Free printable resource
Senior Dog Home Safety Audit
Slippery floors, dim routes and awkward steps may become problems gradually as a dog ages. This room by room check helps you spot them before a fall.
Changes in strength, traction or sight can alter how an older dog moves through the home. You may notice hesitation at stairs, avoidance of a room or difficulty crossing a smooth floor. This audit helps you check the routes your dog uses every day.
Who this is for: Owners of dogs who are starting to slip, hesitate or misjudge, and anyone adapting a home ahead of that.
Walk it in her order, not yours
Start at her bed and follow the route she actually takes to water, to the door, and to wherever the household sits in the evening. Those three journeys are the ones she makes every day, and they are where a fall costs the most.
Do it at night as well as in daylight. A floor that is fine at four in the afternoon can be the reason she will not come through at midnight.
Room by room
| Where | What to check | Usual fix |
|---|---|---|
| Her bed | Can she get up from it without scrabbling? Is it against a wall she can lean on? | Firmer, lower bed. Move it off slippery floor and out of a draught. |
| The route to water | Is any part of it bare hardwood, tile or laminate? | A continuous runner. Isolated mats are worse than none, because they move. |
| Hallways and turns | Does she slow or brace at corners? | Traction round the corner, not just along the straight. |
| Stairs | Does she hesitate, take them at a rush, or refuse? | Block access and arrange a vet check before adding a ramp. Refusal is often pain. |
| Door thresholds | Is there a lip or step she now catches? | A low, non slip threshold ramp. |
| Outside steps | Wet, mossy or unlit? | Clean, grit, and light them. Add a handrail height edge she can see. |
| Feeding spot | Is she standing splayed or leaning down hard? | Raise bowls only if a vet agrees it suits her, and give her non slip footing to stand on. |
| Lighting | Can she see the transitions at night? | Low night lights at floor level along the main route. |
| Furniture gaps | Any gap she could wedge into and not reverse out of? | Block it. Getting stuck is a common night time emergency call. |
| The car | Is she jumping in or being lifted awkwardly? | A wide, gently angled ramp with a lip, used with a lead on. |
Worth doing before you need it
- Trim the fur between her pads. It is the single cheapest traction improvement in the house.
- Keep nails short enough that they do not touch the floor when she stands square.
- Decide now which room becomes the ground floor sleeping room if stairs stop being safe.
- Photograph her standing square, from the side and from behind, and date it. A vet comparing that to a photo six months later sees things you will not.
- Check that whoever else walks her knows which surfaces she now avoids.
Sources
Written against published veterinary guidance. These are the sources behind the urgency and observation guidance on this page.
- Osteoarthritis in Dogs, American College of Veterinary Surgeons
- Aging With Grace: How to Support Your Senior Pet, American Animal Hospital Association
- Living With a Blind or Deaf Pet, American Animal Hospital Association
- Creating a Senior Friendly Hospital, American Animal Hospital Association
Buddylio helps you notice and organize what you see. It doesn't diagnose or treat anything, and it isn't a substitute for your veterinarian. If you think your dog is unwell, in pain, or in danger, call your vet or an emergency clinic.
Free to use and free to share. Veterinary teams, shelters and rescues are welcome to link to this page or print it for clients.