How to Wash a Dog Bed Without Ruining It — The Complete Guide
There's a version of dog bed hygiene that most owners know they should be doing and feel vaguely guilty about not doing often enough. The bed smells. There's a visible ring of fur and skin oil around the sleeping area. Something that came in from the garden has transferred to the bolster. The guilt accumulates until something is done about it — and then, frequently, what is done about it is either insufficient to actually clean the bed or sufficient to actually damage it.
Research published in the Journal of Small Animal Practice found that pet bedding harbours significant concentrations of Staphylococcus and E. coli — organisms capable of causing skin infections, respiratory issues, and digestive problems in both dogs and the humans sharing the same home. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends cleaning all pet bedding as often as you would your own — which most sources interpret as at least weekly, or fortnightly at minimum. Most UK dog owners are doing neither, and the gap between what the hygiene research supports and what most dogs actually sleep on is considerable.
The challenge, and the reason this guide exists, is that dog beds are not uniform objects that respond to a single cleaning approach. A bolster bed with a removable polyester cover is a fundamentally different cleaning proposition from an orthopedic bed with a non-removable memory foam base — the same distinction covered in our guide on why orthopedic dog beds are worth the money. A sherpa-lined bed needs to be treated differently from a cotton-covered flat mat. A bed with a waterproof lining requires a different drying approach from one without. Getting the approach wrong doesn't just mean an inadequately cleaned bed — it means a damaged, distorted, or prematurely worn-out one. The right bed shape for your dog in the first place — which affects how it's built and therefore how it should be washed — is covered in our guide on best beds for dogs that sleep in awkward positions.
The Big Snooze Pro Orthopedic Dog Bed is designed with washability built in — a removable, machine-washable cover that can be cleaned at appropriate temperatures without requiring the foam base to go anywhere near a washing machine. This design distinction matters enormously, and understanding why is the starting point for understanding how to wash any dog bed without ruining it.
Why Dog Beds Get Dirty — and Why It Matters More Than Most Owners Realise
Before the washing method, it's worth understanding what is actually accumulating in a dog bed between washes — because the hygiene case for regular cleaning is considerably stronger than the aesthetic one, and the health implications for both dog and owner are specific enough to motivate better habits than guilt alone.
A dog spends between twelve and fourteen hours per day on their sleeping surface. During that time, they deposit: shed fur and the skin cells attached to it; saliva from the lip-licking and muzzle-resting that's a constant feature of rest; skin oils from the sebaceous glands that keep the coat conditioned but create the distinctive smell of a dirty dog bed; paw dirt and the bacteria that accompanies it, including anything tracked in from gardens, paths, and the environment outside; and whatever the dog has been in contact with on their most recent walk — grass pollen, mud, herbicide residue from treated lawns, and in autumn the damp organic matter that breeds fungal spores.
The biological consequence of all of this accumulating unaddressed over two, three, or four weeks is a sleeping surface that is a warm, protein-rich, slightly humid environment — exactly the conditions in which bacteria and dust mites reproduce most efficiently. Dust mites are a specific concern in dog beds because dog dander is among their preferred food sources: research on household allergen concentrations consistently finds that pet bedding has among the highest dust mite concentrations of any surface in the home, and dust mite allergen is associated with both canine and human respiratory reactions. The Staphylococcus and E. coli finding from the Journal of Small Animal Practice research reflects how quickly bacterial concentrations build in this environment — not because dog beds are unusual in their exposure to these organisms, but because the conditions they provide for bacterial reproduction are near-optimal.
The health dimension is not limited to the dog. Humans who handle the dog bed during washing, or who share the home with a dog, are exposed to the same allergen and bacterial concentrations. This is part of why the CDC's recommendation for pet bedding hygiene is as frequent as it is — it is a household hygiene recommendation as much as a pet welfare one.
Step One — Before You Wash Anything
The most important step in washing a dog bed happens before the bed goes anywhere near water, and it is the step most frequently skipped: removing the loose material that a washing machine cannot effectively handle and that, if left in, will partially block the wash action and accumulate in the machine's filter and drum seal.
