The
Weekly Growl:
A
Canine Commentary
PetSafe
Wellness Bed
By
Stacy Mantle
People often accuse my husband
and I of spoiling of our animals. Personally I think they are
just jealous because we have so many neat pet products and they
don’t. Take, for example, the newest product out by PetSafe, the Wellness Bed.
This pet bed is not like your
ordinary cedar-filled pet bed.
Nope. This pet
bed has a massage unit built into it, along with a heating unit and
four-plus inches of foam.
When my favorite Fedex driver
delivered the incredibly large box, I had to first figure out where
to open it. I had
requested the Extra Large bed for our three very big dogs. Tristan, the coyote, has
some hip problems from the extra weight he’s carrying around (as a
result of being mostly lazy).
Cheiss, the mutt, has a missing piece of hip as a result of
an accidental, and very unfortunate, collision with a vehicle (my
husband’s) and suffers from some joint stiffness after his thirty
minutes of Fetch each night.
Roscoe, our Beagle, is suffering from a few mental disorders
that remain to be identified.
But, he’s a sweet soul and so we do whatever we can to make
his days a little more comfortable.
We were pretty confident that
the massage and heating features would be fairly appealing to each
and every one of them, that being said, we were interested in who
would ultimately gain custody of the new bed. Tristan is the most
dominant, but he’s older, and Cheiss is constantly challenging
him. Roscoe is always
in the background playing peacemaker and nursemaid to the loser, and
sometimes he can sneak in when the other two are jockeying for
position. I had placed
a bet on Tristan winning the bed, but my husband had laid odds on
Cheiss taking it over.
As it turns out, we were both wrong.
The Cog got the bed.
Cog, for those of you who don’t
know, is short for “cat that thinks she is a dog”. Hence, Cog. In this case, the Cog’s name
is Kyra, and she walked right over to the bed, pounced on the
massaging coils a few times, then curled up and went to sleep right
in the middle of the monstrous bed.
All three dogs and two humans
just stared at her, because really – what do you say to a cog?
By day two, the dogs were
sharing the bed with the cog. They all love the massaging coils,
which has four settings.
The movement is hardly noticeable, unless you’re a dog or a
cog, but they seem to really like it. The heat is an absolute
winner. They all love
that feeling of comfort that the heat gives to them. The cats love it, because
that’s what cats love.
The bed holds up extremely well,
also. The cover is
machine washable, and the cord is hidden deep within the bed
itself. It is also
wrapped in extra heavy cord to discourage chewing, although if you
have a young pup or a chewer, I would keep an eye on the cord just
to be on the safe side.
Of course, you should leave all electrical devices turned off
when you’re not at home.
It’s much better to be safe than sorry! As usual, my advice is to
treat your pets just as you would treat a small child, make sure all
of your cabinets and electrical outlets are completely childproof,
keep your pets away from pools, and use common sense when it comes
to anything electrical, or anything that has sharp corners or edges,
around the house and yard.
As far as the Wellness Bed goes?
The dogs, the cog, the cats and I all recommend its purchase. I know, I know. Most people don’t
have beds that nice, myself included. But, come on. If they were available for
people for only $75.00, wouldn’t you buy one? I know I would! Doesn’t your pet deserve the
same kind of pampering?
From the
Dogs:
Growls: Other than keeping the
doggone Cog off of our bed, we can’t think of one complaint!
Leaps of Joy: We love the heat, and the
massage soothes our aching joints each
evening!
From the
Humans:
Two opposable thumbs
up: The
cost is reasonable, the fighting is down quite a bit (no one wants
to fight after a massage) and everyone is happy, even the cog!
Drawbacks? Nothing yet… If anything
turns up – you’ll be the first to know! We’ll be placing an order
for two more!
About
the Author
Stacy
Mantle
is a freelance writer who currently resides in the southwestern
deserts of Arizona with a number of cats, a coyote/wolf hybrid, and
a very understanding husband. Her writing has appeared in
publications such as The Arabian Horse Times, Today’s AZ
Woman, and Pets Illustrated and she currently writes two
pet product review columns for www.PetsWeekly.com. Many of her stories and
articles have been translated into several languages, and now reach
an international audience. Quickly becoming known as "…the Erma
Bombeck of animals", her writing has skyrocketed to new heights
as she records the stories of those she loves, inspiring the reader
to learn why we have all come to love the animals we share our lives
with. She is the author of Conquering the Food Chain:
Living Amongst Animals (Without Becoming One),
which is available in Barnes & Noble bookstores nationwide, as
well as online at www.bn.com or www.amazon.com
Read about these other
great products: Spray
Commander, PetSleeves,
Pet
Costumes, 1-800-LostDog, Animal
Pathways, PetSafe's
Wellness Bed,
Wubba
World's Dog Toys, Ruffwear,
PupLight,
Drinkwell's Big Dog Pet Fountain, and
the Tapeless Wound Care
System | 
