Stairs

[Anthem]

I put this out on Reddit. But, thought I would try here as well.

We’ve had an adult 7-8 year old GSD living with us for almost a year now. When he first came into the house he tried following me up the stairs (he was halfway up) and my wife freaked out and yelled, which freaked him out, now he won’t go anywhere near them. I want him to learn how to maneuver the stairs and I’ve been working off and on to get him comfortable. I will sit on the stairs with some treats and he will get all four legs on the lower stairs but he refuses to budge further. Anyone have any training tips for dogs that are stair nervous? He's not a reactive dog and he seems to be pretty confident.

 

[MyDogBitz]

You can go a few routes.

Start with food on the furthest step he'll willingly go up. Each day increase it by one step. This is the slow approach. It might work, it might not. If he's really really food driven you could up the ante and place his meal at the top of the steps. Give him a few minutes and if he won't do it, then he loses his chance to eat until the next meal time. Again, this may or may not work.

Depending on your relationship with your dog and how resilient and confident he is, you could insist that he comes up the steps by using his leash and flat collar. You're literally going to use directional leash pressure to get him up the steps. (Classic negative reinforcement)

I ended up using this method to get my pup to jump into the back of my truck. For some reason he started refusing to jump up into the backseat. After a few weeks of on/off success with food luring I had enough of picking his big ass up and putting him into the truck.

I simply lifted him up by his leash & collar and guided him into the vehicle. It was a little unpleasant but he was non the worse for wear and it only took TWO whole days for him to figure it out. He now happily jumps in and out of the truck willingly on command.

Important: if you go this direction it's very very important you do NOT give in to his protesting, you'll strengthen the undesirable behavior.

As with most things, it may take a combination of all the above OR something else altogether. Think outside the box. Maybe you and the misses stand at the top of the steps, but out of site and call him up, repeatedly and enthusiastically.

Good luck!

 

[Malakai The Great]

Stairs can be a surprisingly big deal for a lot of adult dogs, especially if their first experience with them was paired with someone suddenly yelling. That one moment can create a very sticky association in their brain.

The good news? This is one of the easier confidence issues to fix with a slow, systematic approach.

Here’s what I’d do:

1. Change the picture completely.
Right now “stairs = pressure.” So your first goal isn’t to get him climbing, it's to make stairs feel neutral again. Sessions should be short, relaxed, and totally low-stakes.

Sit beside the stairs, toss food near them, praise, and end the session before he worries. No luring higher yet.

2. Reward proximity first.
If he gets all four paws on the first couple steps, that’s excellent. Mark and reward that until he’s doing it confidently and without hesitation.

Repetition builds confidence more than height does.

3. Try shaping one step at a time.
Don’t lure him up the stairs yet. Instead, reward him for shifting weight, lifting a paw, touching the next step with a toenail, micro-progressions. The more he figures it out himself, the faster it sticks.

4. Use a teammate.
If he has a dog friend who’s stable on stairs, have that dog calmly walk up and down. Some dogs only need to see another dog do it once for the lightbulb to go on.

5. Check for physical discomfort.
At 7-8 years old, sometimes hesitation isn’t purely mental. If he has weak hips, stiff joints, or early arthritis, stairs can feel intimidating. If his gait looks off at all, I’d rule that out first.

6. Never apply pressure.
No collar pressure, no “encouraging him forward,” no pushing the issue. Pressure + fear = shutdown and avoidance.
Confidence + choice = progress (specifically for fears and older dogs).

You’re already doing the right thing by being patient and working at his pace. Keep the sessions fun, short, and successful, and one day he’ll take that extra step without even thinking about it.

 

[Anthem]

Thank you.