A history of beds

Dante has always loved his beds. Still does. Although his beds would likely quibble about the part of them being "loved". Dante's demonstrations of love towards his beds are a tad bit, shall we say, "extreme".

Ok, I know this is going to sound really silly and ditzy, but when I first took on the mantle of dog ownership, one of the things that I got really excited about was that I would be able to stamp my personal sense of style and shopping preferences when it came to purchasing all sorts of dog-related accessories and items, like leashes, collars, bowls, and dog beds, oh yes dog beds, oh glee!

I had so much fun shopping for the new puppy that was Dante back then. Dante's first "real bed" -- that is, once he successfully graduated from crate training and house breaking and could leave the old-towels-and-sheets-in-case-of-ooooops phase behind -- was a round "donut bed" (I don't know why I call it a "donut bed", but it was basically just a round bed with a nice thick padded ridge all around it) that was a nice, rich plum colour in a luxuriously soft faux chenille material (yes, that's the girly part of me peeking out again).

Dante LOVED that bed. Back then when he was about 7 months old he was just about the size of a large Australian Shepphard. He used to curl himself up in such a tiny little ball (he still does actually) right in the middle of the "donut hole" and made me all feel all gooey inside ooohing and aaaahing over my cute little puppy. Sometimes he would try to sprawl out in the middle of it and ended up with his head flopping over the ridge on one side and his legs poking out from the other. Tres cute!

Well, he loved that bed so much it lasted roughly 3 months -- he ate it. I noticed him nibbling the ridge (ha, donut) occasionally, until occasionally became all the time and all the time became bye-bye bed. He had chewed/nibbled off chunks of the bed until one day, it looked more like a sorry pile of rags than a bed. So, heartbroken, I had to chuck it.

I then tried out a couple of functional beds (nothing very exciting) from the local petstore -- cheap but hopefully durable and comfortable enough for Dante. By then Dante had had gradually exploded in terms of size as he grew older, so the biggest challenge for me, I found, was finding a bed that was LARGE enough, comfortable enough and AFFORDABLE enough from the local pet stores. All criteria for style and such went out the window when it dawned upon me that there were plenty of cutesy, "stylish" looking beds in a wide range of fabrics and colour schemes for small to medium-sized dogs, but for a dog Dante's size? Apparently the great majority of dog bed manufacturers don't share the opinion that a fearsome looking Doberman deserves to lounge on designer beds like tiny yorkies with a pink bow on the top of their heads do.

(That was also before I discovered the joys and convenience of internet shopping, but that's another story)

So for a while the focus was on functionality and practicality where beds for Dante were concerned. My memory where this is concerned appears to be foggy. We went through 2-3 of them, I'm pretty sure, but I can't seem to remember what their fate was -- as in: loved to death by the Doberman or tossed out by the Doberman owner because they just so blah and terribly NOT durable? Likely the latter.

Anyways, my next big splurge on a bed for Dante was when I visited the annual "All About Pets" show for the first time. It was a great show for consumers and your average dog owner, as they had quite the wide variety of vendors selling everything from organic, artisan-baked dog biscuits to neon glow-in-the dark collars all under one big deafening roof (they always had a flyball competition and demo at the same premises, you see).

I had stopped by to browse at the Bowsers pet products booth, and instantly fell in love with the MOUNTAIN (yes, I kid you not) of dog beds of every imaginable size, colour and material piled skyhigh. The overwhelming possibility of selection and choice fired up my girly shopping urges. They were having a "show special" on beds -- 60% off any bed, regardless of the size, ranging from XS to XXXL. Beds were being carefully inspected and pawed at by a throng of ravenous shoppers struck by a compelling desire to spend ridiculous amounts of money on their pets (yes, I was one of them that day), and then being grabbed and tugged out of the mountain, which was quickly shrinking in size at an alarming rate.

After spending an obscene amount of time wavering over colour combinations and trim details (all very important features of a dog bed, don't you know), I finally settled upon a huge round bed that was regularly $280 but priced at a steal of $120 for the show that day. Sold.

I brought it home and -- did I mention that Dante loves his beds yet -- it became Dante's new best friend. Well, for the better part of 3 or 4 months anyway.

I have no idea how Dante can be so rough on his beds, but whatever he did to that bed, it was quickly demolished. This time, I felt the $120 slip through my hands and boy did it hurt. No more! I said to myself. No more fancy beds until Dante stops his savage love routine with them! Of course, at that point in time, when it came to weighing whether $120 was better spent on an expensive dog bed or two training sessions and a training hall rental ... well.

