[campgalvin]

I just got a new puppy who is having no problem going up the stairs, but refuses to even attempt to descend them. I tried encouraging him with praise and food. :D Granted he is only 8 weeks old and the stairs are a little steep and are uncarpeted. Do you think I need to carpet the stairs to make it easier for him? He is a german sheperd and will be getting to big to carry down the stairs. Any suggestions would be appreciated :) :)

[tnborden]

I believe your new puppy is just a little fearful. Given time, he will manage to go it alone. It might be helpful also to show him how to go down the stairs. It might take a few lessons though. Just guide him down by holding onto him until he feels safe to do it by himself. Good luck. Shepherds are great pets. :)

[labman]

Don't push him. Try going down the stairs on your hands and knees. Many 8 week olds will not even go up stairs. Just give him time. Some Shepherds do get huge very young. My daughter brought home an 8 week old in March that was 20 pounds. In April, he was almost as big as our 6 month old Lab/Golden cross. The Shepherd we had 3 years ago was on the small side for Shepherds. I don't remember how soon she started doing steps. Usually we restrict our puppies to the downstairs until they are well housebroken.

He should quickly become closely bonded to you. Just going down the steps leaving him at the top, may be a bigger motivation than food. Most Shepherds are not highly food motivated, well, at least not compared to typical Labs. Before he gets big enough to be too big to pick up, he should be ready to go down stairs. The first time he starts down the steps, be sure to praise him and pet him when he makes it all the way down. Make a great fuss about what a good dog he is.

[kookicat]

Work from the bottom up e.g. let him sit on the bottom stair and get used to hopping onto and off that, then move up gradually building up the number of steps until he's happy.