Bedding articles possessing microbe-inhibiting properties

A bedding article for a domestic animal comprising:

• an air-permeable, unitary piece of non-woven material defining a geometric shape in the form of an article of a size which is adapted to support a domestic animal and form a mattress for the animal;
• and
• a microbe-inhibiting agent applied to or incorporated directly within at least a portion of said unitary piece of material, wherein the microbe-inhibiting agent is non-toxic and non-carcinogenic when ingested by domestic animals at the levels used in the bedding article and further are non-skin-sensitizing on the skin or other membranes of the domestic animals who effectively come into contact with the bedding article.

A process for imparting microbe-inhibiting properties to a pet bed having an outer textile casing formed of a touch, chew-resistant material and defining a geometric shape in the form of an article of a size which is adapted to support a domestic animal and having a dry inner filling of at least one of a foam, a particulate, and a fibrous filling, comprising the step of:

• applying or incorporating a microbe-inhibiting agent to at least one of the outer textile casing and the filling, wherein the microbe-inhibiting agent is non-toxic and non-carcinogenic when ingested by domestic animals at the levels used in the pet bed and further are non-skin-sensitizing on the skin or other membranes of the domestic animals who effectively come into contact with the pet bed,
• whereby proliferation of microbes is inhibited in an area that contacts a pet that rests on said pet bed.