The Great Dog Bed debate

Get to know other Positively members here.

Moderators: emmabeth, BoardHost

Post Reply
Ocelot0411
Posts: 593
Joined: Thu May 24, 2007 7:30 am

The Great Dog Bed debate

Post by Ocelot0411 »

Ellie has a birthday pending and as such I have deceided to buy her a nice new bed. For the past year or so she has had a folded up duvet int he front room, mainly because teh last bed I bought (and spent a fortune on!!) she ripped to shreds!! :shock:

But now she is all grown up (two) I am thinking that it will be save to invest in a nice bed for her. However, I am a bit bewildered by the amount of choice out there. What I am looking for is something really, really comfy, I would also like it to look nice in my front room. So I have narrowed it down to either a Scruffs Park Lane bed

http://www.petslovescruffs.com/Scruffs ... -1-91-102/

A faux leather square bed

http://www.petslovescruffs.com/Scruffs ... /p-91-420/

Or an Orvis bed

http://www.orvis.co.uk/store/shop.aspx? ... op_id=8909

Not sure which design of the Orvis ones.

So what I want to know is firstly what shape is best oval or square? Sometimes Ellie will sleep stretched out like a race horse, but she will often curl into a ball too. Would you therefore go for a square one to give her options?

Also does anyone have any experience of these beds and if so what did you think?

Finally I would also welcome any other suggestions / recomendations.

Thanks all!!
katowaggytail
Posts: 394
Joined: Fri Jul 27, 2007 11:37 am

Post by katowaggytail »

Well....

Firstly can't see the beds on the internet, but hay ho!

Kato has a duvet, ( single eypgtian cotton!) for up stairs, as I can't afford another £50 bed. The bed he has downstairs is oval, fabric and squishy 3ft x 2ft and can bend to whatever shape he fancies sleeping in! He also has his own sofa now in the conservatory!! I know!! :oops:

Kato's not a chewer, but if he was, I wouldn't splash out on anything to expensive - Kato's bed came from ESK.

Maybe If I win the lottery I may invest in another bed - he does love it!!

Over to you!! :lol:
Fundog
Posts: 3874
Joined: Wed Dec 03, 2008 8:31 am
Location: A little gambling town in the high desert

Post by Fundog »

Are you good with your hands? Do you like to build stuff? Well, even if not, I will post this idea for the "lurker" who comes along, just reading, but never asking.

Go to the DIY hardware store, and get some 2x4s, and have them pre-cut to measurements you need to fit your doggy just right. You will also need some 2x6es, and a rectangle of ply-wood, for the support. It shouldn't be too difficult-- you know the shape of a bed-- four posts, two cross-boards at each end, and one longer cross-board on each side, connected to each of the posts. There are a lot of choices for connecting: When my husband built the bunkbeds for our sons, he used wooden pegs, pounded into holes he had drilled. But you can use screws, or dovetails, or hinges. Then sand all the pieces until smooth, and stain, if desired. Now you need a nice little mattress. You could get a large piece of neoprene foam, cut to fit, and covered with a pillow case or sheet-- that would be very comfortable. Or you could get a large body pillow and a pillow case, depending upon the size of the dog/bed. Or, if your dog is big, thus needing a fairly large bed frame, you could get a crib mattress.

Anyway, this is just an idea for the dog owner who wants to make something for his/her special fur-baby-- a labor of love, straight from the heart. Your dog may not appreciate all that went into it, but it will make you feel good, nonetheless.

My husband is not a carpenter-- he's a truck driver. He's an amateur, when it comes to wood-working, or building stuff with his hands. But he built this bunkbed set for our sons, all himself. He designed it himself, and did all the work himself, and nearly a decade later, they are still very sturdy and strong. The boys love their beds. (We separated them when we bought a house where the boys each have their own room)
Marley
Posts: 86
Joined: Sat Jul 05, 2008 5:33 pm

Post by Marley »

I couldn't get your links to work.

This last christmas I went to 5 stores about 2 times looking for the perfect bed for my dog. She hated it and refused to sleep in it for about 3 months. She would find her old bed and curl up in it and glare at me for moving her old bed and replacing it with her new bed.

If your dog is still chewing things I would purchase the less expensive choice. I hope your dog likes her bed better than my dog.
User avatar
Noobs
Posts: 2536
Joined: Fri May 23, 2008 3:43 pm
Location: New York, NY
Contact:

Post by Noobs »

If you copy and paste the whole url instead of clicking the link, it should work fine. I think that the ® symbol in the address threw off the url tag.

If Ellie likes to sprawl out, a square bed would be great - she can curl up in a square bed too, whereas in a round bed her legs might hang off the side if she stretches out.

I got a round bed for Murphy and sometimes he hangs his head off the side and he loves it. He won't even hang out on our bed long enough to say goodnight anymore, just come up for two seconds and run right off so he can get back to his own bed!

