It is true. Stairs are an abomination that Mother Nature plans to eliminate in the next Great Extinction. A friendly warning, don’t be on the stairs when it happens.
Being a lab and there only being 4 steps there, when she gets older it will become 1 step up and 1 step down. Usually full speed and distance are a factor too.
I used to have a basset hound who would go up and down stairs by hopping all four legs at once. Every once in a while he would accidentally start to pick up speed and start flailing by the end. When someone came in the door, he forgot all that, ran down the stairs, slid on the door mat, bounced hard off the door, sometimes rolling over in the process, and ran off like it was nothing.
My English Lop is no longer allowed to go up the stairs – he has no problem with up, but DOWN is a big problem. He starts out ok, then his back end gets ahead of the front end and he’s rolling down by the 3rd step down. Had to catch him twice! (didn’t know I could move that fast!! lol)
Our pit-lab not only dislikes stairs, but he refuses to walk more than one step on any uncarpeted floor. And does not like thunderstorms, or even drizzle, nor riding in the car. And is regularly abused by our 5 pound cat. We call him “80 pounds of neuroses.” But he is a sweet, gentle creature.
Our Corgi was terrified of the porch steps when he was a tiny puppy. A couple of times he would trip going down and would end up rolling down the rest of the way. Even after he got bigger and became confident of the porch steps, he still refuses to go down the basement stairs.
I once had to TEACH an adult dog (~ 3 y. o.) how to use stairs — she was a rescue from an abuse/neglect situation, and had spent her life in a pen up til that point. She was a little skittish in general, and had obviously had never encountered stairs in her life. She kept trying to do a sort of two-paws-on-each-step hopping thing (not at all stable) rather than an alternating-foot-walking-type action.
But with much patience, a lot of treats, and many many demonstrations by our other dog, she finally got the hang of it!
blunebottle over 9 years ago
Oh, come on….a lab tripping on stairs? Ours did end up sliding down the stairs on her back once, however.
Ida No over 9 years ago
It is true. Stairs are an abomination that Mother Nature plans to eliminate in the next Great Extinction. A friendly warning, don’t be on the stairs when it happens.
miscreant over 9 years ago
Being a lab and there only being 4 steps there, when she gets older it will become 1 step up and 1 step down. Usually full speed and distance are a factor too.
rdh288 over 9 years ago
I used to have a basset hound who would go up and down stairs by hopping all four legs at once. Every once in a while he would accidentally start to pick up speed and start flailing by the end. When someone came in the door, he forgot all that, ran down the stairs, slid on the door mat, bounced hard off the door, sometimes rolling over in the process, and ran off like it was nothing.
weaverrabbits over 9 years ago
My English Lop is no longer allowed to go up the stairs – he has no problem with up, but DOWN is a big problem. He starts out ok, then his back end gets ahead of the front end and he’s rolling down by the 3rd step down. Had to catch him twice! (didn’t know I could move that fast!! lol)
jbmlaw01 over 9 years ago
Our pit-lab not only dislikes stairs, but he refuses to walk more than one step on any uncarpeted floor. And does not like thunderstorms, or even drizzle, nor riding in the car. And is regularly abused by our 5 pound cat. We call him “80 pounds of neuroses.” But he is a sweet, gentle creature.
tcar-1 over 9 years ago
Where Sophie ‘lives’ not enough snowfall to create snow banks! At least on normal winter patterns.
Grey Forest over 9 years ago
Our Corgi was terrified of the porch steps when he was a tiny puppy. A couple of times he would trip going down and would end up rolling down the rest of the way. Even after he got bigger and became confident of the porch steps, he still refuses to go down the basement stairs.
Not the Smartest Man On the Planet -- Maybe Close Premium Member over 9 years ago
This would have been funnier if “shot” closer to the stairs. I kept waiting for one of the cats to appear in the upper right window or in the door.
I AM CARTOON LADY! over 9 years ago
Come, come now Sophie…a Queen holds her head up high, even when she falls off her throne!
calliopejane over 9 years ago
I once had to TEACH an adult dog (~ 3 y. o.) how to use stairs — she was a rescue from an abuse/neglect situation, and had spent her life in a pen up til that point. She was a little skittish in general, and had obviously had never encountered stairs in her life. She kept trying to do a sort of two-paws-on-each-step hopping thing (not at all stable) rather than an alternating-foot-walking-type action.
But with much patience, a lot of treats, and many many demonstrations by our other dog, she finally got the hang of it!