# Chihuahua's and stairs



## bails007 (Mar 7, 2008)

Hi,

Does anyone have problems with their Chi's not going down the stairs?

Honey will go up but she wont come down, any suggestions?

Sarah


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## Brodysmom (Jan 8, 2009)

Brody is trained to NOT go down the stairs in the house. The cats have to have some peace! so he knows not to come downstairs. They have the whole bottom level to themselves. He can go down the stairs outside though on the deck and anywhere else there is stairs. We just lured him with a piece of chicken. Once they learn it, they will be flying up and down the stairs. Just takes a bit of confidence to get them going.


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## Krista (Dec 29, 2005)

To get both Yoshi and Misha to go downstairs, I had to put their back feet on a step, and their front feet on the one below it so they were facing downwards on the steps, and had to hop down. Once they saw the world wouldn't end when they hopped down the step, they had no problem ^_^ Although I had to do this about five or six times for Yoshi, since she's a bit of a wimp. Misha it only took once and then she was running up and down. She's too brave for her own good


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## msmadison (Jul 6, 2009)

madison won't do the stairs,either. she goes up fine and down the ones outside fine...but the ones in our house, not a bit!


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## Gingersmom (Mar 12, 2009)

I have a ramp...Abby doesn't do stairs...


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## katsrevenge (Nov 24, 2008)

She will if you leave her up there.  That's how Kali learned... she hated being left upstairs! lol


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## TashaZ (Mar 20, 2009)

We don't have stairs but my mum does and when i take my girls there they'll run around the whole house like MAD, they'll run up stairs then back down then all around the bottom level, outside around the pool then back in again. It's really good for tiring them out, good exercise HAHA.

Anyway my point is that Shadow used to follow Pebbles in this routine around the house but when she got upstairs she would cry and wouldn't come down. At first i used to go up and carry her but after awhile i thought, she'll come down when she's ready and fair enough, she did!

Also i saw this on the dog whisperer with small dogs not liking stairs and he would do as Krista said, you put them half on one step half on another and kind of tap their bum and they'll slowly plop down each stair hehe  good luck


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## Skyla (Aug 18, 2009)

Has anyones chi ever had an accident on the stairs? surely they must be a bit dangerous for such a tiny dog?


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## pigeonsheep (Nov 8, 2008)

Skyla said:


> Has anyones chi ever had an accident on the stairs? surely they must be a bit dangerous for such a tiny dog?


nothing major but he keeps slipping when he runs up the stairs fast LOL. 

dexter was always afraid of going down the stairs up until my bf took him to the park to practice and he took it real fast!


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## Rosiesmum (Oct 14, 2007)

Skyla said:


> Has anyones chi ever had an accident on the stairs? surely they must be a bit dangerous for such a tiny dog?


Your right Skyla they can be dangerous for tiny dogs like Chihuahuas. I heard of one poor baby that fell and broke it's neck 

My Chi's have never had an accident but one of my old dogs (see below) fell several stairs and that really shook me up...and her, I felt terrible.

Ultimately it's up to the owner to weigh up the danger and decide if they want thier dogs to have access to stairs in the home. We live in an old house and our stairs are steep. We have a stair gate at the bottom, to stop the dogs going up. To be honest it was there before we had Chihuahuas as I had a 17 year old terrier who was too frail to manage them. 

We carry the dogs down, Jago has come down on his own before, but he's not encouraged to do it! Rosie is way to small. I guess people might say it's more dangerous carrying them? Again, it's about doing what we think is in the best safety interests of our pets 
It's all any of can do! 

The dogs are happy to go up and down steps outside, but not too high for little Rosie!

x


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## amyhedd (Aug 6, 2009)

when w first got poppy she would go up but would sit and cry so you'd bring her down, then one day suddenly she just done it herself and shes fine on the stairs now xx


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## phoebedog (Sep 19, 2009)

Mine has just learned to get up the stairs but cries once he's at the top lol. My pug was the same but one day she just came down on her own and that was that. I'm sure Charlie will do the same.


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## MarieUkxx (May 19, 2009)

Skyla said:


> Has anyones chi ever had an accident on the stairs? surely they must be a bit dangerous for such a tiny dog?


