WINTER HYGIENE TIPS FOR YOUR DOG’S BED FOR THAT COSY, CLEAN AND CARED FOR FEELING

CHARLEYCHAU.COM

WHATEVER THE WEATHER, THE AVERAGE DOG SPENDS 12-14 HOURS PER DAY SLEEPING, SO A COMFY DOG BED IS A MUST FOR NAPPING BLISS! BUT THE PERILS OF WINTER – THE COLD, DRAUGHTS, WET COATS, AND MUDDY PAWS – CAN SPOIL SNOOZING. DOGS ALSO PICK UP MORE DIRT IN WINTER, MUCH OF WHICH GOES BACK TO THEIR BED, CREATING A BREEDING GROUND FOR NASTIES IN THEIR DWELLINGS AND THE WIDER HOME. DEDICATED TO CANINE COMFORT FOR OVER 12 YEARS, THE TEAM AT AWARD-WINNING DOG BEDDING COMPANY CHARLEY CHAU ARE BRIMMING WITH ADVICE TO HELP A DOG FEEL COSY, CLEAN, AND CARED FOR ALL WINTER LONG. CHARLEY CHAU CO-FOUNDER CHRISTINE CHAU SHARES HER TOP TIPS, SO YOU CAN WORK YOUR MAGIC ON YOUR DOG’S ‘HOME’:

Moisture Management

If your dog’s bed is damp, your dog will never reach peak cosy. From paws to their underbelly, dogs get wet on winter walks and so will their bed. Drying your dog post walk helps but other tips include:

Opt for a moisture-wicking fabric such as Weave and Velour for bed outer covers, as they take moisture away from your dog’s body and dry quickly. Avoid cotton beds – cotton is highly absorbent and retains moisture - but if that’s what you have, placing a moisture-wicking layer of Fleece or Faux-Fur on top of their bed creates a barrier.

Air your dog’s bed regularly. Strip off the covers and pick it up off the floor, so air can circulate freely around and through it. This is very important in winter when homes are less ventilated, the heating is on, and windows remain closed.

Check For Condensation

It may seem bonkers that a cold, damp dog bed can occur in a warm room, but it can, and it’s invariably caused by excessive condensation forming in your dog’s bed. As well as feeling yuck, it can lead to the growth of mildew and other types of mould in the mattress - and breathing in fungal spores is not good for hound or human.

Check for condensation regularly through the winter by feeling the underside of your dog’s bed with the flat of your palm. It will feel relatively cold, but if it feels even slightly damp then it’s almost certainly caused by condensation, which you can prevent by:

Moving the bed at least 1m away from the radiator, especially if you have hard floors.

Placing a rug under your dog’s bed to create a barrier between the floor and bed.

Raising your dog’s bed off the floor so that the underside is not in contact with the floor – even a rattan dog basket can create enough lift to stop condensation.

DRAUGHT PROOF YOUR DOG’S BED

Think about what’s happening at ground level. If it’s draughty for your ankles, it’s draughty for your dog, so exclude with these simple steps: Check for draughts and if you find any, move the bed.

Avoid placing your dog’s bed near external doors and windows. Instead try somewhere protected such as pushed up against a sofa or an internal wall.

Create a cosy cocoon by opting for a dog bed with deep sides, which will protect your dog from cold draughts and trap warm air to keep them toasty.

Consider adding scatter cushions to your dog’s bed such as Charley Chau’s Mini Bolster Pads. Effective draught excluders for all, they are also helpful for senior dogs, who suffer deeper joint issues in colder weather and who will welcome something warm to snuggle against.

Manage Surface Dirt

Rain and mud are just a few things that make our dogs (and their beds) muckier. Try a few tweaks to give surface dirt the brush off:

Again, avoid cotton and choose intelligent fabrics that don’t absorb moisture, as they handle surface dirt better. Velour is great, as it can be wiped clean with a damp cloth in between washes or try Charley Chau’s Faroe fabric, with the feel of an upholstery wool without the maintenance headache and with a built-in stain-guard treatment, making it brilliant for spot cleaning.

If you love pale colours, a pale dog bed can still work in winter. Try moving the bed further from any external doors that give your dog access to the outside world, so by the time they’ve reached their crash pad their muddy paws will have gone.

Invest in doggy blankets, as they are fab for protecting a dog bed from surface dirt and are easier to wash versus stripping the whole dog bed.

Discouraging Dust Mites

These critters live in our homes all year round, but they can be a real problem in the winter, especially for allergy sufferers. Dust mites love warmth and humidity and a dog bed in winter offers one of the warmest and most humid places in your home for them to thrive. Plus, your dog has a never-ending supply of food such as dander and dust from their coat for dust mites to feast on, so help keep them at bay:

Invest in a Waterproof Liner. They will protect against moisture, act as a barrier to the mites and will keep the animal dander, dirt and dust out of the mattress – meaning less food and a less hospitable environment for dust mites.

Choosing hypoallergenic fabrics and fillings can also help to discourage mites, so check the fillings and materials used in your dog’s bed. Charley Chau’s standard deep-filled dog luxury mattress is filled with an insulating hollowfibre that’s also used to fill hypoallergenic cushions for human use.

Washing And Maintenance

To maintain optimum health and hygiene for your dog’s bed and your home, and prolong the life of their pad, we recommend:

Regular washing. Dog beds (the outers at the least) and blankets should be washed once a week or at a minimum every two weeks to maintain the optimum health and hygiene.

If you don’t have a regular washing routine for your dog’s bed, we recommend washing your dog’s bed the whole way through (mattress included) to start afresh. If your dog’s mattress is beyond redemption, replace it & then care for it.

Before washing, check the common care symbols on your dog’s bed to see if/how it can be washed. Not all dog beds are machine washable, but if like all of Charley Chau’s fabric dog beds, yours is, then wash your dog’s bed at the right temperature. While high heats may be tempting to kill germs, they can damage the fabric, so we advise 30 degrees because it’s still delicate enough not to cause the bed’s fabric to shrink, bobble or change texture.

Lower the spin, as spinning can cause fabric fibres to twist together, resulting in shrinkage or, with fluffy fabrics such as faux-furs, pilling where long fibres clump together and the fabric loses its fluffiness. Also avoid the quick wash cycle, as it delivers severe levels of agitation in the drum, so it’s basically beating up the fabric.

Use an antibacterial, pet-friendly washing powder or liquid to kill bacteria. Should your dog have soiled their bed, an enzyme cleaner will get rid of pet odours and stains, which in the case of pet urine might stop repeat ‘marking’ behaviours.

Use a Waterproof Liner on the mattress, so you won’t need to wash the bed as frequently. Also consider investing in spare bed covers. Not only will they make wash days less busy, but they will also provide back-up for any winter accidents and messes.

In between wash days, spot clean any obvious dirt on your dog’s bed. A quick wipe with a damp cloth and pet-safe anti-bacterial spray in between washes makes all the difference, not just on visible dirt but hidden dirt that you can’t see but can smell.

Help your dog feel cosy, clean, and cared for this winter, and discover dog bed solutions that have been making hounds happy in over sixty countries around the world at Charleychau.com