questions about stairs and playing

[Cathy]

Rhys is having his left hind leg amputated in April. The leg is not bendable. He can make it up and down the 5 steps on the deck but he has not attempted going down the basement stairs which is 14 steps. I think he may have been an outside only dog and had never seen a flight of stairs. How do I teach him to go up and down stairs?
We adopted Rhys and his best friend, Jin, an adult lab mix. Rhys is young and has a ton on energy. The two of them play for hours. They love to chase and tackle each other. Inside the house they will often play while lying down (they were crated together). Should I restrict their playing for awhile?

[GabrielDeafBlindPupFamily]

You will want to baby gate until you are certain he can maneuver. 14 steps is a long fall. Get a rear harness and work with him on his balance. You can also build or buy a ramp which would be easier for him (maybe) t han 14 steps. My blindpups had a hard time with the down stairs. Until they did them enough to count. Yes, they can count the stairs and know where the last one is. Stepping off into oblivion is a frightening thing. Up is much easier. Depending on his balance, you can train a step at a time, sitting on the step and moving down one at a time. I would bet his maneuverability is what concerns him.

[Cathy]

I didn't even think to put a baby gate in front of the stairs until he gains his balance! If he will let me pick him up, I think I will try to teach him to go up the stairs first. A ramp isn't an option due to the grade. It would be a slide. I would like him to be able to go up and down the stairs since my husband and I spend a great deal of time in the basement in the summer and don't want him to be excluded. If he isn't able to maneuver the stairs, I hope he will learn to trust me enough to carry him up and down.