Every dog parent knows the pain of not enough room in the bed for you and all the fur-babies. And we all know that clear ownership of the bed actually belongs to the dogs. If you have more than one pup, they all want in. But if you kick one out, they all have to go. And who can do that? One couple decided to solve the problem: just get a massively bigger bed!
Loving Rescue Dogs
After spending another difficult night with 8 dogs in the bed, Chris and Marisea Hughes decided something had to change. They hired a furniture maker to create a custom bed big enough for all of them. 14 feet long and 7 feet wide.
“At nighttime, all of the dogs want to sleep on the bed and sometimes it becomes too cluttered, and we end up being pushed off of the bed or sleeping on the couch, ” Chris told Today. “So we built the megabed.” (1)
The bed took 6 months to build and has a custom set of stairs for the senior dogs to climb. Plus, a set of drawers for linens and blanket storage. The designer, Mike Ford, says he added a hand-carved paw print into the headboard, inspired by his own senior dog Bailey who passed away.
“I added the dog print from my senior dog because they have such a heart for senior dogs themselves,” Ford told Today. (1)
Rescuing Senior Dogs
The Hughes operate a non-profit organization called Mr. Mo Project that rescues senior and sick dogs from shelters. The mission is to find them permanent homes for the rest of their lives and take care of their medical and living expenses.
Approximately 3.3 million dogs enter U.S animal shelters across the country every year. And about 3.2 million cats. The number of animals entering shelters in the U.S has declined from 7.2 million in 2011, the biggest decline being in dogs from 3.9 to 3.3 million. Shelters euthanize about 670,000 dogs (and 860,000 cats) every year, but numbers have declined from 2.6 million dogs and cats in 2011. This is largely due to an increase in adoption and in stray animals being returned to owners. (2)
Finding homes for old, sick, or challenged dogs can be difficult because of the care and expenses required. But this is the main goal of the Mr. Mo Project: providing a program for hospice care placement for these animals until their end days and covering the expenses.
Home, Heart And Bed Full of Rescue Dogs
With these staggering statistics and their passion for dogs, it was a no-brainer for the Hughes to take in as many as they could. And let them all in the bed! They’re loving their new space, and feel refreshed and finally…rested! But there’s talk that the gigantic bed might have room for even more rescue dogs.
“I’m sure it could,” said Mariesa. “And I’m sure one of these days we will find out. (1)
Sources