Stair gates

VCA Animal Hospitals, in its guide to osteoarthritis, says it may be best to keep a dog with arthritis off the stairs when no one is around to supervise, to lower the risk of falls, and that a baby gate works well for this. Ask your vet whether your dog should be using stairs at all.

Follow the maker's instructions. North States, for example, says its pressure-mounted 5459 and 5457 gates should not be used at the top of a stairway and that only hardware-mounted gates are approved there. For the top of stairs, look for a gate the maker says is meant for that spot and screw it into solid wood.

Measure the opening at the floor and at the height where the gate will sit, wall to wall or banister to wall. Your opening must fall inside the gate's listed range. Some gates, such as several Frisco models, fit only certain bands of width with their extensions, so read the notes on each row.

A walk-through door lets you pass without stepping over or taking the gate down, which helps if you carry things up and down the stairs. Freestanding gates usually have no door and are not fixed to the wall.

Pick a gate your dog cannot step or jump over. We do not know of a vet guideline on gate height, so compare the listed gate height with your dog's size and habits.