Dogs & Cats on Waterbeds

The owner of STLBeds, Dave Belleville, started his mattress business as a waterbed store in 1986.  He would probably know better than anyone if it is ok to mix dogs, cats, and waterbeds. He has been selling and continues to sell these unique beds just south of St. Louis MO. Dave says, “If I have learned anything in all my years of selling waterbeds and being a pet owner of dogs and cats, our little friends love these waterbeds. I have had many animals through out the years and in particular several cats that even sleep with my wife and I on our waterbed over the years and knock on wood we’ve never had a puncture.” Dave goes onto say “that doesn’t mean you should take it for granted that the beds cannot be damaged by pets” and offers some helpful hints.

How to protect your waterbed from pets

One solution for hardside waterbed owners is to purchase a waterbed cover that fully incases your hardside waterbed bladder for the ultimate protection. These usually have a zippered top, which is removable. It completely zips to a side and bottom panel so your furry friend cannot puncture it. This quilted top cover is usually ¾” to 2 ½” thick or more so pet claws are commonly not an issue. A person only needs to unzip the parameter of the protective zippered cover to access the waterbed mattress inside for occasion maintenance such as adding conditioner.

Waterbed protection

An example of how well protective nightwear covers from companies like Land and Sky work is this story that happened to one of our customers about two years ago. The couple having bought their bed less than a year before the incident told us how their dog dug a 2” deep hole in her 3” cover. They had left the dog alone while they were out for the evening during a thunderstorm. The dog got scared and dug into the cover of their bed. Fortunately for them the dog never did get to the $500.00 waterbed mattress.

Another thing that helps to protect a waterbed from cats and dogs is the bed linens. They offer additional protection while protecting your mattress and greatly adding to the beds comfort. This is because a mattress pad adds thickness to the top keeping the mattress from your pets’ sharp claws. The comfort comes from more breathability while drawing moisture and heat away from your body.

Waterbeds that co-exist best with your pets

One waterbed in particular that can be great to have when you own a dog or cat is a softside waterbed, which already has the protective cover built in. The outside part of the bed also has a zippered top and encloses a protective 4-5” foam perimeter keeping the sides of the waterbed totally protected from sharp claws. They look just like a regular mattress and boxspring and best of all can be used with regular bedroom furniture. We recommend a good mattress cover also on a softside waterbed not only to offer additional protection from pets, but they go a long way to protect your bed from stains and smell due to dirt and body fluids like perspiration.

So as you can see there are many solutions to the so called “I can’t have a pet and a waterbed” comments so frequently thrown around. Our hope is that this dispels some of the stories about cats causing waterbeds to pop and explode.