Hi all Luka slipped running up our open tred wooden stairs today. Silly me I actually damp mopped earlier trying to keep the house somewhat tidy! It's not as if I have never washed the stairs! But in his excitement going up he slipped and now is afraid to come up. I tried to coax him with a favorite treat but no joy. I took him round the outside to the upstairs level and he easily goes down. But not up. Guess it will just take a little time, any suggestions?
Re: Slipped on stairs now afraid Oh Laura,sorry he's got spooked. I threw the dummy for Dexter in the house last week and it went gozzy and hit the shelf and everything came crashing down ....he legged it like the devil was after him,I was gutted as it's in the passage I use in the house while it's hot outside for our 'activities'....I was more worried it would put him off his dummy ...food solved our problem as food is the answer to everything in our lives : I sat on the stairs opposite the shelf and fed him some sardine and I gave him his dinner under the shelf and he was over it then....so beyond coaxing with food treats I'm not sure what to suggest....maybe build up to approach the stairs ,before you consider coaxing him up.....it might take a few days.Has he hurt himself?x
Re: Slipped on stairs now afraid Oh that's bad luck. You could try coaxing him up two or three stairs for a treat laid on a stair then extend the range gradually until he'll do the full flight. Dogs do get uncertain if the grip is a bit iffy though. It might be worthwhile considering putting carpet on the treads at least until he's confident again. I know it's not exactly the same thing but my car has a very wide rear bumper and Lady wouldn't jump in or out even though it's low down because she slipped on the bumper. I drape a door mat over it now and she's fine with it.
Re: Slipped on stairs now afraid Thanks for your experiences. No he didn't hurt himself just was amped and in his haste to run up he slipped and the front legs went into the gap, spooky stuff. Never happened before. I will just chill for a few days and see if the 'experience' will fade. Funnily when he did start to do stairs up was fiest and a long delay before he would go down to him that was scary. Baby or should I say puppy steps! Thanks again for your replies and concern
Re: Slipped on stairs now afraid Poor boy. When using food to entice him to the stairs don't be too close to the stairs at first. Just start at whatever point he is willing to approach to. Give him a few treats there then leave it. Later, go back to that spot, treat again, then see if you can get him an inch closer. Use his whole dinner in his bowl if you need to. Can you temporarily cover the stairs with something (a la David covering the car bumper bar) so they look different and the scary gap is gone? Maybe some non-slip drawer liner stuff?
Re: Slipped on stairs now afraid Riley slipped on a kitchen floor when he was little and gave himself a fright. We tried rewarding steps on slippy floors and putting mats down. Management with mats was easier and he gradually got over it but every now and then he takes against a new floor and we just have to let him work it out for himself. Hopefully he'll get past his fright, anything you can do to make the steps look different and be less slippy will be a plus. Good luck!
