Dog Beds for Older Dogs

You notice it before they do. The pause at the edge of the bed on a cold evening. The slower rise in the morning. The first accident in years. None of it is dramatic, and an older dog won't complain about any of it. A good dog bed for older dogs takes some of the effort out of the two moments that matter most: lying down and getting up.

What an older dog needs from a bed

• Something that doesn't pack down. Loose filling shifts away from hips and elbows and flattens with use. Memory foam moulds around them as they settle and keeps its shape; our memory foam dog beds bring them together. Several beds here, including Coniston, Borrowdale and Buttermere, carry a 5-year no-flatten guarantee on the foam core, subject to the guarantee terms; the product page says so where it applies.
• Less to climb. A deep wall that felt cosy at four can be an obstacle at twelve. A low profile or a flat mattress means they step on rather than haul themselves over. Our orthopaedic dog beds include more low and open-fronted shapes.
• Protection underneath. Older dogs sometimes have accidents. A waterproof liner between cover and foam, as on Coniston and Borrowdale, means one bad night doesn't end the bed.

Choosing a senior dog bed by how they sleep

• If they stretch out flat: Buttermere, 110 × 85cm of open memory foam, 10cm deep, with a level edge on every side.
• If they curl up and rest a chin: Coniston sits low, with a rim just high enough for a chin, memory foam and a waterproof inner liner. From 61 × 51cm.
• If they want something on every side: Borrowdale has a cushioned border on all four sides, memory foam and a waterproof liner, at 90 × 65cm.
• If they head for the sofa arm: Haweswater gives them raised sofa-style sides to prop a chin on, over memory foam.

Where you put it matters too

Put the new bed where they already choose to lie, and give them a few nights to give up an old favourite. Our guide to helping an older dog sleep well covers placement, routine and the signs a bed has stopped working.

A word about health

A bed is for comfort. It isn't a treatment, and it won't fix stiffness or arthritis. If your dog is in pain, slowing down quickly or finding it hard to get up, speak to your vet, and keep talking to them as things change. What a bed can do is give them a supportive place to rest that's easy to get into.

100 nights to see how they get on

There is no need to judge it on the first night. Every bed here comes with the 100-night sleep trial. If it isn't right within 100 nights, we arrange free UK mainland collection and a full refund. One trial per household; damage and other exclusions apply. Free standard UK delivery on orders over £40.

Questions about beds for older dogs

Is memory foam good for older dogs?

It moulds around them as they settle and holds its shape, rather than packing into ridges like fibre filling. Most beds in this collection use it. Our guide to what's inside the beds compares the foams.

Why has my old dog stopped using their bed?

Sometimes it's the bed: a wall has become hard to step over, the filling has flattened, or the cold floor comes through. Watch where they choose to lie instead; it often tells you what they need. If the change comes with stiffness, discomfort or trouble getting up, mention it to your vet as well.

Should a senior dog bed have sides?

If they like to lean or rest a chin, yes, but keep the way in low: a rim like Coniston's rather than a high wall. If they sprawl, a flat mattress like Buttermere has nothing to climb at all.

Not sure where to start? The Bed Finder takes a few questions, starting with how they sleep, and suggests one bed.