This is the one he has: http://www.jbpet.com/Sherpa-Puff-Ball,6824.html

Here's Murphy on the bed. Taken on a cell phone in low light so the quality isn't great.

Image

Image

One caveat: those are fleece blankets we put on top of the bed, and some lint came off on the bed so it looks like there's red dye on the cream colored fabric (even though it's just lint). So if you don't want that to happen, either use the same colored blankets or no blankets at all. This bed fluffs back up if you fluff it like a pillow every couple of days.
emmabeth
Posts: 8894
Joined: Tue Oct 17, 2006 9:24 pm
Location: West Midlands
Contact:

Post by emmabeth »

Elephant beanbags dog bed... http://www.elephantbeanbags.co.uk/detai ... ProdID=893 25% off at the moment and if you do quidco when i got mine i went through quidco and got a further fiver off as well (i paid about £50 for mine, a large one).

So far, no ones trashed it, not even begun to. Abby is wobbly and old and she was a bit uncertain about it at first but now.... well this is the dog who spent the last 5 years with me saying she couldnt sleep on the floor, too scared to, not comfy enough.....

I have to prise her out of the beanbag with a crowbar to get her outside!

I have put mine inside a single duvet cover, just to give the doddery old girl something to grip on as they are VERY shiny covers (wipe clean though, and waterproof!).

Everyone loves it, if they get a chance to get in it..... Kelda likes to spread out so we had to have a bed big enough for that, abby likes to be a ball.... dilly and rocky sleep any way up they like and errol is the same though hed prefer a lap.

I normally wouldnt dream of buying a beanbag for dogs who can and will shred things but so far they havent even thought about it and I very much doubt they will (and it is reallllllly hard wearing material so theyd struggle). Also once they are lay in it and the material is pulled tight theres really no where to grip on to chew it and it withstands dogs who like to dig their beds really well as well.

Can you tell we like them?
MaiasMom
Posts: 429
Joined: Wed Oct 22, 2008 1:02 pm
Location: Everett, Washington

Post by MaiasMom »

You can spend a fortune looking for just the right bed and then the dog may not like it. Each of my 3 dogs has a different preference in a bed, Mama likes her big square well padded bed but will sleep on the hard floor if she gets a bit to warm, Tre her son likes this old ratty thing I have had for years and the father dog likes under my bed until 3am then on my bed. All three like the chair by the window to "keep watch". If it were me and you wanted a new bed, get one large enough for them to stretch out in, place the old duvet in the bed for the smell and after the dog becomes accustom to the new bed, take the duvet away. But keep it if it does not work the first time. I used this sort of approach when my dogs were puppies and I brought them home from the breeder. I bought a large stuffed animal, took off anything they could chew off, button eyes and nose. Took it with me when I went to pick up my puppy and let all the puppies play on it to get their smell on it. It was a comfort to my puppy when I got it home as they could smell their litter mates on it, they never cried at night.
The best days are spent with my dogs.
maximoo
Posts: 1111
Joined: Tue Mar 31, 2009 8:07 am
Location: South Florida

Post by maximoo »

That beanbag looks awseome but how do you clean it? Can you unzip the cover? Are the beans contained in an inner bag?

A few weeks ago I bought Max (who just turned 1) a new $50 oval bed. His first reaction was "Wow a really big new chew toy!" Well he has only slept/ hung out in it a handful of times, b/c I have to keep taking it away/followed by a stern "NO BITE!" But when he is good, he gets lots of praise and a random treat. He curls yp, stretches out, and even slleps on the back, spread eagle. I can't wait for the day when he stops trying to chew it. Usually he likes to lay on the cold floor in front of the a/c unit, where he gets the coolest breeze. Lol...

Some dogs like towels, or old blankets, but I do think a bed is a good idea especially the ones with bolsters/sides on them. They seem to feel safe & comfortable, in a place they can call their own. Basically whatever bed you choose, make sure it has a zipper, (underside is best, dog might nibble on the pull) for easy removal & washing. 8)
MaiasMom
Posts: 429
Joined: Wed Oct 22, 2008 1:02 pm
Location: Everett, Washington

Post by MaiasMom »

Something was said about laying in front of the AC, that could be part of it, he gets hot laying in his bed. Having a bed is nice for them IF they will use it, some dogs don't like them, like my Kai, never would sleep in a bed. He does like to stir maia up sometimes by getting in her bed to show her he can do it. Mostly he likes under my bed at night, in a chair by the window or on the bed at 3am for what ever reason goes through his mind. Sometimes I get up in the middle of the night to find their son laying out in the dark on our deck. The wind can be blowing and there he is, sound asleep. I think he gets hot or just wants to be by himself. I found that with the dogs that do use a bed in my house that I put them in a place where it is quiet and somewhat dim. They showed me where to put the beds, Maia in my office behind a large chair, Tre in my bedroom and he has a big soft pad behind my chair in the living room he will sleep on. I let them show me where they wanted them.
The best days are spent with my dogs.
Post Reply