23/10/2025
I talk to owners so often about the stress stairs cause on the body! Here’s a great illustration of why I always talk about avoiding them.
🚨 Stairs add A LOT of stress to the canine body!!
In this sketch, we can see a large-breed dog descending relatively low, wide steps, and we can clearly see
🔎 The front weight-bearing paw is splayed and flattened, the carpus has dropped, and the thoracic sling is collapsing into a deep “V” at the cervicothoracic junction. All of this shows us just how much force is being transmitted through the limb - and that the limb and thoracic sling isn’t strong enough to support it!
📉 The lumbar spine is kyphotic, the pelvis is flexed and rotated, and the dog is rotating through the spine to achieve the high degrees of limb flexion required for stair descent. These are classic compensation patterns - and they are not what we want to see. Yet, this is how many dogs navigate stairs every single day in their homes.
💡 Research backs this up.
Two key studies demonstrate how stair navigation dramatically changes musculoskeletal demands compared with ramps or slopes:
👉Carr et al., 2013, Exercises in canine physical rehabilitation: Range of motion of the forelimb during stair and ramp ascent. Journal of Small Animal Practice 54(8):409–413.
👉Millard et al., 2010, Kinematic analysis of the pelvic limbs of healthy dogs during stair and decline slope walking. American Journal of Veterinary Research 71(7):734–740.
These studies show that stairs require significantly greater joint flexion and ROM - and therefore greater muscular effort - than incline walking. That increased demand can overload the thoracic sling, carpal stabilisers, lumbar spine, and cervicothoracic junction, especially in dogs with existing pathology or insufficient strength.
👩⚕️ How we help as Vetrehabbers:
1. ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGES:
🚪Restrict access to stairs for vulnerable dogs - especially large-breed puppies, those with elbow or hip dysplasia, cruciate disease, IVDD, spondylosis, or LS stenosis.
2. EXERCISE
💪 Incorporate targeted strengthening and conditioning before dogs navigate stairs.
🏋️♂️ Teach correct technique and posture to reduce compensations and repetitive micro-trauma.
🦴And if this much load is being placed on a large dog, imagine what a small dog experiences as they jump up and down each step. Supervision, strength, and control are not optional - they’re essential for preventing injury.
📆 At the Vet Rehab Summit on 8 November, experts like Anna Lee Sanders, Jana Gams, and Arielle Pechette Markley will dive deep into how we prepare our patients for these real-world challenges - using movement itself as medicine.