Fur is the primary issue. Dog fur is resistant to washing machine agitation in a way that human hair is not — it binds to fabric fibres through a combination of the barbed scale structure of dog hair shafts and static electricity, and neither of these is effectively broken by water and detergent alone. Fur that goes into a washing machine in significant quantities will come out on the other side still attached to the fabric in most cases, and will also accumulate in the machine's rubber door seal and drain filter, where it traps bacteria and moisture and eventually causes drainage problems.
The effective pre-wash fur removal approach is to use a rubber pet hair removal brush or a rubber-palmed glove on dry fabric — the friction of rubber against the fabric's surface generates static that lifts the bound fur out of the weave and allows it to be gathered and disposed of rather than recirculated through the washing machine. For heavily furred covers, a clothes dryer run on low heat for ten minutes before washing will both loosen fur and kill a proportion of the dust mites on the surface — but this approach should only be used for covers confirmed to be tumble-dryer safe, and never for any item containing foam.
After the fur is removed, a vacuum over the cover's surface removes residual dander, dried dirt, and the dehydrated biological material that contributes most to bacterial accumulation. A thorough vacuum of the foam base — if it is a separate component from the cover — removes material from the sleeping surface that would otherwise accumulate between washes.
Step Two — Identify Your Bed Type Before Choosing Your Approach
The single most important thing to establish before washing a dog bed is what it is made of, because the correct cleaning approach varies so significantly between bed types that applying the approach appropriate for one type to another type can destroy the bed entirely.
Beds with removable covers over a foam base — the design used in quality orthopedic beds including the Big Snooze Pro — are the easiest and most hygienic to clean, because the component that needs the most thorough cleaning (the cover, which contacts the dog's body directly) can be removed and machine-washed while the foam base is cleaned separately without water immersion. The cover goes in the machine. The foam base is spot-cleaned and aired. These two components never need to share a washing process.
Beds without removable covers require either hand-washing or careful full-bed machine washing. The challenge with washing a whole bed in a machine is that most domestic washing machines are not large enough to allow a standard-sized dog bed to agitate freely — it will compress into a ball and the centre will not be reached by the wash water. A commercial laundromat machine with a larger drum is the most effective option for whole-bed machine washing. Hand-washing in a bath or large outdoor container is the alternative for home use.
Memory foam inserts — the inner foam layer of an orthopedic bed — must never be machine-washed. This is the washing mistake that ruins the most dog beds, and the damage it causes is permanent and irreversible. Memory foam's thermal properties — its ability to conform to a body's shape through temperature-sensitive viscoelastic behaviour — depend on a precise cell structure within the foam that is destroyed by water immersion and machine agitation. A machine-washed memory foam insert emerges with broken cell walls and permanently compromised structure. It becomes lumpy, loses its conforming properties, and provides no meaningful joint support. Once memory foam has been machine-washed, there is no way to restore it. The only cleaning approach for a foam insert is surface spot-cleaning with a damp cloth and mild detergent, followed by thorough air-drying.
Bolster inserts — the rolled or channel-fill components of bolster beds — should be checked before washing. Many are filled with polyester fibrefill, which is machine-washable but needs to be washed in a large drum to allow adequate agitation, and should be dried at low heat to prevent the fill from balling. Some are filled with memory foam chips, which can be machine-washed more safely than solid memory foam but will still degrade faster with machine washing than with spot-cleaning.
Waterproof-lined beds require specific attention to drying — high-heat tumble drying can delaminate the waterproof coating from the fabric, permanently destroying its function. Low-heat or air drying is the appropriate approach for any bed with a waterproof or water-resistant lining.
Step Three — Machine Washing the Cover: Temperature, Detergent, and Cycle
For the removable cover — the most important component to wash effectively — three variables determine whether the result is a genuinely clean surface or a hygienically inadequate one: temperature, detergent, and cycle choice.
