Dog Beds - Keeping Your Pet Comfortable

There are a lot of options for dog beds. There's designer beds, home made beds, wicker beds, cedar beds, plastic beds, beds made from towels or t-shirts, beds inside crates...just about anything you can imagine can be used as a dog bed. But no matter what you use, you must understand that your dog needs his own place to sleep.

Dogs are territorial by nature, and they appreciate a place that they can call their own. A place where they can go to "get away from it all." Dog beds fill this need.

It may not seem like it at first. In fact, when you bring home a new bed, your pet may even seem reluctant to use it. That will change over time as their own odors and smells become part of the setting.

And here's an important tip, put the bed where your pet will actually use it. What's the point of spending money on a quality bed only to find your dog won't go there because he's used to sleeping on the sofa. Remember again, dogs are territorial. Go with this instinct and place the bed near the point where he usually goes to sleep.

Now let's talk about bed types. Wicker is extremely popular, but we don't recommend it. The reason dogs seem to like it is because the creaking noise that it makes seems to be calming to them. However as a pet owner you won't appreciate wicker for several reasons. For starters, dirt tends to get lodged in the wicker and it is difficult to clean. Plus teething or destructive puppies can tear it apart pretty quickly, and the slivers can actually break off and wind up inside your dogs body.

Hard plastic is another popular choice. If you have a chewing pup this will generally survive even their most ardent efforts. Beanbags are also good if the cover is sturdy and easy to remove for washing.

For our money however, collapsible crates make the most sense. They're great for housebreaking and will give your dog and his den animal instance a sense of security. Your pet will consider this his space.

Of course you'll need something to place inside the crate, wicker or plastic bed if they don't already come with pillows. You can easily buy something, or you can make it. Dogs appreciate loose filled beds. The filling doesn't matter too much. Cedar wood chips for example work well. Loose filling is better than a solid mattress because it allows your pet to move the filling around when he paws, much like he would experience naturally.

Folded bath towels are also popular because they are easy to wash. We've even seen people make bedding out of old t-shirts by sewing the neck and arms shut. You then simply sew seams to make it into three sections, filling each section with whatever washable stuffing you want. You can also use denim filled with foam or some other soft materials, although again, loose filling is best.

If you want to buy your dog beds at a reasonable price, there are two merchants we recommend.

Recommended Merchants

Dog.com - Discount Pet Supplies - Our favorite online merchant. Whatever you could possibly want for your dog, you'll be able to find it at Dog.com

Petco.com - At Petco you'll find a huge selection of quality products including bedding for all your pets