New bed for old dog at low cost (clean, rescue, chew)

[Magnolia Bloom]

Has anyone gone to an upholstery shop and just purchased a large piece of memory foam and covered it themselves for a dog bed to save $? Have been watching craigslist, but no luck.

I have a 14 YO dog with only one back leg. Her back leg was amputated before we got her 12 years ago, not a new issue to deal with, just getting a little wobbly now. For a while now, she hasn't been able to get up on my bed. She has a dog bed from a store- the kind that bunches up. I floof it out to make it softer at least twice a day. Have tried washing it. And now I have a folded up blanket on it to make it more comfortable. I've tried putting a twin mattress on the floor, but she doesn't use that at all. Tried a sleeping bag folded and placed over her lumpy bed....

The poor old gal is having a tough time and I want to give her a cozy bed. She's a dobie mix, so a little boney, and just can't get comfortable. She can't sleep all night on my bed if I lift her up there, BC then she can't get down without help- I'm afraid that she will hurt herself.


Some good info that I found online from buddybeds-

Now Lets Talk About Memory Foam
Memory foam is graded by density. All foam is defined by a series of numbers that reflect the weight and compression ratios of a square foot of foam. Most common in the industry for testing purposes, is a piece of foam 4" X 12" X 12 feet square. Precision equipment is used in determining these ratios.

Memory foam is graded by density. It is stated in terms of "lbs". The higher the number - the better quality and firmer the memory foam will be.

Common Memory Foam on the market today:

* 3lb. density - this is an adequate quality, but often loses it's memory over time. Many cheaper memory foam dog beds use this foam - that is what keeps their cost down.

* 4lb. density - if you have a memory foam topper on your bed -- it is most likely a 4 lb. density

* 5lb. density - this is the highest quality available in the market. It is the firmest of the memory foams. This is the only quality memory foam Buddy Beds uses for our orthopedic memory foam dog beds!

Orthopedic memory foam molds and contours to your Buddy's body*, completely eliminating those painful pressure points which cut off circulation. That's what makes Buddy Beds the ultimate orthopedic dog bed!

*LOL- my dog's name is Buddy

[Fontucky]

Her store-bought bed was getting a little thin in places, so I just put a couple of old pillows under it... problem solved.

[FiveHorses]

Originally Posted by Magnolia Bloom

Has anyone gone to an upholstery shop and just purchased a large piece of memory foam and covered it themselves for a dog bed to save $?

Yes - although to my knowledge, "memory foam" such as it is, was not available where we lived (overseas) or hadn't been invented yet (about eight years or so ago). We went into a sort of nursing/home care supply store and bought the best egg crate type foam for our rottie. He was severely arthritic. I used single comforter covers folded in half - easy wash and dry!

LOL - Recently we bought a sewing machine for the very purpose of being able to whip up various bedding covers, coats, etc. for dogs and cats. Aside from being able to make covers that you can just change and wash, you can find end bits of fabric that didn't sell/wrong season (good bargains on fleece this time of year!) for very reasonable money. I don't have a large selection where I live, but I'm usually able to find something. I have saved an absolute fortune. Plus, I like doing it - it's very satisfying to make a soft, warm bed cover and have the dog jump in, snuffle around and look very content as he/she settles down.

[brightdoglover]

Some dogs do fine with an old blanket or quilt. I've found that my less-mobile seniors don't take to very soft beds because they can't get their balance together. They think something like carpeting (maybe with a blanket to bunch up) is just fine.

[steelstress]

I did just that. Bought a memory foam mattress topper at one of those discount close-out stores. Then I took a vinyl shower curtain liner, cut it to size so I can wrap it around the foam like a Xmas present. Duct taped it so there where no exposed edges. This way, I don't have to worry about the foam getting soiled, only have to wipe the vinyl with vinegar/water solution.

Then I took a piece of fleece fabric and made a cover for it, much like a pillow sham, without the fancy flouncies around the edges. Or just make a pillow case style cover.

I ended up making crate pads with it, too. I also get off of Craig's List egg crate foam for beds and pads, and do the same thing.

[Thursday007]

Baby Crib Mattresses

Memory foam and any type of pillow or soft surfaces will hold the smell of a dog and dirt and germs and the dogs eventually chewed up the foam into pieces. I went on Craigslist and Garage Sales and Second hand baby stores and for $10 -$15 got a couple baby crib mattresses (I also found a toddler bed to use in the living room). I bought the fitted crib sheets for the mattresses on ebay (red to match my throw pillows in the living room and another for the downstairs family room).

The nice parts about the crib mattress is you can remove and wash the sheets for them and wipe the mattresses themselves down with a bleach product to clean them off and the dogs won't chew up the foam.

I have two mattresses in the living room one on top of the toddler bed and the other I can slide out from underneath it when I have additional rescue dogs here or dogs that can't get up that high on their own. I got three throw pillows and it just looks like a love seat.

I've posted this photo before, but here is the toddler bed with the slide out mattress and the different size dogs. Unfortunately, the fitted crib sheets were in the wash when I took this photo so it doesn't look as neat and tidy in the picture as it normally does. Also the bottom one on the floor in the photo was actually the foam from an old large sofa cushion I ended up throwing away and replacing it with another crib mattress because it smelled so bad and got chewed up.

[mrs1885]

I did not only the baby bed mattress, but the toddler bed frame too. My two senior GSDs loved them! I got them used for about $30 each.

[SunsetBeachFL]

beach towels seem to do the trick here; no fancy-schamnce for our guys and gals. They just want to be near us and they really don't seem to care where. As far as comfort, use the throw-away towels you've got - no getting up or down from those. Good luck, it's hard sometimes. Hope this helped a bit. Best to you.

[Thursday007]

Originally Posted by mrs1885

I did not only the baby bed mattress, but the toddler bed frame too. My two senior GSDs loved them! I got them used for about $30 each.

Aren't they great?! I found the one I have at a garage sale down the street for $10 years ago (Spray painted it to match the furniture) which gave me the idea to use the crib mattresses and they love them and so do I - it's a win-win and so easy to maintain and clean.

Just look up 'crib mattresses' on Craigslist and you'll find them.

[dogmomof2]

My dogs have a dog bed and a crib mattress. Crib mattresses are great for big dogs. If you are interested in a Kuranda-type bed, here's a link to a site to build your own DIY: Elevated Dog Bed Like Kuranda « Pet Project