Temperature is the most consequential variable. The threshold temperature for killing dust mites and the majority of bacteria relevant to pet bedding is 60°C — a finding established across multiple studies on household allergen management and consistently cited in pet bedding hygiene guidance. Washing at 40°C, the most common domestic default, does not kill dust mites and kills only a proportion of the bacteria present. For dogs with skin conditions, compromised immune systems, or allergies to dust mite allergen, the difference between a 40°C wash and a 60°C wash is clinically significant.
The caveat is that not all covers are made of materials that tolerate 60°C without shrinking or distorting. Sherpa-lined covers, covers with waterproof linings, and some dyed fabric covers may specify a maximum of 40°C. In these cases, the alternative is to use an enzyme-based laundry additive alongside the normal wash, which breaks down the organic material (proteins, lipids, and nucleic acids) that bacteria and dust mites feed on — reducing their concentrations without the temperature kill mechanism. This is less effective than a 60°C wash but significantly better than a 40°C wash with standard detergent alone.
Detergent choice matters more than most owners appreciate, because the wrong detergent does not just fail to clean — it actively makes the bed worse for the dog. Fragranced detergents leave a perfume residue on the fabric that dogs find aversive — their olfactory sensitivity is approximately ten thousand times greater than a human's, and the fragrances that humans find pleasant are often perceived by dogs at an intensity that is actively unpleasant. Fabric softeners are a specific problem: the mechanism by which fabric softener makes fabrics feel soft is by coating the fibres with a layer of chemical lubricants — and this coating reduces the fabric's ability to release bacteria and allergens in subsequent washes, effectively trapping biological material in the fabric over time. Dyes and optical brighteners leave UV-reactive chemical residues on the fabric that have been associated with skin irritation in dogs with sensitive skin.
The correct choice is a fragrance-free, dye-free, softener-free detergent — one specifically formulated to be free of these additives rather than simply being unlabelled. Adding half a cup of white vinegar to the rinse cycle provides a natural antibacterial supplement and a natural fabric softener alternative that does not leave residue — white vinegar effectively kills some strains of E. coli and Salmonella and its acidic pH breaks down residual detergent without coating the fabric. The vinegar smell dissipates entirely as the cover dries.
Cycle should be the longest available at the chosen temperature with an additional rinse cycle at the end. The additional rinse ensures that detergent residue is fully removed — inadequately rinsed detergent on a pet bed is a consistent source of the skin irritation and hot spot flare-ups that owners often attribute to other causes. For covers that contain significant amounts of synthetic filling (bolster components, padded covers), a short spin cycle rather than a full-speed spin reduces the risk of the filling balling or the stitching straining under the centrifugal force of the spin.
Step Four — Cleaning the Foam Base
Memory foam and high-density orthopedic foam bases should never go in a washing machine, but they do accumulate moisture, bacterial transfer, and odour from the cover above them over time — and they benefit from regular cleaning even though the cover provides a barrier between the foam and the dog's direct contact.
The correct approach for foam base cleaning is surface spot-cleaning: remove the cover, dampen a clean cloth with a mixture of warm water and a small amount of fragrance-free pet-safe detergent, and work over the foam's top surface with the damp cloth without saturating the foam. The goal is to clean the surface layer — the section that receives transfer from above — without allowing water to penetrate into the foam's internal structure, where it would be slow to dry and would create a moist environment ideal for mould and mildew growth.
After surface cleaning, the foam base should air-dry completely before the cover is replaced. This is critical: replacing a cover over a foam base that still contains moisture traps that moisture in an environment with no airflow, producing mould growth within a matter of days. A sunny day and an outdoor drying location, where UV light provides additional bacterial kill, is the optimal environment for foam base drying. If the base cannot be dried outdoors, a position near an open window or a fan for several hours is the minimum required.
UV light from direct sunlight is a genuine and effective disinfectant for foam surfaces and bed components that cannot be machine-washed. Research on UV-C disinfection mechanisms has established that UV exposure at appropriate wavelengths and durations kills a wide range of bacteria and inactivates viral particles. Outdoor sunlight, while less controlled than medical UV-C sources, provides sufficient UV exposure over a few hours to meaningfully reduce bacterial concentrations on surfaces — which is why the recommendation to dry beds in direct sunlight appears consistently across pet hygiene guidance sources rather than being an old wives' tale.
