dog won’t go up/down stairs
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Anonymous
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Our 13 year old dog will no longer go upstairs. At first we thought it was due to hind leg or back pain bc he has some arthritis, but the vet’s physical exam shows his arthritis to be in good shape thanks to pain meds and supplements.
Next I thought failing eyesight, but we have repeatedly done the test where you wave you hand in front of their face and he always reacts so I think he sees fine. It is almost like he’s “forgotten” how to tackle the stairs. He puts a paw up on a step, then retracts, tries again, retracts and starts crying/whining. Has anyone else experienced this with a dog, and any thoughts of what we can try? He loves sleeping in our upstairs room at night and cries at the base of the stairs when we go up to bed which is heartbreaking. We’ve put treats on the stairs and it hasn’t gotten him to go up. |
Anonymous
| How big is he? Can you carry him up? |
Anonymous
| Our dog did the same in his older years - we carried him upstairs. He usually would go down himself in the morning. In his last few months, he didn't want to go up at all - preferred to sleep in his downstairs bed. I figured our hard woods seemed slippery to him as he was less agile. Are yours carpeted? |
Anonymous
| Get a harness and put it on them and use a leash, don't pull them but lure them with some food. Sometimes we don't even click it on, just around them and they are like a puppy again. |
Anonymous
| There is some pain left. |
Anonymous
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Thanks all, from OP. Our dog is 75 lbs so I can’t carry him at all and DH isn’t comfortable doing so on the stairs.
There is a carpeted runner on the stairs, but I agree our dog slips sometimes on the hardwoods so maybe that has him concerned. I don’t *think* this is pain related as he doesn’t wimper or cry out when he puts his front paws on the first step (thereby putting weight on the hind legs). But what do I know. There is one step up and then a very very small “landing” (basically an oversized step) and then the stairs go up at a 90 degree angle from that first step. It is on the landing area where the dog gets stuck going up. I have wondered if the small size of the landing plus the need to “relaunch” himself from that point (since his momentum from the first step has stopped) now inhibits his ability to get the momentum to go up (even though this wasn’t a problem for 12 plus years- maybe it is some pain or poor eyesight or dementia?). |
Anonymous
| Could be dementia. |
Anonymous
Yes my old dog stopped climbing the stairs. Only thing you can do it carry them up orsomeone sleep downstairs. My dog was content to sleep downstairs |
Anonymous
| Depending on the breed that's an elderly or very elderly dog. It is likely sliding into doggy dementia - they become much more anxious, etc. just like many humans do in their elder years. |
Anonymous
| His legs have become weak with age. I slept on the downstairs couch for the last year of my dog’s life. He couldn’t climb stairs anymore, was too heavy to carry and would cry if left alone. |
Anonymous
| Arthritic hips |
Anonymous
| Your dog is dying. |
Anonymous
| our dog has been like this for years. Put a bunch of cheap rug runners around the hardwood floors. |
Anonymous
Please get off this forum - there are plenty of other forums where trolls are aplenty. |
Anonymous
| That sucks OP, for you and the dog. |