So then I went through quite a prolonged stage whereby I would scan the weekly store flyers like a hawk and then pounce on deals for cheap comforters for $10-$15 a pop. They were dirt cheap, somewhat coarser than the usual "luxury" versions that Dante was used to, but hey, stack 2-3 of them together and they made a pretty comfy, absolutely functional nest of a bed. The best part about them being dirt cheap was that since Dante was still on his "Me love you to death" approach in his relationship with his beds, I had no qualms throwing them out when they got too shabby or started a nomadic existence around the house in pieces. I'd just buy more of the same on sale the next time and Dabte would have his fun with them. It was a very workable cycle for a good long while.

Well, when The Fred came into my life, I discovered Costco beds.

Now, I've had dog owner friends who frequently raved about Costco beds. According to them, the beds they got from Costco were cheap, durable, and (the #1 praise from other large dog owners) they were of a generous size for a very reasonable price of $15-$20. Back then though, I never got motivated enough to buy myself a Costco membership just to pop in there to buy dog beds every now and then. Besides, the nearest Costco was a good 30 minutes minimum drive away.

Fast forward to the present again. The Fred had a Costco membership. I went along with him on a trip to Costco once, took a look at their dog beds for sale, and instantly found them very appealing.

They were HUGE. They looked like they were sturdily constructed, well padded and thus comfortable for a dog Dante's size, and more importantly, they were VERY reasonably priced at around $20 a bed. Ok, sold. I bought one that very same day.

And then found myself going back again, to buy another one.

And another one.

And another one.

And another one.

And that is how I ended up with more dog beds than actual human furniture in my current new house (a situation which will hopefully change in the next few months).

I have to rave about the Costco beds. They are huge. They are sturdy. They are durable. They are comfy. And hey, they aren't exactly haute couture, but they are actually quite pleasant to look at with tasteful colours and nice materials (fleece, suede etc.). And of course, you can't beat the price. From now on, I am getting all my dog beds from Costco.

Now, as was with every other bed that Dante had ever loved (and lost) in his life, he adored these new beds in his usual uhm ... enthusiastic fashion. Actually, I've never seen him get so ... physical with a bed before. At times, I even think that there's an added "viciousness" to the way he roughs these new beds up. All the (3? 4? I've lost count, ha ...) large square beds I've bought for him since moving into this house has been repeatedly mauled and munched on by Dante. He rakes them with a manic fervour with his paws. He humps them until he falls over or they fall over on him. He drags them around the house like he's dragging a bedraggled cavewoman by the hair. He punctures them and shakes them in such a ferocious manner that all the stuffing falls out which he then gobbles up (ah, the mystery of the -- literally -- disappearing beds). And when I say that these beds are sturdy, well, they are really STURDY. All his beds by now look like they've been through 3 world wars, but they still function and are miraculously still in one piece. Oh yes, and The Fred's sewing skills certainly come in handy.

A little while ago, I was eyeing those (now) somewhat pitiful looking beds and thought that perhaps it would be a good time to invest in another new bed again, seeing that one or two of them looked like they were going to fall apart any moment if you just but exhaled a little too forcefully.

So, off to Costco we went, of course. To my surprise, they no longer had any stock of all the nice large square beds that I had previously purchased. Instead, they were offering ROUND ones, which looked suspiciously smaller than the ones before (but girls are never very accurate in their spatial estimation, The Fred noted, ahem), but seemed to be just as sturdy and comfy, and priced the same. So, I bought one.

Well, let me tell you, something has come over Dante, or perhaps he has just decided that he has finally met the bed that "was meant to be" for him. He has NOT savaged this bed like he has with the others before it. I merely place it on his sleeping spot, and he -- I almost fell over with shock, I tell ya -- steps right up to it, and then -- GASP -- lies down on it. And goes to sleep. Like he's supposed to. On a bed. No endless stream of humping, mouthing, pawing, flipping, kicking, trampling before he even THINKS about flopping down on it. No rough love. Just using it like how a bed is intended to be used.

It's now about a couple of months in and there's barely a dent in this new round bed -- an astonishing record by Dante's standards. You place the round one and a square one side by side, and Dante will pick the round one over the square one. He's certainly seems to be in no hurry to hasten its lifespan, as is his usual modus operandi where beds are concerned. I don't know what it is about this round bed, but Dante certainly has done a 360 degrees in terms of his relationship with his bed.

I can't wait to go back to Costco and get another round bed like this one (hopefully they still have them!), and then see if it's the roundness, or if it's just THIS particular one bed, for whatever reason, that "does it" for Dante.

You know how some people fondly reminiscence about the beloved dogs that they used to own, and then point at an ancient, ratty tatty looking (but still intact) heap in the corner and say, with tears in their eyes: "And that was Spot's bed, ever since he was a wee little puppy ..."? Well, now I'm finally daring to dream of a similar moment with Dante, where his beds are concerned ... there may be hope yet!!