How to build a dog bed by the seat of your pants...

[schizo319]

so I came across this http://www.shelterness.com/diy-pallet-pet-beds/ and thought it was pretty darn cute. Our oldest dachshund is blind and arthritic and her old bones can't take the cold tile floor even under a cushy dog bed, so I wanted her to have a place where she was raised up and out of way of foot traffic.

Here it is before I got started:



Ok,  I did NOT do my research before starting. Apparently there are ways of disassembling these things that make it way easier (drilling out nails, etc.) My method involved a crowbar, a hammer, pliers a lot of cursing and a little prayer - so it's VERY um, rustic? This is the base of the bed:



I wasn't sure how to do the sides, so I thought lathing strips would work to hold them together. I didn't have any of those, so I sawed up 3 yard sticks and used them instead. I used wood glue and finishing nails to hold the side walls together.



Once the side walls were done, I used L brackets to attach the side walls to the back and then drywall screws to attach the resulting piece to the base. There's probably a better way to do this, but I was winging it.



And here it is in "action". It's actually big enough for all three of our dogs!

[kaz814]

Awwww - great use of the pallet and your dog looks so comfy!  (And adorable, but that goes without saying!)

[lovesclutter]

That is an awesome dog bed. You did a wonderful job. It looks like a miniature couch. The rulers crack me up. I have two large cats that are just now bonding. Wonder if I make them a bed??? Understood about the cursing. lol

[lovesclutter]

Wow, thanks for the link too. Rocks.

[quirks]

I love it!  I want to make one for our front porch and yeah, pallets are strong enough for my chunky-monkey's butt - perfect!

and the 'rustic' look is fab

[Momof2!]

Oh wow, you did a great job! I have a dog that is blind, diabetic and arthritic. I bet he would fancy one of these.

[LimeRiot]

My goodness, how sweet. I love the rustic look of it. Your doxie is adorable and she looks very very happy.

[sweets4ever]

Congrats!!

You're a Craftster Best of 2012 Winner!



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