a great Dog Bed. Old Rugs that are tattered, ripped or torn are not ideal as a design element in the Home but neither are most Dog Beds, luxury or otherwise.
Gone are the days we have to worry about the stuffing causing a problem. Gone are the days of spending a lot of money on durable Dog Beds. I know for many they want a nice, plump bed for their Dog. In colder areas this is more important, but I have found a few old Rugs on top of each other is surprisingly warm and comfortable for the Bone Munchers.
Discount Dog Beds
You can’t get cheaper than free!
For those on a budget you can’t get a more discount Dog Bed than a free one. If you don’t have much cash, or you are fed up with expensive Beds getting ruined then a few old Rugs is perfect. I bet if you ask friends or Family nearly all of them will have old Rugs or Blankets that they are willing to give away. We have loads of old Rugs for the Dogs to sleep on. They were really handy after the Dog Spaying that Jet went through the other week. She was shivering like mad. A lot of layers over and under her got her really warm in no time.
A few of our Rugs are high quality but still they are untouched. It does seem that the lack of a foam filling means the Girls are less interested in chewing their Doggie Beds.
I think it is ideal, especially if your Dog is destructive.
Oh, they still sleep on the Sofa in the night though! It’s the best Dog Bed there is. Note it is even better than a pack of chocolate Biscuits! Strangely they have never tried to eat, scratch, or tear at the Leather. I think they know that if they did there would be no more Sofa sleeping for them. They may not be as daft as they look!
What do you think? Good Idea, or do you like a really nice big Dog Bed for your Pooch?
Puppies and dog beds haven’t worked out very well here either. However, I had an orthopedic dog bed that was essentially a small sized mattress for my elderly 15 year old Samoyed. It was about 10 inches thick and had an incontinence liner with a cover that was washable. In her younger days, she didn’t give two wits about dog beds, but always sought out her mattress in her golden years. We noticed that she had much less stiffness getting up from it. My two year old Cavalier is not a bed chewer and happily lounges on her various beds (yes she is completely spoiled and has a several, which she drags onto the spot where the sun is shining brightest), but our 5 month old puppy Cavalier is trouble with a capitol T and has to be supervised in every situation!
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We got a hand-me-down dog bed from my mother in law for our puppy that is just a pillow-like rectangle with some stuffing in it, and a fleece cover on top that you can throw in the wash when needed. Our little pupster only tries to destroy her bed when the cover is freshly washed (and she is a lab, so we’re pretty amazed), she has to mess the whole thing up again before it’s good to sleep on. She sleeps on that at night, but during the day, as long as she has a rug somewhere instead of the wood floors, she is happy as can be.
I think dog beds are pretty much things that make people happy.
My dogs choose their own places where they are comfortable. Some choose soft, some choose firm, some choose high, some choose low. I just stay out of the way.
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The Duck Toller has a doggie bed of her own. And a blanket or two. And I also let her sleep on the bed with me (she always asks permission).
She switches from one to another, several times a night.
But half the time, she seems to prefer the hard-wood floor.
Go figure.
Friar’s last blog post..I know these things to be true, because cartoons tell me so.
My dog sleeps where ever there are people. The couch, recliner, bed etc. She is small and doesn’t shed, so its not a problem. If I got her a nice fancy bed, she probably wouldn’t use it.
I love the picture of the three dogs on the couch. Classic!
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TC, that bed for your older Dog sounds like it worked very well. Definitely worth considering for those with older Dogs. Now, Puppies and Dog beds, often quite a lethal combination 😉
Kim, don’t you just love it when they walk around and around in circles dogging at the Bed? It seems they are never happy until it is all messed up!
Jan, I think you are right. Ours are by no means a fashion statement. Some people, especially if they have spare money, like the beds to look nice in their homes, which I completely understand.
Friar, that’s Dogs for you. I don’t think we will ever know what is going on in their Doggie Brains!
Ross, oh for Dogs that didn’t shed. I got the clippers out on Faye yesterday so she is looking a bit like a mad Sheep Shearer attacked her! Keeps the Fur down though!
Our dogs have always preferred soft surfaces. But they are not allowed on the couches or our bed.
My husband loves to build things and he keeps saying he is going to build a little raised dog bed for the dogs to sleep on. In the meantime, I buy cheap pillow-like dog beds that can be thrown in our washing machine as needed. The dogs also have a few old comforters for chilly nights (they like to be wrapped up like burritos).
Despite having pit bulls, which are *supposedly* notorious for chewing things destructively, neither of our dogs are inclined to chew up anything inappropriate. I throw out the dog beds if they become unwashable for some reason (usually after several years).
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Jennifer, make him get busy;)
That’s great that they never chew. Ours are mostly over the chewing stage but now we decided to just stick with the Rugs etc. Certainly easier on our old Washing Machine!
Hi! You got a very nice blog about dog! I dont own a dog myself particularly but at my parent home we got a family dog. A 4 years old Irish wolfhound female. Altough she is not as big as male of the species she is big enough to take all the place on the sofa :O) and my god if she can go on it she will do even if she dont have the right to do it. It seem like sofa is really the best bed for a dog hehehe So maybe try to find a old one somewhere for your dog . Seriously she also like to lay on a a nice rug or carpet in the sun. I think the most important thing is that they not getting cold if the floor is too colder.
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We have two doggy beds by our bed, but sometime throughout the night the dogs think they need to make there way into our bed. Usually going unnoticed because we are both deep sleepers. Sneaky little things.
Do you think that dog beds tell dogs that aren’t allowed on furniture to think they are allowed to be on the furniture?
We don’t allow our dog on our couch and she never used to get on the couch until we brought her home a nice doggie bed. Now she tries to lie on the couch all the time!!
We can’t figure it out.
I started crate training our puppies about 5 years ago. We find a crate that’s not too big for the dog…basically enough room to turn around and lay down. We put an inexpensive towel on the bottom, because they tend to cry and chew the first few days. But just like letting a baby cry themselves to sleep when they’re old enough, after 1 – 3 days, they seem to get adjusted. And now all of our dogs put themselves to bed at night in their crate. We usually upgrade the old towel to a nicer crate pad once they are use to the crate, but it’s great because is becomes their little safe haven. We’ve moved away from <a href=”www.dogbedsandmore.com”title=”dog beds” entirely to the crates and it’s worked beautifully. Thanks again for a grea blog!
Cheers!
Bryan
Just like us humans, dogs also need a bed that would provide them comfortable place to sleep. Furthermore, dogs with health problems such as hip dysplasia and arthritis needs special bed that would soothe the pain.
I have to admit I just let my dog onto our sofas, they have blankets on so that they don’t get damaged and it’s lovely having the dog snuggled up with you on the sofa. We did also buy a dog bed online but she hardly uses that lol as prefers to be closer to someone, she’s a very friendly dog lol.