Step Five — Drying: The Step That Ruins More Beds Than Washing
Drying is the stage at which most washing errors occur — not because the drying itself is complicated, but because the shortcuts that feel reasonable (higher heat to dry faster, covering the bed while it's still slightly damp) cause damage and hygiene problems that the washing step was trying to prevent.
Covers with waterproof linings must air-dry or tumble-dry on the absolute lowest heat setting. High heat delaminates the waterproof coating from the fabric backing, and once this delamination begins there is no way to repair it. A cover that takes four hours to air-dry is a cover that will last years. A cover that is tumble-dried on high heat to save an hour may need replacing within months.
Sherpa-lined and deep-pile covers should tumble-dry on low heat or air-dry. High heat melts or matts the pile structure, permanently reducing the softness and loft that make the sherpa covering valuable. After tumble-drying on low heat, vigorous hand-shaking of the cover before it cools helps restore the pile's loft.
Standard polyester or cotton covers are the most tolerant of tumble-drying and can typically be dried on a medium-heat setting without damage, but checking the care label rather than assuming is always the safer approach.
All covers must be completely dry before replacing them over the foam base. Replacing a cover that is even slightly damp traps moisture against the foam's surface and creates the mould-growth conditions described above. When in doubt, air-dry for an additional hour before replacing.
Foam bases must be completely dry before any cover is replaced. After spot-cleaning, the foam needs a minimum of four to six hours of air-drying in a well-ventilated environment. A damp squeeze test — pressing firmly into the foam and releasing — should produce no moisture at the surface before the cover goes back on.
Between Washes — Maintenance That Extends the Time Between Full Cleans
A full washing cycle done correctly is a time-consuming process, and building a between-wash maintenance routine reduces the frequency at which the full process is needed without compromising the hygiene of the sleeping surface.
Daily vacuuming of the cover surface — or every other day for dogs who shed moderately — removes the freshly deposited fur and dander before it binds into the fabric and becomes harder to remove. A rubber-palmed glove used on the surface for thirty seconds at the end of each day adds almost nothing to the owner's routine and dramatically reduces the material that accumulates between washes.
Baking soda is the most effective between-wash odour management tool available and it costs almost nothing. Sprinkling a generous layer of baking soda over the cover surface and leaving it for fifteen to thirty minutes before vacuuming up absorbs the volatile organic compounds responsible for the majority of dog bed odour without leaving any residue on the fabric. Unlike fragrance sprays, which mask odour by adding competing volatile compounds, baking soda actually absorbs the odour molecules — and it does so without any chemical residue that might irritate the dog's skin or olfactory system.
Spot-treating stains immediately on contact is dramatically more effective than addressing them at wash time. A damp cloth applied immediately to any liquid contamination — before it dries and binds into the fabric — removes the majority of the material at the surface layer. Enzyme-based pet stain removers are the most effective treatment for organic stains — saliva, urine, blood — because they contain enzymes that actively break down the protein chains responsible for these stains at a molecular level, rather than simply masking the visual surface evidence of the stain.
The Scent Dimension — Why How You Wash Matters as Much as How Often
One final dimension of dog bed washing that is rarely covered in hygiene guides but that matters significantly for the dog's welfare is the relationship between washing and the olfactory safety signal that an established bed provides.
As covered in our guide on calming beds for anxious dogs, a dog's sleeping surface accumulates familiar scent over time — the dog's own territorial markings, the owner's transferred scent, and the general environmental signature of the home. This accumulated scent profile is a primary neurological safety signal for the dog: an environment that smells familiar is an environment that the amygdala has no grounds to classify as a threat.
A freshly laundered bed that has had all scent washed out of it is, to the dog's nervous system, a novel surface that requires fresh evaluation. For most dogs this is a minor inconvenience — they re-scent the bed within a day or two and settle into it. For anxious dogs, dogs in new environments, or senior dogs with cognitive decline, a bed that has had its accumulated scent profile reset to neutral by a strongly fragranced detergent or a hot wash that removes all trace of the dog's own scent can produce measurable short-term increases in settling difficulty.
