I have many stairs outside and inside my house. My 14 week old boxer has to constantly walk up and down them everyday.

Is this bad for her hips? If so how bad? And what should I do about it?

Carry him down to avoid over extending the hip joint, up, as long as it is steady should be OK. Jackie

Are you saying just "going down" the stairs is bad? Or should I carry her up AND down the stairs?

To be honist I don't know, if it were mine I would carry it both ways, but if you think of the stress that the hip is going through, going down seems less strain than going up. No research behind my thoughts just worried about stairs in young dog as I am with over exercising. Ja:)kie

I`m no expert but I think as long as you are able to carry your dog do so both up and down the stairs/steps and when this is no longer possible he should be put on a lead so that you will be able to control his movements-slow and steady so that he does not jarr his joints and put them under too much stress.
At his age his bones have not ossified (hardened)so
I think the more careful you can be at this age with a puppy the better chance he has of having healthy
correctly shaped ball and socket joints in his hips and shoulders.Puppies of big boned breeds should also be
exercised with care .
Regards Carole
P.S. Do you know a good osteopath I think your going to need one soon,thats how I got a bad back!!

I'm still lifting our 5 month flatcoat pup in and out of the car, and it's getting no joke. Trouble is, he just sits and waits to be lifted in now - thinks it's all part of life's rich pattern.

I need that osteopath as well....

Jo and the Casblaidd Flatcoats

If you think about it, up is putting all the load on the hips and down is putting it on the shoulders. I would carry both ways for as long as possible. I can understand that there will be a limit on how long you can carry a puppy which is getting heavier each day, but remember, the bones are getting stronger each day to so every day you can manage is well worth it.

Regards, John

Hey thanks for all the replys guys/gals,

I was really concerned about this, so I contacted my Vet. She said don't worry about it unless your puppy is having problems now. She said walking up and down stairs will in no way bring on any hip problems that my dog hasn't already inherited.

Should I find a new vet? :) Or could there be some validity in what she is saying.

Steve

I'm sorry to say this but your vet is talking rubbish! Even a halfway inteligent vet knows about puppies bones being soft! Sorry to say it in this way but your vet should know better. Bad advice is still bad advice even if it comes from a vet.

Regards, John

Well said John and even a halfwit like me knows this !! It says it in every puppy book known to man... I can't believe that your vet would say any different
Beth

Sorry John & Beth, but I suspect there could be some validity. 'Everyone' knew - without a shred of proof - that bloat prone dogs should be fed from a raised bowl until it was shown to do harm not good. As far as I know there is no evidence that stairs damage puppy bones either. I'll keep on avoiding stairs until there is some evidence one way or the other, but I'll also have a query about whether its just another assumption at the back of my mind as I lug another pup up and down steps!

I cannot agree with you on that Sharon. I think you are very wrong about it!

I also have stairs inside and outside my home. I carried my Westie (16weeks when i got him) because i read in a Westie book that climbing stairs and jumping up and down furniture was bad for their hips.
Take no chances is my motto. He's 8months now and races up and down them like a bat out of hell except for these dark morning when i have to carry him out to pee. Lazy but gorgeous pup.

Budmag.

If you look at hip scores over several generations it is inconceivable that all the hip problems are hereditary! Good scoring bitches over several generations put to good scoring dogs with an odd bad hip in the litter! Quite a few must be from damage. We always tell people not to over exercise a puppy so are you saying we are wrong there too Sharon? No, sorry, you are wrong.

John

John, I'm not saying that you are wrong. I'm not even saying that I allow or intend to allow puppies to gallop up and down stairs, much less advise anyone else to do it. I'm saying that there is no evidence except 'recieved wisdom' for your assertion that stairs cause hip problems.

Shall we just say that their is no proof that running across the road without looking will cause you to be run over, but there is a strong case to think you may. Until we know better I would wish to avoid a pup or young dog jarring their joints, to say nothing of a slip causing a torn cruciate or some other trouble. My veterinary notes do say that the factors influencing the outcome of the condition HD include heredity, nutrition, trauma & exercise guess this would mean inaproprate exercise.
Ja:)kie

Well said Jackie -- got a laugh out of the 'chicken crossing the road' premise ;) :)
Perhaps it also depends on HOW the dog goes up/down stairs. "Galloping" obviously is bad...but a steady walk/climb might not be too stressful.

