Annie's New Bed: Chapter 43 Summary and Analysis
⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This guide contains detailed spoilers for the entire novel. Proceed only if you've finished reading or are comfortable knowing the plot.
Summary
Greg and Megan return to their central Florida ranch-style home to find the kitchen and family room floors covered in what looks like mounds of snow. Megan briefly wonders if it could have snowed indoors, but dismisses the thought—it's the middle of summer in Florida. Greg grabs a handful of the soft white substance and calls for Annie, their seven-year-old corgi.
Annie emerges from the back bedroom, walking tentatively as if stepping on eggshells, head low and tail drooping. The couple begins taking inventory. The sofa is intact, the pillows are in place, and the master bedroom door is still shut. Annie's toy bin contains only tennis balls and rubber toys—she isn't allowed stuffed toys because she always destroys them. Greg has previously joked that buying Annie a stuffed toy is like handing the dog cash to eat.
Greg calls from the back bedroom, where the couple finds the shredded remnants of Annie's brand-new orthopedic dog bed. The bed was an expensive purchase Megan made after Annie's last vet checkup, when the vet expressed concern about Annie's stiff joints and recommended a supplement and a quality supportive bed. The previous night was the first time Annie had slept on the bed, and Megan had felt confident the splurge was worth it—until now.
Megan groans in frustration, noting that the bed was supposed to help Annie feel better and was very expensive. The couple cleans up the debris before turning in for the night.
Days later, Annie begins limping after playing at the park, so Megan goes to the pet store and buys a less expensive memory foam bed. Annie sleeps on it all night and naps on it the next day. After three days without a shredding incident, Megan tells Greg she thinks they have a winner—until she comes home that evening to more piles of shredded foam.
Frustrated, Megan wonders aloud why Annie insists on destroying her beds when she's only trying to make the dog comfortable. As she fills the trash with foam chunks, her mind races through possible solutions: Kevlar dog beds, Teflon coatings, ways to teach Annie to stop chewing so she can enjoy the bed's long-term benefits.
Just then, Annie bounds around the corner with a chunk of foam between her teeth, clearly wanting to play with her new