Cat Beds

 How to choose a cat bed

Cats can sleep as much as 20 hours in any one day and as they spend so much time asleep it is worth considering if they need a special bed. At one time the family cat would find the warm spot in the house and quietly curl up and go to sleep. In recent years a vast range of cat beds, hammocks and pillows have appeared on the market.

Nearly all cat owners want to provide the best for their cats but is there any real need to go out and spend big sums on a specially designed cat bed? The answer to that question in probably no,  It is very easy to make a suitable cat bed without spending a lot of cash and the finished cat bed will be at least as acceptable to your cat as one of the  more expensive cat beds.

A basket traditionally made of wicker or even one of the plastic cloths baskets can make a perfectly acceptable cat bed. All it requires is the addition a blanket and/or pillow to make it perfectly acceptable to a sleeping feline. One point, if you use a pillow avoid those with plastic foam, they are difficult to clean an dif the cat chews the pillow it may ingest some of the plastic foam.

Many cats like to have the sides of a basket or box around them as a protection when they sleep although others are quite happy to lay stretched out on a mat or window ledge. .Whatever type of cat bed you have do make sure that it is large enough for your cat to stretch out but do not have it too big. The cat may not feel as secure in a large cat bed.
Cat beds need regular cleaning and an occasional anti flea treatment. On this score the plastic laundry type baskets are much easier to keep clean than their wicker counterparts.
Cat radiator beds and cat hammocks have become increasingly popular with cat owners in recent years but I am not sure that most cats are very keen on either. In fact if you go away and leave a cardboard box open there is a good chance that you when you return you will find your cat curled up in the box fast asleep.

Many cat owners have returned from the pet store with one of the latest state of the art cat beds only to find their cat will totally ignore it. Any suitable container, be it basket, box or what have you, lined with a towel or bedding placed near a warm spot will make an ideal cat bed for your pet.

Don't forcget to tuck your cat in.