How to wash pet bedding

Remove as much pet hair as you can first (shake outside, lint roller, or a stiff brush), then wash pet bedding by itself — never with human laundry — in warm water on a normal cycle with no fabric softener, and air dry or tumble low. Run a rinse or drum-clean cycle afterward to flush the hair the wash left behind.

The separation rule isn't squeamishness: pet bedding carries hair, dander, and outdoor soil in quantities clothing washes aren't designed to handle, and wet hair mats into other fabrics and clogs machine filters.

Typical machine settings

Typical machine settings for pet bedding
Water temperature	Cold (60–80°F / 16–27°C) is the safe default; warm or hot is generally OK when needed
Cycle	Normal (default) — heavy duty also generally safe
Spin	Medium spin at most
Drying	Air drying is gentlest (hang); tumble dry on low heat at most
Bleach	Chlorine bleach residue can irritate pets' skin; rinse thoroughly whatever you use.
Fabric softener	Skip it — softener residue and fragrance can irritate pets' skin.

Hot water (label permitting) is a reasonable choice for bedding from pets with fleas or after an accident. Most foam inserts cannot be machine washed — wash the cover and spot-clean the foam.

These settings match what our laundry checker uses. The garment's own care label always wins.

What pet bedding can usually be washed with

Other pet items only: pet towels, pet blankets, fabric collars and soft toys (check their tags).
Nothing else. A pet load is a pet load.

What to keep separate

All human laundry, always — this is a hard rule in our checker, not a preference.
Your own towels and bedding, same reason.
Microfiber cleaning cloths — pet hair is the ultimate microfiber contaminant.

Color considerations

Pet bedding dyes are rarely the problem; hair is. Color-sort pet items only if something is brand new and saturated.
Light-colored bedding shows hair less in the wash but more in use — irrelevant to washing, worth knowing when buying.

Fabric considerations

Removable covers are the washable part; zip them closed so hair stays out of the zipper track.
Foam and orthopedic inserts: almost never machine washable — the label decides; usually spot-clean and air out.
Waterproof-lined beds: skip the dryer entirely — heat delaminates the waterproof layer; hang to dry.
Plush and sherpa beds shed like fleece; expect to clean the machine after.

Drying

Air drying is the safe default — many pet beds have foam, backing, or coatings that dryer heat damages.
If the label allows tumbling, use low heat and clean the lint filter mid-cycle; pet-bedding loads fill it fast.
Make sure thick beds are dry to the center — a damp core in a pet bed mildews quickly.

Common mistakes

Skipping the de-hairing step — the hair has to go somewhere, and "somewhere" is your machine's drain pump and your next load.
Washing pet bedding with the family towels to save a load.
Fabric softener — residue and fragrance sit against your pet's skin and nose all day.
Machine-washing a whole foam bed because the cover wouldn't unzip — the foam breaks up and the bed is done.

When the usual advice changes

Flea treatment periods: wash all pet fabric hot (label permitting) and frequently, per your vet's advice — this is one case where aggressive washing wins.
Brand-new pet blankets can bleed like any dyed fabric — first wash truly alone.
If a pet sleeps on YOUR blanket, that blanket has become pet bedding — wash it in the pet load until it's retired from pet duty.

This is general guidance. If a garment's care label says something different, follow the care label.

Sources

Established fiber and fabric care practice — Widely documented fabric-care knowledge. Well-established, uncontroversial properties of common fibers — e.g. cotton shrinks in heat, wool felts with agitation and heat, dark dyes can transfer when new, terry cloth sheds lint, microfiber attracts lint, elastics degrade in high heat. Used only for claims of this uncontroversial kind.

Last reviewed: 2026-07-19. See our editorial policy for how this page was checked.