The Ramp, the Outback and One Stubborn Golden

The first time I tried to get Biscuit into the back of our 2019 Subaru Outback, she sat down on the driveway and gave me a look. She is a 12-year-old female Golden Retriever, about 68 pounds, and our vet diagnosed hip and elbow arthritis when she was 10. She can still do her two short walks, morning and evening, 15 to 20 minutes each. What she cannot do is jump. I did not want to make her.

For a while, Dale and I lifted her back end. That worked until it did not. Biscuit is 68 pounds, and lifting a dog who is stiff in the hips and elbows is not a clean motion. I worried I would hurt her. I know I hurt my back. A neighbor mentioned the PetSafe Happy Ride Folding Dog Ramp, and I bought one about eight months ago. I am not going to tell you it made her young again. I am going to tell you what it did.

The ramp is for the Outback's rear hatch, not the three wooden steps off our deck. Those steps get the sling. The ramp stays folded in the cargo area, and it comes out for vet visits and weekend drives to the park. That is it. Eight months in, that is still all we use it for. It is 10 pounds, so I can pull it out with one hand while I keep the other on Biscuit's collar. It opens to about 62 inches long and 16 inches wide, with side rails and high-traction treads.

The first week was not a success. Biscuit would not put a paw on it. I set it flat on the driveway and put treats at the bottom. Then halfway up. Then at the hatch. It took about two weeks of short sessions, five minutes at a time, before she walked up without me coaxing. The rubber feet sat still on the concrete. On wet grass, they are less sure, so I pick a firm spot. If you have a gravel driveway, put a mat down first.

What I noticed is not dramatic. She stopped bracing when we pulled into the vet lot. She used to plant her feet and look at me, and I would feel awful. Now she stands by the hatch and waits for me to set the ramp. That is a small thing unless you are the one lifting a stiff 68-pound dog into an SUV.

The ramp did not make Biscuit younger. It made the hatch a place she would still go.

A few honest notes. The ramp is plastic and it is 10 pounds, so it is not a piece of furniture. Ours has a safety release latch, and I had to read the label twice before I trusted it. It has side rails, which matter for Biscuit because she drifts left when she is stiff. The treads give her something to grip, but she still wears her DOK TigerToes socks in the house, not on the ramp. The ramp is outside gear.

The angle matters more than I expected. If I park too close to a curb, the ramp is steep, and Biscuit hesitates. If I leave a little room, she goes up evenly. I also clean the treads with a damp rag when they get dusty. That is not in any manual I read. It is just what keeps her from slipping.

The PetSafe ramp did not replace anything our vet prescribed. Biscuit still takes her Cosequin chews, still sleeps on the Bedsure bed by the window, still uses the LOOBANI sling on bad mornings for the deck steps. The ramp solved one problem: the back of the Outback. I wish I had bought it sooner, but I am glad I did not wait another winter.

If your dog is small enough to lift without strain, you may not need this. If your dog is a 20-pound terrier, a ramp may be more trouble than it is worth. If your dog is a 68-pound senior with hip arthritis and a hatch that sits at your chest height, it is worth the eight months of use we have on ours.

What I'd Tell You If We Were Sitting at My Kitchen Table

I would tell you to talk to your vet first about the arthritis, because a ramp is not medicine. I would tell you to measure your hatch height and your dog's stride before you order anything. I would tell you to train with treats for two weeks and not to rush it. And I would tell you that the ramp is a tool, not a fix. Biscuit still has stiff days. She still needs her walks kept short. But she gets in the car, and that means she still comes with us.

If you are on the fence, set the ramp up in your driveway on a dry day and see how your dog looks at it. If she is curious, you have a chance. If she is terrified, give it time and keep the treats small. That is what worked here.