Memory Foam, Egg-Crate and Fibre: What's Inside
Most of the memory foam vs egg crate dog bed question comes down to something you can check with one hand. Kneel beside your dog's bed and press the heel of your hand into the spot where their hip goes. If you can feel the floor, it does not much matter what the label said. Whatever is inside has stopped doing its job, and your dog has probably been telling you for a while: more circling before they settle, more nights on the kitchen floor.
The filling is the part of a dog bed you cannot see in a photograph, and it is the part that decides whether the bed still works next winter. This page explains, in plain terms, the fillings used across our range, what each is good at, what it is not, and how to tell when it has given up.
Why the filling matters more than the cover
A dog lies on a bed for hours at a time, with most of their weight going through a few points: hips, shoulders, elbows. A filling that moves away from those points leaves them resting on whatever is underneath. A filling that stays put keeps the surface even all night. That is the whole difference between soft and supportive, and it is why two beds that look alike can cost very different amounts.
Memory foam
Memory foam is a polyurethane foam that softens with warmth and pressure and returns to shape slowly. Under a dog it moulds to the body rather than pushing back at one point, so a hip settles into the surface instead of resting on a hard spot. It recovers once they get up, just more slowly than ordinary foam. In our range it comes in three forms.
- Solid memory foam, as the mattress core. Buttermere is 110 × 85cm and 10cm deep, and Wastwater shapes a raised head into the foam itself.
- Crumb memory foam: memory foam in pieces inside a casing. It moulds around a dog as they settle and is a more affordable way into foam. Because it is made of pieces, it behaves more like a firm cushion than a slab, and it can move about inside its casing. It is in the base of Chatsworth, our lowest-priced memory foam bed, and in Elterwater's lift-out cushion.
- Gel memory foam: memory foam with gel worked through it. Ennerdale uses 24cm of it. We describe Ennerdale by its depth; we do not make temperature claims for the gel.
Egg-crate foam
Egg-crate, or profiled, foam has its top surface cut into rows of peaks and hollows, a little like the inside of an egg box. The peaks compress one by one, which spreads a dog's weight across the surface and helps the foam resist packing flat. It feels springier and quicker to respond than memory foam, which can suit a dog who shifts position a lot. Nocturne, Newlands, Easedale, Scafell, Braithwaite and the XXL Burnmoor are built on a profiled egg-crate core, and Bowfell and Esthwaite use layered foam with an egg-crate top.
Memory foam vs egg crate dog bed: which is better?
Neither wins on every count, which is why so many of our foam beds use both. In a layered bed, memory foam on top does the contouring and a profiled egg-crate layer underneath does the supporting, so a heavy dog does not sink through to the floor. Martindale, Rosthwaite, Watendlath, Skelwith, Mardale and Longsleddale are built this way, and Melbreak and Staveley also pair memory foam with an egg-crate profiled layer. Ambleside does the same job with memory foam over a firmer foam base, run right out to all four edges.
| At a glance | Memory foam | Egg-crate foam | Fibre fill |
|---|---|---|---|
| How it feels | Sinks in and moulds slowly | Even, springier, quicker to respond | Soft, plump and yielding |
| Under a heavy dog | Contours; needs depth or a support layer beneath | Spreads weight and resists compressing flat | Moves away from the heaviest points |
| Over time | Holds its shape when deep enough for the dog | Holds its shape when deep enough for the dog | Packs down and needs plumping |
| Washing | Never wash or soak the foam; wash the cover | Never wash or soak the foam; wash the cover | Follow the label; on our fibre beds the cover comes off |
Put simply:
- If your dog sleeps on their side and likes to sink in: choose memory foam.
- If they change position a lot through the night: choose egg-crate foam.
- If they are heavy, or you cannot decide: choose a layered bed, which gives them both.
- If they burrow and do not need support: fibre fill will do nicely.
Browse memory foam dog beds, or find the egg-crate and layered beds in our orthopaedic range.
Fibre fill
Fibre fill is a loose, springy fibre filling; where a listing says virgin fibre, that means newly made fibre rather than recycled. It is soft, warm and springy, and a dog who likes to burrow will sink into it happily. What it does not do is support. Under weight it shifts away from the heaviest points and gradually flattens, which is why a fibre bed needs plumping and why it will not suit a heavy or stiff dog as their only bed. Our fibre-filled beds say so plainly on the product page: Rydal, Wensleydale, Ullswater, Kentmere and Loweswater are built for softness, and Seathwaite and Hawkshead are soft pillow mattresses rather than foam ones.
That is not a criticism. A young dog who wants to disappear into a nest on a cold night may be happier on fibre than on any foam bed we sell.
Mesh: support with no filling at all
Elevated beds take a different approach. A taut mesh deck is stretched across a frame, lifted clear of the floor, and takes the dog's weight across the whole surface. The deck has no foam to flatten and no filling to go soggy, and air moves underneath, so heat is not trapped between dog and floor. The trade-off is that mesh is firm and even, with nothing to sink into, so a blanket on top is a good idea in winter. Windermere, Bassenthwaite and Brotherswater all work this way.
Waterproof liners: what protects the foam
Foam cannot go in the washing machine and should never be soaked, so anything that reaches it tends to stay there. A waterproof liner sits between the washable cover and the foam, so wet coats, spills and the occasional accident stop at the liner. Coniston, Borrowdale, Helvellyn, Staveley, Melbreak, Nocturne, Newlands, Easedale, Scafell, Burnmoor, Braithwaite and Wastwater all have one. Some beds put the waterproofing on the outside instead. On Wasdale it is the outer fabric itself, and the Crummock Waterproof Nest is covered in a coated fabric that wipes clean.
How to tell if a dog bed is bottoming out
- The hand test. Press the heel of your hand into the sleeping area where the hip goes. You should feel foam take the weight. If you reach the floor, so does your dog.
- The morning dip. Memory foam recovers slowly, but it should recover. A hollow that is still there hours after they got up means the foam has stopped coming back.
- Lumps and ridges. In a fibre bed, filling that has gathered at the edges and left a thin middle.
- Your dog's vote. More turning before settling, lying down and getting up again, sleeping half on and half off, or choosing the floor. Once a bed has flattened, a hard floor at least feels the same everywhere.
- A look inside. With the cover off, foam that has thinned, crumbled or no longer fills its cover is finished.
Where one of our beds carries a 5-year no-flatten guarantee on the foam core, the product page says so. It applies under normal domestic use, subject to the guarantee terms; cover wear and pet damage are not included.
Foam questions
Can you wash a memory foam dog bed?
Wash the cover, never the foam. Unzip it, wash it as the sewn-in label says, and let it air-dry fully before refitting. The foam stays out of the machine and out of water. Our care and washing guide covers liners, smells and drying.
Is memory foam good for older dogs?
It gives an even, moulding surface that does not pack down, which is a good start for an older dog, and the shape of the bed matters just as much. It is comfort, not treatment. If your dog is stiff or sore, your vet is the right person to ask about their joints and the resting surface that suits them. For the rest, read how to choose an orthopaedic dog bed.
What density is your foam?
We do not quote foam density on this page. What each product page tells you is the type of foam, how it is layered and, for most beds, the dimensions. If you need more detail on a particular bed, ask us and we will tell you what we can confirm.
Why sell fibre beds at all, if foam supports better?
Because not every dog needs support, and some dogs simply want to sink. A fibre nest is honest about what it is: soft, warm and cosy. The mistake is buying one for a heavy or stiffening dog and expecting it to behave like foam.
Know the filling but not yet the shape? Let the Bed Finder match a bed to how they sleep. Most of our beds come with 100 nights to decide.