Soft bed or heated bed for arthritic cat?

Do you think an elderly arthritic cat would prefer a soft, unheated bed or a not so soft heated bed? I can only get one or the other.

For the soft bed I'm considering an actual cat bed, a pillow with a fleece throw on it, or a memory foam seat cushion with a fleece throw on it. For the heated bed I'm considering a heated pet-safe pad with a fleece throw wrapped around it. Even if I set the heated pad on a pillow, it wouldn't be soft and if I put the pillow on top of the pad, the heat wouldn't really go throught the pillow to reach the cat.

So it's either a soft, unheated bed or a not so soft heated bed. What do you all think? I noticed the cat liked laying on a heated blanket which isn't exactly soft because of the heating coils and she liked sleeping on a futon bed, if that helps. The cat isn't mine.

Go to an auto parts store and look for a windshield sunshade, the kind with a silvery reflective side. They're inexpensive. Cut it to the size of her cat bed, and lay it underneath, silvery side up. Her own body warmth will be reflected back up to her. I did this for my elderly cat, sewing a sort of pillow case that fits in the box she likes to sleep in. You could make a couple of covers using fleece from a rabric store - nice and soft and doesn't unravel so just cut to size. Washable too.
 

Another thought - my old cat gets Cosequin (a joint supplement for cats) every day and it really helps her arthritic joints. She's still stiff, but no longer hobbling around. Even gets up and down stairs.

You can also buy microwavable heating disks.


I've used them with limited success when trapping cats in very cold weather, but indoors, the heat should last longer.

For a cat I fostered for a short while with arthritis, I used a heating pad set on low; it had a built in timer to shut off after two hours. 

Thanks for all the suggestions, I'm looking into them.
 
I should clarify that this bed I'm asking about would be a late Christmas present for my grandfather and his 15 y/o arthritic cat. We haven't exchanged gifts yet since my grandparents were on vacation until a few days ago.

I would really love to get a heated pet bed for this cat, but the nice ones are expensive and I can't afford that right now.

I considered making one with a regular heating pad since that's what I use for my own cats (with four layers of a fleece throw on top). I'm totally uptight about it being a fire hazard so I never leave it on unsupervised and I remember to turn it on/off at two hour intervals or so, depending on if the cat(s) are using it.

I would worry about my grandfather forgetting about a regular heating pad. Even though some have a two hour auto-shutoff, my grandfather would probably forget to turn it on again. I thought about buying a timer for the electrical outlet that would turn the heating pad on/off at certain times of the day, but I'm undecided about that.


My grandmother is supposed to be giving the cat Dasuquin, but she stopped for some reason. She was told to sprinkle it over the cat's food, but the cat wouldn't eat with the powder on/in the food. The bottle says the pill can simply be given to the cat orally, but those capsules are as big as the biggest human pill I've seen. I would worry about it being a choking hazard for a small cat. Since the pills are time capsules, they can't be cut in half.
 

About the Dasuquin--was it flavored?  Was it a pill or capsule?  The kind I gave the cat I was fostering (same one who had arthritis( was chicken or tuna flavored and I opened the capsule and mixed it with food.  So I'm a little surprised your cat would eat the food. 

Cosequin is kind of the same as Dasuquin, also flavored. 

I know it's a bit late but for the medicine my dad mixes half pumpkin (the canned mushy pie filling found at regular stores) and half wet food and then mixes in the powder. Maybe your grandmother was just sprinkling and not mixing? Also, the pumpkin was because the cat needed a lot more fiber so be careful if you use it! hope the kitty is still healthy

Go to a farm center , like an Orschelns or Tractor Supply, or a big store like Menards, and look for a 'replacement' pet heating pad. They are half the price and are just a thin pad with a cord meant to be put inside a cover. I get them and put a hand towel over them in a soft comfy bed, then a thin fleece blanket, they work wonderfully and are MUCH safer then a human heat pad, which may get too hot. My older cat hardly leaves it alone, all my cats find heated spots to lay on, so that is what I recommend!

My outdoor feral's love their heating pads, but when I first bought them I plugged them in inside the house to make sure they worked properly and my cats did not like them. Also the cat that is always on my lap will not lay on me when I have my heated throw on, even low, he will not get on my lap. My dog had an arthritic dog mat. It was the egg crate type foam in middle with a removable shepra cover that could be washed. My cat was always on it with the dog. It was a very low mat we got it a Meijer for a resonable price. The pet store ortho mats are really expensive. I have made one also, but it did not wash well because my cover shrunk.