The Bed I Bought My 10-Year-Old Lab Inflamed His Hip Joints. Avoid My Mistake.
I made the mistake of buying flat, lifeless beds from the store, at a high price, over and over again. Then I discovered an orthopedic memory foam bed. After a few days my dog was sleeping soundly and trotting like a puppy as much as he could.
The Night I Found Out
For 9 of his 10 years, my lab beat me to the door. He’d sit there whining, impatient, every time I reached for the leash.
Last year he stopped. He’d stay on the floor and look at me until I came and got him.
The vet said it was his age. Nothing to be done.
I believed him. It’s just that this dog mama doesn’t give up that easily.
So I tried everything at once. Joint chews. Dog massage off YouTube. Then I looked at the bed he’d slept on for years, dirty and worn and sagging in the middle. It stopped looking like an old friend and started looking like the problem.
I replaced it that night with the best one the store had. Not the cheap one. I made sure of that.
For about a week I felt like I’d done right by him. But he kept choosing the floor.
So I did it again. Another bed, another tag that said orthopedic, another price I told myself was worth it.
One night he couldn’t get comfortable down there, so I sat down with him. I patted the bed to get him onto it, the way you do. That’s when my palm hit the floor.
I pressed again, slowly, in the middle where he sleeps. Same thing. There was nothing in that bed but a cover.
He hadn’t chosen the floor. He’d been on it the whole time, with a cover between him and it. Months of nights, 12 to 15 hours a day.
His pain was coming from his joints digging into the floor, 12 to 15 hours a day.
So I knew I had to make a change.
I started by cutting that bed open to see what I’d been paying for.
A Sack of Shredded Foam. For That Price.
This is what I found inside. It was no better than the stuffing from a cheap couch cushion. That’s what my dog had been dealing with, while I patted myself on the back for buying him the good one.
More online shopping, a trip to the big box pet store, and I ended up more confused than when I started.
“Orthopedic.” “Premium Support.” These words came to mean nothing to me.
There were two types of bed, neither one helpful:
One was just like both of the ones I had already bought: flimsy, thin, soft, and priced like it wasn’t.
The other type was hard all the way through, which is just like lying on the floor with a cover on it. I knew my dog wouldn’t lay on those.
After looking for WAY too long, I came up with a list of 4 MUST HAVE THINGS for my dog’s bed.
- A top that’s soft the second Bo lies down, so he stops circling.
- A base that stays firm, so his hips never touch the floor again.
- A cover that comes off and goes in the wash, because he’s 10 and … accidents happen.
- A grippy underside so it can’t slide when my 80 lb dog pushes up off it.
“There has to be a bed out there that does these things.” I actually said this out loud.
How I Found It
The next day I saw an ad for the Dog Friendly Co Bed and tapped on it.
“Is my phone spying on me?” I wondered.
The bed was exactly what I said I needed. At least, it claimed to be. I wasn’t ready to just believe everything the website said.
Honestly, it sounded too good to be true. And it was $189, which was less than I had already wasted. It had a money-back guarantee, so I took the leap. I had to try it out.
When the bed arrived, I performed the test I’d done on so many other beds. I pressed on the bed hard with my hand.
The top was soft and comfortable, but then I got to a firmer base underneath. This base wasn’t too hard, but it didn’t give nearly as much as the top. I couldn’t touch the floor.
The more important test: I put my dog on the bed.
He loved it, but it took him a few days. More on that in a minute.
Why This Bed Is Different
The top part is cut like an egg carton, dozens of soft bumps, so my dog’s hips land on many supportive points instead of one hard spot.
That matters for supporting my dog’s boniest or heaviest parts.
The firm base isn’t just another hard surface under the soft top. It’s just the right mix of firmness and softness, so there’s none of the sagging that could cause my dog’s spine or hips to be misaligned, but there are also no hard contact points.
Cheap beds have bumps too. But what nobody tells you is the importance of this special supportive layer underneath.
That layer is also the part they guarantee. 10 years, in writing, against sagging. If it ever flattens out the way the store beds did, they replace it free.
“A lot of dogs come to us with stiffness, joint pain and early signs of arthritis. That’s why I recommend the Dog Friendly Co. bed. The egg-crate foam takes the pressure off their joints, so they actually rest.”
Dr. Gianne FicatasBoronia Veterinary Clinic and Hospital
Trusted by more than 700,000 dog owners
More than 700,000 dog owners have bought from Dog Friendly Co. Here are three, in their own words:
It took Bo two nights to really settle in. You know what they say about old dogs…
The first night he walked past the Dog Friendly Co bed and lay down on the floor. I couldn’t get him to even try it.
The second night I carried the old bed out. He circled twice and lay down, and the top sank where his elbows and his hips landed…
But no part of him was anywhere near the floor.
He fell asleep and stayed there all night.
