Thanks so much for all the ideas! I'm a little skittish about anything DIY; I've seen the Pinterest tutorials but I've got a long list of projects that need to be done whereas this one seems like something I should shop for! @aprilneverends, I love all those ideas - if only I could afford one of those cool RH beds (of course if I could, I would probably have a house with ginormous rooms for kids and this wouldn't be a concern.) @lilysroom & @robo & @chibimini - you have me thinking hard about the right bed size. He's the tallest kid in his school and while that may taper off eventually it's a decent bet he'll be over 6' at minimum. So the length of a queen bed might be more sensible. We had one in there when it was a guest room (pre kid #2) and his other furniture is pretty slim so I'm sure I could fit one. We're putting hardwood floors upstairs in the next month, so my hope is try to coordinate this and minimize the amount of furniture the guys have to move as they install. This is his messy day-before-school starts room; the other wall has a very shallow, tall bookshelf:

I suggest you look at Ruggables and get one that just sits in front of the sofa. The size should be 2-3 feet wider than your sofa. You can roll it up when the bed needs to be used and put it back down after the bed is in place. They are light weight and made to be washed so very kid/pet friendly. www.ruggables.com

Does your present sofa meet all your needs except for the dog damage? Because you can talk a look at sofa protectors to see if they work for you You might think about investing in one even if you want a new sofa How about getting a real daybed?

@Lisa - so you’re saying that like decoenthusiaste’s photos, but the sofa could be backed up to the foot of the bed barrier and the white table? @Angel- yes that’s the idea that the space would be living room by day- but with the floating sliding divider “wall” if someone wanted privacy during the day, they would just close off that space. But mostly the sliding doors would be open and it would act like a living room until it becomes a bedroom, basically at night. so yes decoenthusiaste’s idea does provide the bed to be basically tucked out of eyesight… “looks” like a living room most of the time. @decoenthusiaste, do you know where to purchase a divider like that? or probably east to construct I would think as it’s very simple. Thank you all for your ideas!! Trying to figure it out. Yes @Angel, apartment condo and Coop rules are just beyond what someone can imagine who isn’t familiar with it or knows someone who deals with it. Ahhhh