It is interesting to watch how dogs handle stairs. I watch my two go up/down during the day sometimes.
Samma takes it similar to the hobby horse stride -- front two/ back two / Front two / Back two. funny to watch her hop. ---she's sometimes missed her footing due to eagerness :(
Chienne trots up and down, one front/ one back leg working together in both strides. Rarely does she ever mistep and it's a very controlled descent.
When she's headed to her bed for 'night-night'...it's the same paw leading and she walks up with each foot slowly moving as if she's been cruelly banished :rolleyes:

Jackie, I wasn't trying to start a row. I'm just as sceptical about non-evidence based canine 'aye bins' & 'everyone knows' as I am about new canine proselytising crusades. There IS evidence that heredity, nutrition, trauma and over-exercise contribute to HD and other joint problems, and its fair to suspect that stairs might cause trauma and contribute to over-exercise. That's why my pups don't go up and down stairs, and why I'd never advise anyone to let their pup do it. At the same time I can't help wondering if the occassional adventure up and down the stairs is really more likely to damage joints than running on a slope, on rough ground, playing with another pup etc, or if hopping in and out of a car does any more harm than hopping on and off an armchair.

Then at the other end of the equation we have nutrition. Here the evidence is clear: unbalanced nutrition and excessive weight contribute to joint problems (and overweight adults have reduced longevity and are more likely to suffer from a raft of problems). We frequently have people asking how to put weight on a puppy and I've yet to see a protest about it (so far I've sat on fingers that want to type 'leave the poor wee mite to grow and fill out at it's own rate'). We also have people recommending BARF/home made/'natural' diets, even to tyros with large breed & giant puppies, with little disagreement (and less disagreement based on puppy growth and potential bone/joint pitfalls). Experienced breeders got good results with home made diets in the past, and no doubt they will in the future. But there were also more gross bone/joint deformites in the past than we are used to seeing now and there is more to producing a safe and properly balanced home made diet for a fast growing large breed pup than can be read in a popular book or two.

So to me there is illogicality. We don't protest at 'forcing' puppies for the show ring (maybe because its 'aye bin'?), or what at best is a questionable and untested diet (perhaps because of the vocal and evangelical zeal of its proponents?), yet we give the impression that the mere sight of a flight of stairs will cripple a pup.

I think you have missed the point Sharon. We are not talking about the occasional trip up the stairs or an older puppy, the original post reads:-

<<I have many stairs outside and inside my house. My 14 week old boxer has to constantly walk up and down them everyday.>>

My puppies do not walk up stairs. They do not jump in or out of my car. I limit exercise and I keep excess weight off. I do not start jumping with my dogs until well over a year old, in fact far nearer 18 months! Puppies do not have to jump in gundog working tests so there is no reason to start until they are nearly out of puppy at 2 years old!

Anyone who wants to allow their puppies to run up and down stairs may do so if they want but that is my position and I'll stick with it.

John

John, I'm not disagreeing with your position. Its the same as mine as I've already said twice. Until there is evidence that it does no harm, my pups will not go up and down stairs, though they will continue to hop into the car under their own steam.

All I'm saying is that there would be no harm done if people thought a little more critically about 'recieved wisdom', eg raised feeding bowls, even if they decide to play it safe until there is decent evidence one way or the other. And that a bit of good might come from thinking critically about evangelical fads eg 'natural' diets in inexpert hands, and things that suit us even if we know better, eg forcing weight on youngsters - and in some breeds adults - to improve their chances in the show ring.

No Sharon, I was not trying to start a war either. Now how can I put this - straight I think. There are people on here who are very new to dogs and who may have read your first post as saying it is OK to let the dog run up and down stairs, now I know that is not what you said but people sometimes do not read all of a posting, just the bit that suits. That is why I posted as I did, I do understand what you are saying, but as there is lack of proof, either way, we do not know if it will or will not cause trouble in the joints and growth plates. So till we know for sure perhaps it would be better to advise the new or novice owner not to allow the dog to do it. If it does on occasion then it can't be helped and probably will do no harm but it is best avoided. Ja:)kie