I sleep better now that I have a dog bed.

Does your dog sleep on the floor or on a dog bed? Research shows that dogs are more comfortable sleeping on some type of cushion than on the hard cold floor. This is particularly true if your dog is older or arthritic. Sleeping on the floor can be uncomfortable for dogs and make it hard for them to sleep. Usually, this means that you don't sleep well either.

My dog, Duke, is a ten-year old 110 pound hound mix. Before I got him a pet bed, his groaning at night when he turned over sometimes woke me up. Then, if he realized I was awake, he would come over to my bed and try to get me to play. Now, I love my dog, but I do NOT want all 110 pounds of him trying to get me to play ball at 2 am. Then I inevitably felt guilty for not playing with him more during the day. By now my mind would be racing, and sleep was just not an option for a while. Might as well play some fetch.

But that all changed when I got him his own pet bed. Since he's a large dog, his bed was not cheap, but it has given us both a better night's sleep. He sleeps better, so he doesn't keep me up anymore, which means I don't have any more 2am fetch games going on. He doesn't seem to be quite so slow in the morning getting up, either. Large dogs in particular often have a lot of joint problems when they get older. If you've never seen it, there's not much more pitiful than seeing a large dog trying to stretch out old aching joints before he can walk.

If Duke sleeps better at night, it stands to reason that he is going to be a happier pet during the day. I know that I feel better if I can sleep without him lumbering over to see if I'm awake just because he is. With his new dog bed, Duke is sleeping better, and getting around better in the morning. I wish I had figured this out years ago! Check out our selection of pet beds at http://tinyurl.com/9rsh34 .