Building a den for an anxious dog (the setup that finally worked)

Storms, fireworks, or just a dog that follows you to the bathroom. Anxious dogs do not want more space. They want less of it, with soft walls.

The big sprawler option

The extra large calming bed ($69) is 110cm of raised-rim plush. The rim is the point: chin over the edge, body surrounded. Big dogs that flop dramatically get their sprawl and the security.

The burrower option

For dogs that dig under blankets, the plush calming cave bed ($65) has a hood they can disappear into. Small and medium dogs treat it like a private room.

Make the den predictable

Put the bed somewhere quiet that is not a hallway. Feed a chew there. Never use it for time-outs. Within a week or two the bed becomes the place their nervous system associates with switching off, and storms get noticeably less dramatic.

Serious anxiety deserves a vet or behaviourist. For everything milder, start with the den. Browse beds & comfort.