Big Dog in a Little Bed

That's my Lucy in her too small dog bed.  There is a reasonable explanation for this.  Lucy is a chewer. A crazy-style chewer.  We baby gate her on the ugly tile (see above pic) while we are at work.  She chews on baseboard, the molding surrounding the front door and coat closet, and her bed.  We leave her chew toys, but those hold no appeal.  She only wants to chew what she can't chew.  She's like a rebellious teenager.

So, every night, Lucy gets her big bed in her play pen, and every day, she gets her day bed.  She still chews her big bed, but I can usually stitch it up, so we've had the same one for several months now.  But Lucy can go through a day bed like no one's business.

Here was my previous formula for day beds.  One pillow inside a plastic pillow case inside a cloth pillow case all stuffed into a fleece pillow case that I sewed shut.  Now, Lucy could usually get through the fleece in a week or two, or she's have an accident and I'd have to wash everything.

But one day I came home to carnage.  Bits of plastic pillow case and fleece all over her playpen.  The humanity!  Surprisingly the pillow was still intact, but that was the only thing.  As punishment, I gave her this too small bed that I bought by accident.  I'm terrible with scale.  I think this is actually a cat bed and as you can see, it does not work for a 35 lb beagle, but Lucy honestly loves it.  Monday I put her in her playpen so I could get some work done on the basement and she just curled up and slept.  Then I opened up her baby gates, but she stayed in her tiny bed instead of joining me on the couch.  She curls up like this every day.

Since beagles are pack animals normally, I think she likes to be cuddled.  She loves stuffing herself between Doug and I on the couch or curling up in the chair with one of us, so I honestly think this too small bed is comforting to her.  She can pretend that she's surrounded by her brothers and sisters.  I'm getting a little too into my dog's psyche right now.

At any rate, it always puts a smile on my face to walk through the door and see Lucy glance up sleepily from her tiny bed.  Hopefully this makes you laugh too.  (And buys me another couple days before I get you my review of Beautiful Creatures!)