This is another reason why fragrance-free detergent and the appropriately targeted temperature approach described in this guide is the right approach — not just for the dog's skin, but for preserving enough of the scent familiarity to allow the bed to continue functioning as a safe zone after it comes out of the wash.
RECOMMENDED SETUP
The Big Snooze Pro Orthopedic Dog Bed is designed around washability as a core feature rather than an afterthought. The removable cover comes off cleanly with no structural elements embedded in it, machine-washes at 40-60°C, and goes back on the foam base after drying without the fitting problems — twisted zips, shrunken openings, distorted shapes — that cheaper beds produce after the first wash. The foam base never needs to go in a machine. The design makes the hygiene routine that the CDC and Journal of Small Animal Practice research supports actually achievable rather than a theoretical ideal that's too inconvenient to maintain.
The Big Trail Premium No-Pull Harness connects to this guide through the practical reality of clean dog ownership: a dog who walks on a comfortable, well-fitted harness is a dog whose paws stay cleaner on structured paths and lanes — less mud transferred to the sleeping surface on return from the walk, less of the biological load described at the start of this guide accumulating between washes. Not a replacement for a good washing routine, but a genuine reduction in what needs to be managed.
— Joseph, The Big Pet Shop, Bacup, Lancashire 🐾
ADVANCED FAQ
Can you machine wash a dog bed with a foam insert? Never the foam insert itself — machine washing destroys the viscoelastic cell structure of memory foam and the internal composition of high-density orthopedic foam permanently. The foam must be spot-cleaned with a damp cloth and mild detergent and air-dried. The cover, if removable, can and should be machine-washed. If the bed has a non-removable cover over a foam insert, the only option is gentle spot-cleaning and surface cleaning of the whole bed without water saturation. A bed with a removable cover is specifically more hygienic than one without — because only the removable cover design allows the component with the highest biological contamination to be thoroughly machine-washed at the temperatures required to kill bacteria and dust mites.
How often should you wash a dog bed? The CDC recommends cleaning pet bedding as often as your own — typically weekly. For most dogs, fortnightly machine-washing of the cover with weekly vacuuming and between-wash maintenance is a practical balance that keeps bacterial concentrations below the level of health concern. For dogs with skin conditions, allergies, or a tendency to bring significant outdoor contamination into the bed, weekly washing of the cover is warranted. For dogs who are otherwise clean and well-groomed, monthly is the minimum that hygiene research supports.
What temperature should I wash a dog bed? 60°C is the threshold for killing dust mites and the majority of bacteria relevant to pet bedding hygiene. If the care label allows 60°C, use it. If the cover material specifies a maximum of 40°C — as sherpa, waterproof-lined, and some dyed covers do — use an enzyme-based laundry additive alongside the 40°C wash to compensate partially for the reduced bactericidal effect of the lower temperature. Never exceed the temperature specified on the care label, as this is the most common cause of cover shrinkage and waterproof lining damage.
Can I use normal washing detergent on a dog bed? Standard fragranced detergents can be used but are not ideal. The fragrance residue they leave is perceived by dogs at a much higher effective concentration than humans register it — dogs' olfactory sensitivity is approximately ten thousand times greater than ours — and many dogs find the resulting smell aversive, which can cause them to avoid their freshly washed bed. Fabric softener specifically should be avoided entirely, as the coating mechanism by which it works traps bacteria in the fabric over subsequent washes. A fragrance-free, dye-free, softener-free pet-safe detergent with half a cup of white vinegar in the rinse cycle is the correct approach.
My dog's bed still smells after washing — why? The most common cause is inadequate drying. Residual moisture trapped in foam, filling, or thick fabric creates the perfect environment for the mould and mildew growth that produces the musty smell owners notice on a supposedly clean bed. The second most common cause is inadequate pre-washing preparation — fur and organic material left in the fabric before the machine wash partially blocks the wash action and contributes to residual odour. The third cause is water temperature too low to break down the organic compounds responsible for the smell. Addressing all three — pre-wash fur removal, correct temperature, and complete drying — typically resolves persistent post-wash odour entirely.