If you have stairs, does your bully do okay going up and down?

[Rosiesmom]

We have a two story house and I'm wondering how everyone's bully does going up and down the stairs? Rosie can not go up and down stairs like a normal dog, her legs are way too short and her body way to large Instead of stepping up or down the step, Rosie lunges/jumps up the stairs and makes it seem like it's alot of hard work. If you've ever seen a horse lunge up a hill, that is exactly what she looks like. But she's only 1 year old and I wouldn't think it would be THAT hard to get up them, they are pretty steep though. When she comes down, I'm always afraid she is going to flip heels over head. Her front end is so heavy and her back end so light that she nearly summersaults down the stairs. It just all seems very difficult for her. And at nearly 70# I can't carry her up and down the stairs (although after a very rough day I have been known to do it for her). Anyone else have this same problem?

 

[speechmom53]

We only have a couple of steps to get up and down in and out of the house....living in a one story house. My parents live in a rancher too and have a full size basement. Tubs will bound up and down the stairs going in and out of the house, but his will not go up or down the stairs to the basement. I thought it was the fact that the sink that we give him a bath in is down there and he just doesn't want to get a bath, but once down there he will not go back up the stairs either. I can understand the going down factor, I think he will flip head over heals going down too, but I don't know why he won't go up them. He is over 50 lbs now and getting hard to carry up and down the stairs. I also have a trailblazer and have to pick him up to put him in the car when he goes places with us, which is a lot. At least I am working my muscles and getting a workout!

 

[LariP]

HRH hasn't even considered trying to go upstairs here. Bruce carried her up once but other than that she just ignores them as she walks past. We do have two steps into the house, she goes up and down those nimbly enough. Since she's finally coming in the kitchen and I didn't think that would happen, I have no idea if she will consider trying the stairs at some point.

 

[LisaMarie]

I live in a one level home, but I can say that it is hard work for a bully to go up and down stairs that are to high. I have a friend that had to keep her bully downstairs because it was getting way to dificult for her bully to do it. if you dont mind , you could carry Rosie at nite time(if She sleeps up there with you)and then in the morning. I would put baby gates on the stairs so that she doesnt feel tempted to go up them. It really puts a lot of stress on their bodies.

 

[Lucy-licious]

We used to carry Lucy up and down stairs but now that she sleeps downstairs that's stopped
she can get up and down easily by bounding up and slithering/sliding down but it scares me so for the most part she's discouraged and because she's a lazy lady she doesn't mind

 

[karenben]

i have put a stair gate up to stop annie,shes like a whippet up and down,i dont mind her going up the stairs but still have 2 teenage lads at home and when she goes in their rooms she tends to try and eat theie games consoles,not to mention the rubbish,left over food and half full cups that they leave in their rooms,teenagers huh,karen

 

[GatorRay]

We have a large two story house with a finished basement and every door leading out of the house has at least four stairs that you have to go down. Gator learned in about two tries how to go up and down and Gypsy learned in a few tries as well. They don't seem to have any problems. Gator does go up and down the big stairs but Gypsy hasn't attempted to go all the way up yet.

 

[Wlw9x]

Katie is 4, and the only steps she's really been up and down are my parents' back deck steps.. there are about 6-8 of them and she runs up and down them! They are wide without too much space in between though, specially built for my parents' aging American Bulldog who has arthritis...

 

[kim n the guys]

we live in a bi-level so there are stairs going up to the front door, the stairs going to the main level and stairs going to the lower level and we also have a two level deck on the back so there are stairs for that too. Oliver and Sebastian go up and down the stairs just fine.

 

[cali baker]

I have a set of stairs that lead to an upstairs loft, and when i first brought Tate home, he wasn't able to climb up these stairs at all; good thing too b/c it's a steep, steel, spiral staircase with the big gaps in between so it's easy to fall thru. Anyways, he's now big enough to climb up, which scares the u-know-what out of me b/c of his chance of falling thru so whenever i go up to the loft, i carry him.

So, this past Monday i got home from work and couldn't find Tate anywhere. The gate that i use to enclose him in his area was moved and i totally freaked out...for a few seconds there i thought someone came in and stole him! i was calling out his name and no Tate. Then, after a few seconds i look up and i see him just sitting up in the loft, behind the railing. I ran up there and he was hysterical--jumping on me, wanting me to carry him, whimpering. He also pee'd and in several places. I have no idea how long he was up there for and thank God he did not try climbing down--i don't even want to think about that!

Needless to say, he got a long lecture from mommy and i now have a gate blocking those stairs!

 

[Bacon]

for the longest time i thought Bacon couldnt go up or down the stairs to our basement.. they are very thin, maybe 9 front to back, and very close together. For the longest time I would carry him down the stairs, but being pregnant i had to stop carrying him. and then one day he just runs up and down them like its no big deal. I was shocked! I ran to tell kyle that bacon could go down the stairs and kyles response was yeah i know hes been doing it forever.
Bacon you little trickster!

 

[korikelly]

Lola will not go up or down stairs. We have three steps from our walk to the front door, and three steps from the garage into the house. I always have to carry her. She is only four months old at the moment, so I'm hoping she will do it once she's a little bigger.

 

[NJBullyMommy]

I think I have an abnormal bully lol. From day 1 when we brought him home he was always going up the stairs, but was more afraid than anything to go down them. At little over a year he thinks the stairs are his own personal toy and will run up and down them all day bring toys up and down. He is a biggins like Rosie at 72 pounds, but I do fear when he goes down them because he goes so fast I feel like he's going to miss that little turn in our steps and go right into the wall. Needless to say, this hasn't happened yet I think she is more capable than she leads on

 

[BabyDuke]

We live in a two story home.. same thing the first year Duke would not attempt the stairs then all of a sudden one day he went up and down and now he flys up and down them like a nut. BUT we do carry him into bed at night.. ( all 60 pounds of him)..

 

[Wlw9x]

Oh, have to add... we had Katie shut in the garage area of the house when we had painters in the house and I was at work.. and she decided to take a trip up the ATTIC stairs. The painters heard noises up there and one of them went up and got her, thank goodness. lol