No, in my 13 years of having Chi's they have never had an accident on the stairs.


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## MarieUkxx (May 19, 2009)

Cookie is the same. He'll go up but not down.


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## catz4m8z (Aug 28, 2008)

It took mine til about 5months to manage the stairs. Although I have very, very steep stairs. If you run up too fast you hit your knee on the step above!!
And, yes, when they were little they both went through a khamikazi stage where they constantly fell down the stairs. They tended to get halfway then their momentum would get the better and down they'd go! Both mine are sturdy, good sized pooches tho so no broken bones!
I do wish I could stop Hannah though. Her back is quite long, being half daxie, and she has to go down sideways. I've never yet managed to stop her though, or launching herself in 2ft long leaps from the sofa either!!


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## jazzman (Apr 8, 2009)

I've had problems with most of mine at first.

As someone else mentioned, I decided to let them figure it out themselves, and they always did. ( I do have carpeted stairs, with no openings ).

It's funny, after the first time or two going down, it's like they were never unable to do it - they run right down.


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## chi's R me (Jun 30, 2009)

Mine go up and down stairs, only my little senior girs seems to have problems sometimes, I think it's just her age and she doesn't move as well as she used to also sometimes my crested lopes down them like a deer and will almost step on whoever is at the bottom, Sassy really hates that and tells the crestie about it (even if she's only close) lol


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## Krista (Dec 29, 2005)

Skyla said:


> Has anyones chi ever had an accident on the stairs? surely they must be a bit dangerous for such a tiny dog?


Mine stumble going up the stairs sometimes, but never have going down. Sometimes they try to go up so fast that they stumble. Going down they are usually both so careful, I think they feel more vulnerable this way when they look down and see how far they can fall. Nothing major has ever happened though, usually it's just a foot sliding down to the previous step. I never leave them alone where they can access stairs though.


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## *Chloe* (Feb 6, 2006)

i dont let mine go up or down the stairs Twig has PL and the stairs in my house are steep, she will go up and down at my mums but they arent as steep ( and sometimes shes too quick to stop her) from day one with B hes been taught to stay at the top or bottom, he did try to climb up after me once when he was about 4 months

i remember as a pup teaching Twig to go down the stairs much as Krista describes front feet on lower step and back on the one above, just starting one or two steps from the bottom so it wasnt so scary and facing the whole stairs


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## Ember (Aug 7, 2009)

Diefenbaker rarely has a reason to go upstairs and i'd rather he didn't try. we've put a baby stairgate up for his safety ever since i found him stuck and panicking trying to come down after he sneaked up there when my back was turned for a minute.
he has his bed(s) downstairs and really only comes upstairs for bathtime so he gets carried up and down.


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## Odin (May 18, 2009)

Odin runs up and down 4 flights of stairs at least 3 times a day. It's how we get out. He flies down, sometimes so fast I wonder how he does it. Oh, and he sounds like a monkey doing it lol. 

My vet complimented me on Odin having very strong hind legs, I credit it to the stairs lol


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## MrsC (Jul 20, 2009)

Harry wouldnt come down the stairs when he was a young pup, but now he flies up and down them with no problems! We had to encourage him to come down them and put him a few steps down etc, until he learnt to do it, it must be very scarey for a little chi looking down a flight of stairs, its like a mountain to them!


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## lakeshorechihuahuas (Sep 24, 2008)

Arlee and Chloe both will go up and down the stairs but George will only go up. Our stairs are wood and slippery and he has the shortest legs, so I am glad he doesn't try. With his luck he would fall.


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## RosieFbxAK (Sep 23, 2009)

I have just the opposite problem, Lulu will start/stop and dance at the bottom of the 5 steps she has to negotiate, but flys down them! I've pondered hours over this. I suspect she doesn't like that they are open backed vs. closed, but I'm really not sure what her deal is! Silly kids...


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## Rochelle (Nov 20, 2008)

Peek's main exersize is up and down the stairs. He flies both ways and at first I was a wreck as our stairs, though carpeted, are steep. My crested will go up, but won't come down and since he's a clutz, I prefer carying him down. It just depends on the individual dog I think.


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