Your furbaby may nap and lounge on several surfaces throughout your home, but if they take up residence in a dedicated pet bed, it’s a good idea to give it a regular clean. Vacuuming is helpful for keeping hair at bay, but washing your pet’s bedding at least once weekly is a good practice.
While some washing machines and dryers have dedicated settings for washing dog beds, if your care tag says that it’s OK to wash your dog’s bed, we’ll walk you through how to wash a dog bed in a washing machine, and how to wash a dog bed without a washing machine.
Whether you’re hand-washing a dog bed or machine washing it, you’ll want to start with a detergent that’s hypoallergenic and free from perfumes or dyes.
Dog beds with removable covers are often machine washable. It’s important to first check the cover for stains that may require pretreating. The care label should tell you everything you need to know about how to wash the removable cover, however, depending on the level of soil and mess from your pet, you should consider:
- Vacuuming the cover before removing it from the cushion to remove excess hair
- Washing the cover on the highest temperature setting indicated on the care label
- Using an extra rinse cycle to ensure all detergent has been removed from the fabric
- Cleaning the interior of washing drum to remove any pet hair or dirt
To ensure the removable cover for your pet bed maintains its shape, it may be best to air dry. If the laundry care label gives a green light for using a dryer, you might want to try a lower heat setting.
Not all pet beds have easily removable covers, making them better candidates for handwashing. In place of using a machine washer, you’ll want to make sure you have a clean tub or basin that’s big enough to accommodate the size of your dog bed.
To get started, vacuum the pet bed to remove any excess hair or dirt. Next, you’ll want to pre-treat any stains. If the bed looks and smells like it’s overdue for a clean, you may want to consider a laundry detergent that’s hypoallergenic and formulated to tackle odors.
Fill your basin or tub with clean, hot water (based on care label instructions). Soak the bed in the water with detergent for 10-15 minutes. Replace the water with fresh, clean water, rinsing thoroughly to ensure all detergent is gone. To dry, wring out the excess moisture and air dry.
In between washes in a machine or by hand, you can use the same laundry detergent to spot-treat any stains, dirt. To keep your pet’s bed clean, vacuum it regularly to minimize the additional attention when it’s time to toss the bed or its cover in the wash.
