1 min read • By Leena Chitnis, Founder, Timberdog
When I first set out to design the RuffRest Ultimate Pet Bed™, I knew it couldn't just be about a bunch of awesome, never-before-seen features, and I certainly knew it could not rely on its devilish good looks, either. It had to be practical, too, especially for people who owned dogs with challenges. One of the challenges I took into account is incontinence.
Whether you're raising an un-housebroken puppy, nursing a sick dog, or caring for an aging dog who cannot hold her bladder, your average dog bed isn't going to resist moisture. Sure, you can wash a velour cover multiple times, but what if urine (or vomit, or diarrhea) breaches the cover and gets into the foam inside? If that happens, your dog bed is basically destroyed, and you have to run to the nearest pet store to buy another. Generally speaking, foam is not machine-washable and will pretty much disintegrate over time even if you hand wash it.
That's one of the reasons that so many dog beds - even the "good" ones - are so cheap. Right now, you can buy an attractive, giant dog bed, with a decent amount of supportive foam, at Costco for under $50. Why? Because manufacturers of cheap dog beds know you will come back for more the minute any of your dog's messes breach the cover.
As RuffRest is a premium product, I knew I had to give customers the best pet bed their hard-earned money could buy. A pet bed that would last a solid number of years, if not a lifetime, with good care. And so one thing I made sure to do was to cover the inner foams, so customers would not have to worry about the occasional (or frequent) pet mess.
Even though RuffRest has a multiplicity of layers over the foam - Sherpa fleece, ballistic nylon, backing material, liner nylon, and more - I made sure to encase each piece of foam nevertheless in PEVA material. (Unlike PVC, PEVA does not contain phthalates or any other toxic chemicals, which makes it safe for use in household products. It is also non-toxic and has no odor.) Each PEVA "pillow case" is thick, water-resistant, and even comes with a zipper in case you want to take the foam out.
So, next time you're out shopping for a pet bed and you'd rather invest in a quality item you'll use over a lifetime, rather than several pet beds that will end up in a landfill, consider our RuffRest. We made it with love and care.
Photo credit: Leena Chitnis