Part 2

The day I picked Max up was a very sad day. That day, I met his
lovely wife inside their house. I gave him $500 which choked him up, and he
gave me a book about a man and his dog.
While I was struggling to get Max into the car, (he didn’t know how to) he
told me Max chased squirrels & hated cats (I had three). I promised I’d treat Max well, and invited him
to visit any time. Then I cried some more because I was taking a poor old man’s
dog and a one year old dog didn’t know how to get into a car. I never saw
Joseph again.

Max didn’t know his name. Never having been inside, he
couldn’t walk on hard floors. His legs would splay out as if
he was on ice. Skid proof runners & mats of every color ever invented,
became part of the decor. The shocked
expression on the faces of service or repair people was priceless. He couldn’t
do stairs, so I slept downstairs. Really he didn’t know much. On the plus side,
he never chased a squirrel and I don’t know how the cat rumour got
started. He loved the cats.

to be continued..........

Part 3

Training consisted of the basics (vocal & signal) heel, sit,
stay, come, up, down, leave it, drop it and his name. He learned quickly. Once he gained confidence and trusted me, we attempted
the stairs. Carrying a dog that weighs about 20lbs less than I do was not an
option.

I am not an expert, but this is the method that worked for
me and my situation. Scott’s use of treats was effective for him. I prefer to
use praise over treats whenever possible.

At the bottom of
stairs, have the dog sit (with short leash) and you standing (in heel
position), then give the command and immediately ascend with the dog without
hesitating. Praise. Do the same to descend.

I'm anxiously awaiting the rest of this story!

Me, too!

Me three.

Oh I tried everything before treats. But he would just look at me & bark his head off. He still doesn't race down the stairs like Logan does. But he's getting better.

Great story!

Oh yes I have had this experience! You don't think about it I just thought the dog would know what to do with the stairs. Nope! Of course this was one of my Great Danes. I had to take him to my neighbors house that had stairs and dogs that went up and down easily. My Dane had no idea what to do. The stairs were a short flight to a big landing then on up to the top. I was at the bottom, husband at the top and Jan my neighbor on the landing. We tried everything, she got cheese and turkey and her dogs running up and down. My dog would try and make it up 3 steps then fall backwards down to the bottom on top of me. He would try to hop both back legs up to the next step at once like a bunny hop. It was hilarious. He finally made it to the landing and down and we gave up. Thankfully we never encountered stairs with him! This little girl we have now has no problem.

This is hilarious. I've never had a dog that didn't 'do' stairs. But then, this is the first time (in my life!) I've lived in a house with no household stairs and I don't have a pet here.

We do have outdoor stairs in the landscape. One width of railroad tie stairs that go up through a slope of cotoneaster above the drive on one side to an upper lawn. One very steep set of stairs through a wilder area in back with a handrail that leads to the street below. Neither are necessary to use, there are other ways into the landscape, in fact when we bought the house the back stairs were grown over with ivy and blackberry and DH cleared them.

The deer use the stairs. Regularly. Up, down, they don't come through the shrubs unless eating them, but go up and down steps with ease.

summer- do you still have Max? Was Max a great dog? Poor Joseph.

(Some of you may know the answer to this but I don't)

Lovely story! I'd love to read more too!

Now I don't feel like our runner decor is so odd or our dog is crazy for refusing to walk on the wood floors! She's smart and trained and will happily go up and down our main level stairs, but she refuses to even go near the basement stairs. She's food motivated and I've tried treats of every kind but she just stares at me like I'm nuts.

Georges does stairs, can climb up on the sofa, but she' almost 8 years old and still cannot get in the car. She will put her front paws up on the seat and I have to grab the back end of this 65 lb. dog, pick it up and shove her end. I will be 80 this year and it's getting to be very difficult! :-)))))

Sleeperblues, kiseiverd, lindaohnowga - Thank you for the encouragement. I thought I was done.

Does - And then they all lived happily ever after, suffice?

Nickel_kg - I was the lucky one. My hesitation wasn't because I didn't want Max. I did.

That is too funny. The collar has to be on the dog.

My observation, based on friend's dogs, is that keeping them off the stairs is usually the problem. Hence, the need for gates. Their pets are smaller breeds though. I don't know what you have.

All my dogs (except Max) have done stairs naturally.

Scott - The grass doesn't grow under your feet. A day is not enough for me.

Is it possible, in a different home, stairs were off limit for Paxil?

That's funny. My dog didn't climb up on things until we got the cat. No joke. The cat taught him to get up and down. He's a smaller type dog.

Here's how I would train a dog to go downstairs. Lift the dog onto the bottom step, facing down, and give a teeny treat for pausing there. When the dog steps down, give a quick teeny treat, praise and pets, and a "Yay, good doggy". Don't get too excited tho, because you want to reward the calm, patient behavior. Do it again, and again. With a good result, put doggy on 2nd stair from bottom. And so on. Just a couple times in one session, building calm confidence. Some in the agility world call it back-chaining. Remember, get the dogs attention on you, and reward for calmness and even a small forward motion. Good luck.

Summer, if only I knew. That's the downside of getting a shelter pup. I have zero history on either of them.

Maybe he was raised in a ranch home, or maybe not even allowed inside. It's so hard to guess.

What I know for sure is that everything the dog shelter guy told me about him hasn't happened. It's no wonder nobody would adopt him after the dog shelter guy talked to them.

Summer, glad you all lived happily ever after! That's what I wanted to hear.

lukkiirish - the mismatched runner thing theme is just the beginning. What about all those dog beds & furniture throws? I won't get into fur the size of tumbleweeds, assorted nose prints on all the windows and glass surfaces.

Before I got Max, I did not know a dog that wouldn't jump in a vehicle even existed. As dogs get older, they do need that paws in & boost to get in.

Stairs can be a challenge especially steep ones. Conquering those open mesh, metal ones is an accomplishment.

Ha ha!!! Yes, yes yes!!! And the toys! I pile them up and she immediately spreads them back out!

Our lab used to jump into the back of the Jeep without a problem. She started refusing after she hit her foot on the bumper a couple of times. We had to build a bench for her to use as a stair when we leave the house and if we're out and about, I have to back up to a curb otherwise, she won't get in.

Bifenton - I wasn't ignoring you.

Max and I had a routine. After I came home from work and finished supper, we would go outside and garden til dark. One Friday, he didn't want to come. On Saturday morning, a beautiful sunny one, I laid with Max, on the grass, my arms around him. He looked up at me in that special way, and breathed his last breath, (major tears as I type this)

Max was a wonderful dog. I am so blessed to have known him. He was 12 1/2yrs. old.

RIP, my loyal friend, "Mister" as I called him.