Build a Dog Bed Step For Canines With Arthritis

As dogs age, many of them will develop the joint
disease called osteoarthritis in canines. This
arthritis disease is exactly the same as the
disease that humans experience as they age. The
problem caused by osteoarthritis is that it
result in the degeneration of the tissue within
the joints and thus causes pain and discomfort.

For house dogs which are used to jumping onto
off of furniture and beds the joint arthritis
disease becomes a significant problem as the dog
ages. It becomes more more difficult for the dog
to jump onto and off of the bed if there used
sleeping there at night. Many pet owners simply
have to lift the dog to and from the bed when
needed. This is not an optimum solution since
many times the dog needs to exit the bed in the
night for drinks of water or simply to roam the
house for a bit.

One solution is to search for commercially built
bed steps which are readily available at numerous
online locations. Although these steps are highly
functional and will serve the purpose for
allowing the dog to negotiate the bed easily,
they can be quite expensive and sometimes
require significant room within the bedroom.
This can be an issue if budgets are tight or for
people with small bedrooms.

Another solution for this is simply building the
bed step yourself. This can be done quite easily
with a few pieces of plywood, nails or screws,
and an old throw rug. Begin by buying a piece of
half-inch plywood at your local link store.
You'll need a soft cut the wood or perhaps in
some stores they provide this service for a
small fee.

You need to cut a piece of plywood about 18
inches wide and 3 feet long. This peaceful slide
under the mattress between the box springs about
18 inches. This allows for about 18 inches to
stick out from the bed; this will be the dog
step. Now you'll need another piece of plywood
exactly 18 inches wide and the distance from the
step to the floor. This piece will then act as a
support at the end of the step to the floor. You
can use screws or nails to fasten these two
pieces of plywood together.

Once fasten together this makes for a very
sturdy step as 18 inches of the top piece of
plywood is wedged between the mattress and box
springs. Now then, if you have an old throw rug
and a staple gun you can take the rug and staple
it to the top of the step and give the dog better
traction when jumping onto and off of the step.

Most dogs with arthritis can easily be taught to
use the step by offering some treats for them to
jump onto and off of the bed when using the
step. It won't be long before the dog becomes
quite used to using the step at all times when
going off of or onto the bed.

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Cactus Canyon has been selling health related
solutions and products on the internet since
2004. Among their most widely used items is
Synflex for dog Arthritis.
http://www.cactuscanyon.com

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