“He’s a big boy (70lbs) and his back legs aren’t that great. His limp has lessened when getting out of his bed.” Autumn N., verified buyer
Bo gets up on the first try most mornings now. He’s not a puppy again, but I feel like I’ve turned back time just a little bit, just like I had hoped.
He stands right up, goes to his water bowl, and eats his breakfast.
Was This Too Expensive?
$189 for a bed that put the spring back in my dog’s step?
Absolutely not. I had already spent more than that on beds that did nothing. This one I have never regretted.
One thing that made it much easier, though, was the money-back guarantee.
There’s not much you can do about your dog getting old. This, you can do.
Every night on it is a night off the floor.
Premium Orthopedic Memory Foam Bed
- Keeps your dog’s hips off the floor
- No flat spots for 10 years
- Cover unzips and goes in the wash
- 60 nights to change your mind
Trusted by more than 700,000 dog owners · Free US shipping · Sizes, weights and colors on the next page
Premium Orthopedic Memory Foam Bed
Trusted by 700,000+ dog owners
- Keeps your dog’s hips off the floor
- No flat spots for 10 years
- Cover unzips and goes in the wash
- 60 nights to change your mind
Free US shipping · Sizes and colors on the next page
60-night money-back guarantee
If you aren’t satisfied with this bed, for any reason, all you have to do is reach out to the Dog Friendly Co and tell them so.
They will refund your money, no question asked.
They tell me this doesn’t happen very often. But the point of the guarantee is to help you feel comfortable giving your dog a chance to try this bed.
Don’t forget, the Dog Friendly Co bed is firmer than the bed your dog is used to.
That’s the point.
But that means some dogs might circle it for a night or two before they settle in. Bo took two nights. But once he actually tried it, he never slept on the floor again.
“He just didn’t like it. When I reached out, they immediately said it wasn’t a problem. I received a full refund within a week. They just asked me to send them a few pictures. That is definitely worth trying a bed out!” Michelle, Trustpilot
If you’re worried that your dog isn’t going to like it, you can stop worrying. That’s why the Dog Friendly Co bed comes with such a generous guarantee.
If your dog isn’t sleeping on it by night 60, they’ll refund the entire purchase price.
Believe me, I checked before I ordered mine. I would have been happy with a 30-night guarantee! 60 nights is more than long enough to know if this is going to work for your dog.
The Dog Friendly Co bed also comes with a 10-year no-sag guarantee. $189 doesn’t feel so bad when you know it’s going to last 10 years, does it?
10-year no-sag guarantee, washable cover, 3 sizes
What if my dog won’t use it?
Some take a night, some take a few. One owner, on day 3: “He’s still getting used to it but took a long nap on day 3.”
If yours isn’t sleeping on it by night 60, it goes back and you get every cent.
Will it go flat like the last one?
There’s a 10-year no-sag guarantee on the base, in writing. If it ever goes flat, they replace it free.
One owner’s first one is 3 years in, and she just bought a second one for her puppy.
Which size, and is it big enough?
Measure your dog nose to base of tail, lying down. That measurement should fit the sleeping surface, the part inside the bolsters, not the outside of the bed.
Large is 34 by 25 inches, Medium 30 by 22, Small 22 by 16. Between two sizes, go up.
Bo is 80 pounds and on the Large. The weight guide is on the next page.
Can a stiff dog get onto it?
The sleeping surface is 5.5 inches of foam on the Large and Medium, a step up, not a climb. Bo is 80 pounds with bad hips and steps onto it.
A dog who sleeps stretched flat drapes over the bolster. That’s what it’s there for, and a head resting higher than the shoulders is easier on a stiff neck.
Is it too firm?
The base is firm. The top isn’t. Your dog lies on the soft part, and the firm part is what keeps the hips off the floor.
What about accidents?
The cover unzips, it’s water resistant, and it goes in the machine. He’s 10. That one mattered to me.
When does it arrive?
3 to 5 business days, free shipping in the US. That’s 3 to 5 more nights on the old bed. Then none.
Test Your Dog’s Bed Now. Then, Order Your Dog Friendly Co Bed for a Risk-Free 60-Night Trial
Your dog is going to go to sleep on his old bed again tonight. If you haven’t checked it, do it now.
If it’s firm enough to keep your dog comfortable and healthy, ignore everything I just said. You had better luck (or skill) than I did trying to help my old Bo.
But if your hand finds the floor, you’ll know something it took me Bo’s whole life to learn.
If that’s the case, don’t wait. Order your Dog Friendly Co bed now. When it arrives, put it where the old one was. It won’t take 60 nights for you to see a change in how your dog behaves in the mornings.
I hope this does as much for your dog’s comfort and wellbeing as it did for my Bo.
Taylor Webb, and Bo
Risk Free, 60-Night Money Back Guarantee · 10-year no-sag guarantee · Free US shipping