A mattress pad is necessary to put over this wonderful down bed. I am a paraplegic with lots of health issues so I'm in bed a lot and this featherbed is wonderful. It does birth a lot of feathers, enough to outfit a gaggle of geese. And they tend to come out pokey end first, which hurts. So get a cheap mattress pad to put over the top of it, put your sheets on your bed (extra deep pocket sheets) and you'll sleep like a baby.