I never have that problem. Don't have a cat and my dog doesn't navigate stairs very well. My sewing room is on the 2nd floor. Even when she was only a year old, she didn't go up or down the stairs. She's only been upstairs in the house twice in almost 3 years. Both times she was scared of thunder and lightning and I was upstairs taking showers at the time. Got out of the shower and there she was, shaking like a leaf. The first time, I had to get her leash and drag her back down the stairs. I would've carried her down, but she weighs 100 lbs. The second time, she came down on her own.