Best Washable Dog Beds to Keep Your Doggo’s Space Feeling Fresh

You’re sitting down to relax after a long day when you start to sniff. You know that smell. It’s a combination of lingering wet-dog, corn chips, and something undefinable that adds up to just one thing: time to wash the dog bed. Depending on what kind of bed you own, this may or may not be a simple task. Not every dog bed copes with the laundry. If you dread the inevitable task of cleaning this necessary piece of your dog’s life, it might be time to invest in one of the best washable dog beds on the market.

Aren’t All Dog Beds Washable?

We wish! It seems like it would make sense for all dog beds to be washable, right? After all, our dogs go outside. Unless you have a pressure lock installed on your house for your dog to go through each time, they’re going to bring the outdoors with them. Rain, dirt, mud, slobber; all of these odor-bearing particles find their way onto your dog’s bed. Over time, those smells build up, and even our noses reach maximum tolerance.

Yet not every bed on the market copes with the necessity of cleaning. (Crazy, right?) There are so many options out there for dog beds, and washing can slip through the cracks. Even if a tag promises you can put it through the wash, different features get in the way of the cleaning process.

• Not all dog bed covers are removable. If you have a small dog, this isn’t always a problem, but what if you have a large dog or giant breed?
• Just because a cover comes off, it doesn’t mean the process is easy. If you need an engineering degree to accomplish the task, you’re going to avoid it, pure and simple.
• Some fabrics aren’t durable enough to handle repeated washings. They start falling apart. Now you have a bed and no cover, and most mattresses NEED that cover.
• Other covers hold up while the zippers break down. If you can’t get the cover back on, it’s no good.
• Then there are those non-skid beads that are so important for safety. If you’ve ever spent hours with a hand-vac, bent over your dryer, and cursing the inventor of those beads, you know not every cover is “easy” to wash and dry.

Tricks of the Trade

Wouldn’t it be awesome if there were magic fabrics that never needed washing?

And there are!

Just kidding – technology isn’t quite there yet. So, since you can’t repel the dirt and smell your dog shares with you, how do you minimize the need for washing your dog’s bed?

It turns out there are a few simple tricks you can employ to get those beds to hold out a little longer between trips to the washing machine.

Tricks for the Dog Bed

Ideally, you want your dog’s bed to hold out as long as possible. Eventually, even the sturdiest dog bed is going to wear out. However, if you cut down on the number of times you put the bed into the wash, you can extend its life. This is especially true if you have a small dog and put their entire bed in the wash. Eventually, stuffing and mattresses give out. These tricks prolong that from happening.

• Wipe down your dog’s bed with a damp cloth. No, this won’t do anything for mud or liquid messes, but it WILL remove hair, dander, and dust mites. It’s amazing how much smell collects in those three things!
• Use pet-safe stain repellants. It’s so simple yet so effective. Your dog’s bed gets protection from discoloration and stains.

Sneaky Tricks

If you’re less worried about the duration of your dog bed and more concerned about presentation, there are tricks for you. Keep in mind, these won’t help your dog’s bed stay clean or smell better. This is more along the line of fooling the eye.

• Pick a bed the same color as your dog. That’s right, hide the hair in plain sight. If your dog is multi-colored, it gets trickier. Aim for the color they shed the most.
• Choose a bed with complicated patterns. Dirt is harder to see on an intricate design. It’s a lot easier to pick out on a solid color. (This is true of human clothes, too!)

Tricks for the Dog

They have yet to invent a livable plastic bubble for dogs. (Not much of a life for them, anyway) That means your dog is going to give their bed that lived-in quality. It doesn’t mean you can’t employ some tactics to head off the need for constant bed washing.

• Clean off your dog when they go outside. Where do most of the dirt and debris come from? Outside. Use a damp cloth to rub your dog down after they come inside. Pay special attention to their feet. Our dog has a basket and towels that live inside the door for this very purpose.
• Give your dog regular baths. A reasonable schedule is about once a month for most dogs. Make sure you dry your dog off THOROUGHLY after the bath, or their bed could end up getting used as a towel. (Kind of defeats the purpose of this trick)

Best Washable Dog Beds

There are A LOT of dog beds out there. Plenty of the dog beds we reviewed ARE washable, though the drying feature is hit or miss. Feel free to take a look and see if your favorite meets your needs.

If thorough and easy cleaning are at the top of your list, though, you’ve come to the right place. Whether you have a small dog and want the ability to toss the entire dog bed into the washing machine, or you have a large dog and are seeking easy covers, we’ve got precisely what you’re looking for.

Best Orthopedic Washable Dog Beds

Okay, so you’re not going to find washable memory foam. The material itself breaks down. However, these beds come with removable, washable covers. Most people lean towards orthopedic beds for their dogs with arthritis. If you can combine supreme comfort with a washable feature, it’s always a win-win.