The Wall Street Journal, in its weekend edition this past,
ran a really interesting article about how pet “ownership” is changing the way
we design our homes. They had one really
interesting example of one woman’s creative way of dealing with dog beds on the
floors of her house. Which got me to
thinking about how different the sleeping habits are of our four rescue dogs.
For example, Rommel, one of our 100-pound German Shepherds,
who is as smart and crafty as his namesake, will sleep anywhere. Backseat of the car, my bed, husband’s bed,
dog bed, floor, doesn’t matter, he is getting his Z’s. His favorite napping zone is a vintage couch,
on his back with legs straight up in the air and snoring to his heart’s
content. Unfortunately, his favorite Z
Zone has become off limits because I recently recovered that couch in faux
ostrich skin with nailhead trim. Ryder, our
other German Shepherd who is named after the truck rental company, will not
sleep on people furniture. Floors, dog
beds, rugs, towels but definitely no furniture.
The problem with German Shepherds is that they are smelly, have breath
so bad it would stop a horse in its tracks, and shed more hair than a mohair
sweater in July. Our home requires the vigilance of a wonderful
“cleaning assistant,” Sherri, a woman with great patience. I hope she realizes what a blessing she is to
us.
Our two terriers, who are both quite insane, are entirely
different. I often think, after watching
the antics of these two psychos, that there must be a picture of a terrier dog
in the dictionary beside the word “insane.”
Rommel is our pack leader but make no mistake, these two hold their own. But they refuse to sleep on the floor, no
matter what. Chairs, dog beds, rugs,
pillows, couches, backyard but no floors, won’t do it. And if their dog beds are in the wash, they
will pace the unworthy floors until the beds are clean and put back in their rightful
place. Apparently terriers insist on
order.
These days, people see pets as an extension of their families
and the dilemma of what to do with dogs beds taking over coveted floor space is
a problem, especially if one has multiple dogs.
But there are great choices out there that are durable, fashionable, and
washable. One can always go to the Box
Store for Furry Friends and find a suitable but boring solution. Or check out the dog bed I have pictured here,
done in fun and funky Amy Butler fabrics. You can find all sorts of handmade
and individualized selections on Etsy.
This can be found at HeartKnitHome, a shop in Etsy. That’s the beauty of home design, getting what expresses you!
Back to the creative solution from the WSJ, she built a “dog
condo” in her house, which really was more like customized bookshelving for
Fido. Anyone could tweak this idea,
depending on how deep the bookshelves are in your home, by simply removing the
last shelf and putting a dog bed on the very bottom shelf. You might have to train your little darlings
to sleep in the new arrangement, but I know I am at least willing to give it a
try. It also might solve the problem of me
being launched across the kitchen when looking for a midnight snack because the
dogs have moved one of their beds. Such
is the life of a pet owner……
We all would love to see some pictures of someone (maybe me…)
who tries out this bookshelf idea. We
encourage sharing. Until next week,
Happy Tails!
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