The dog and the stairlift - update

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I've mentioned this before, but from the top....

Our steadily ageing BC, was beginning to struggle to get up the stairs, to the first floor. I already had a stairlift installed, as a result of my late partner needing one, it seemed silly to take it out, as it had cost so much, and came in handy sometimes. As designed, there was no way to get the dog onto the stairlift, so I looked at ways to solve that, so she could sit or lie down on it...

My first iteration, simply added a board, using a metal bracket on the underside, which hooked onto the stairlift footrest, with a lath at the opposite end, to prevent it becoming unhooked when any weight was on the board. It was quick to fit, quick to remove, simply hooking into place, on the footrest. That sort of worked, with a blanket on the board, as cushion, but I managed to break the unsupported end of the board.

The next iteration, I made with a stronger base board, adding a vertical support, at the unsupported end - so that with the lift at ground level, the board end was well-supported. To the top of the board, I spray glued some sponge foam, and to the foam I glued some spare carpet. The dog, by now was reluctantly, with a lot of encouragement, climbing on the lift, usually lying down, with her front legs over-hanging the front, and risking them getting trapped as the lift went up the stairs, so time for another mod...

I added a second vertical board at the leading edge, one which dropped into place on pegs, so it dropped into place, just when she needed to use the lift, at other times it could be removed so we didn't trip over it, going up and down. The board itself, just left in place, so we could step on it, on the way up, or down.

Whilst this slow development of her stairlift has been going on, the dog has gone from needing lots of persuading and encouragement to get on, and remain laid on the lift, with somebody following the lift up, to make sure she stayed put - to being confident enough to just stand on the lift, as it progresses up the stairs.

This morning, Avril was first up, and the dog followed her down, to go out. Avril made me a coffee and brought it up to me, me still asleep in bed, with dog left downstairs. Whilst Avril was upstairs, the dog had stepped on the lift, and could be heard whining for it to move. The lift has wireless remotes located top and bottom of stair, so Avril just pressed the up button to bring her up. You only have to hint at going upstairs now, and she steps on the lift, waiting for her ride up :)
 
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Can't you simply leave the poor soul downstairs?

'Poor soul' ?, she is absolutely ruined.

No, could never do that. She always likes to be 'near'. Left downstairs, she would be struggling to get up, best we make it easy for her.

Besides, if she were stuck downstairs, and needed to go out urgently, how would she let us know? At the moment she sleeps on the landing, and just comes and taps on the edge of the mattress to go out, on those rare occasions.
 
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In zoos they call it enrichment :).

Try screwing a sausage to the button.
 
Not when she wants something, when she wants something she taps you, or the mattress.
Our Susie either stares you out or bounces when she wants something. She normally sleeps in the kitchen and when she wants to go out for a wee or a poo at 3.00 in the morning she taps on the kitchen door but as that is currently a building site, we are taking her bed up into our room and letting her sleep in our room. The past two nights she has slept through until it starts getting light. She then bounces in her bed until I call her onto our bed where she snuggles down between us. The only time she's ever barked for attention is when we come back from a walk, take her into the rear garden to hose her down and take too long to go round the front, come into the house and let her in!
 
She hasn't quite connected my having to press a button, to make the stairlift move. Last night, as usual, I let her out, whilst I got things organised for going up to bed. She came back in, long before I was done and ready to go up. She stepped on the lift, next thing I heard, was her tapping the lift, because it wasn't doing what it had always done before, as soon as she stepped on it - begun to move.
 
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