ramp for elder newf?

[knittinnewf]

Well here I am again with a senior newf who is showing trouble with stairs.
She has had a tplo( 4 years ago) and the vet has given tramadol and rimadyl for arthritis but she still seems anxious on the three front steps. sometimes refusing to go down the stairs .She looks so sad that she can no longer get up stairs at bedtime. The cat sleeps with her now
So do I get someone to make a ramp or make some steps that are much larger , so she can rest at each landing ? what material could I use to make it less slippery ?
Thanks for any info in advance

 

[AngusMcDubhsMom]

If it's only 3 steps, perhaps making a ramp would be the less expensive way to go. Then put some rubber mat material and small horizontal strips across it for better traction? Friends of mine went with the wider, less steep stairs, but they had a longer "run" to make for their aging Newfs. I used to leave a portable ramp on my back deck steps for Maneen for the same reason you're talking about. It was a high deck of 5 steps. He was relieved when he could manage the ramp himself.

 

[4ondafloor]

No advice from here but I do have a hug of support. MissM will be 11 next month. She no longer does our front steps. There are five. She hesitates and looks frightened even with us at her side helping.
We have two steps out the back door and they're wider so she does fine with those. We are going to add a wooden ramp on the back steps with no skid on it soon. She gets around really well on flat surfaces but the steps..... Bless her heart, the steps cause pause.

 

[SunnyD]

I have not slept in my bed for almost two years as Sunshine can no longer do a full set of stairs. She gave up the 5 deck stairs a year ago. We go out the front now, 2 wide steps. Some days with a bit of encouragement she will come inside by herself. Other days she needs the support of the sling as she is unsure of her front paws. Every now and then one or the other will give out. It is hard to watch them struggle, that's for sure!

 

[4ondafloor]

It really is hard to watch for sure, Tricia. MissM is so independent and she does so well with everything else. The front steps have become her nemesis.
She never has slept upstairs and one of the other guys usually keeps her company at night. She's been with us for a year and she prefers to sleep on the cool tile floor.
It breaks my heart to see her struggle but yet I get all warm inside seeing her so determined too.

 

[guysndolls]

I have not slept in my bed for almost two years as Sunshine can no longer do a full set of stairs. She gave up the 5 deck stairs a year ago. We go out the front now, 2 wide steps. Some days with a bit of encouragement she will come inside by herself. Other days she needs the support of the sling as she is unsure of her front paws. Every now and then one or the other will give out. It is hard to watch them struggle, that's for sure!

Reading this gave me a lump in my throat... it made me remember my old girl Lexi. She had slept next to my bed for her whole life, one day she barked at the bottom of the stairs to let me know she couldn't do it any longer but still wanted to sleep next to me. That was the last night I slept in my bed for 2 years....

Miss her terribly....
Pati