Memory Foam Dog Bed Basics

What is the deal with memory foam dog beds? Are they worth the price, or are they just a scam? Some are, and some are not. Listed below are four things to keep in mind when shopping for a memory foam dog bed.

1. What is Memory Foam?

Memory foam is a special type of foam that is designed to react to body heat and body weight. Memory foam is not the same as egg crate foam, high density foam, plain old foam, shredded memory foam, or anything else that sounds like memory foam, but isn’t. Only memory foam can react to body heat and temperature. As a result, only memory foam is orthopedic. What that means is only memory foam can eliminate pressure points. What does that mean? Imagine you were to sleep on the floor on your right side. As you slept the weight of your body would push down on your right side, causing your veins and arteries in your right side to compress. This compression prevents blood from fully circulating in your right side. You may start to feel tingling or pressure in your right side. Maybe your right arm goes to sleep, or your right ankle bone becomes sore due to your body pressing onto it. All of these things, from the compression of your veins and arteries, to the tingling in your right arm, to the pain in your ankle can be considered pressure points. In an orthopedic bed, in other words, in a memory foam bed, none of this happens. Memory foam prevents your veins and arteries from compressing, memory foam prevents your arm from falling asleep and memory foam prevents your ankle from hurting due to your weight pressing on it. Memory foam prevents the development of pressure points, helping your dog wake up healthier and pain free.

2. Memory Foam Quality

As with everything, there is high quality and low quality memory foam. Memory foam is rated on a density per pound scale. The higher the density the higher quality the memory foam. High quality memory foam will retain its so called, 'memory' longer, essentially meaning that even after repeated use, high quality memory foam will continue to react to your dog's body heat and weight, rendering the memory foam orthopedic longer. High quality memory foam is typically rated at a density of 5 pounds or higher. Low quality foam is rated at a density of 3 pounds or lower. If, when you are shopping for a memory foam dog bed, you find a company that does not disclose the density of their foam, it is a good bet that they use low quality foam. High quality foam is much more expensive than low quality foam, and manufactures will want their customers to know the reason for their high prices.

3. Supportive Backing Foam

While memory foam is orthopedic, it is not if it is not backed by something, like, in the case of memory foam dog beds, supportive backing foam. Imagine if you were to sleep on a mattress directly on top of the floor. In other words, imagine if you did not have a box spring. You would eventually sink into the mattress enough to come into contact with the floor below you. If you buy a memory foam dog bed without supportive backing glued to the memory foam, your dog will sink into the memory foam enough to where he comes into contact with the floor below the bed. Obviously your dog is then prone to developing pressure points. Visit www.buddybeds.com for examples of high quality memory foam dog beds built with high quality supportive backing foam.

4. Liners

Perhaps one of the most important parts of a memory foam dog bed is its liner. Memory foam is not washable. Once memory foam is washed it loses its ability to react to body heat and temperature, rendering it no longer orthopedic. Any dog owner knows that after extended use, a dog bed smells, and it needs to be cleaned, preferably washed. Memory foam dog bed manufactures know this as well, and high quality memory foam dog bed manufactures design their beds with waterproof liners. Such liners encase the memory foam and supportive backing foam of memory foam dog beds. The liners are sealed around the foam, and should not be removed. The liners then protect the foam of a memory foam dog bed from liquids, dirt, bugs, allergens and odors. The beds are designed with an outer cover over the liner which you, the dog owner, can remove and wash when needed. Some high quality memory foam dog bed manufactures even make their liners to be breathable as well as waterproof. The breathability of a liner helps extend the life of the memory foam. Memory foam needs airflow to maintain its loft. Without loft memory foam cannot maintain its orthopedic nature.