Does your dog have trouble jumping in the back of your SUV? That is quite a jump, even for big dogs.
He most likely needs a dog step.
There are lots of different ways to help your dog, with step stools, ramps or just picking your dogs hind section up and loading him manually.
You can use a plastic step stool but they are too lightweight to be steady and tend to flip over when the dog steps to close to the edge.
You actually need something a little more heavy duty.
A loading ramp, used for loading lawn tractors, is perfect for some situations however, they tend to be large, bulky and cumbersome for some folks.
If you have a very big dog, loading your dogs hind section can be a major job.
Lets say you are a small frame female who happens to own a Honda Pilot and an American Mastiff.
Not a pretty picture.
After doing some research on the subject, we came up with an idea for a portable dog step that you can make yourself.
It is fairly easy and inexpensive.
The biggest expense would be a trailer hitch insert.
You can get these at most auto parts stores or even Wal-Mart.
The cost is around twenty bucks.
You will not need the trailer hitch ball.
Instead, purchase a 1" x 4" smooth head bolt, flat washer, lock washer and nut.
You will need a 10" x 10" piece of 3/4" treated plywood.
Drill a 1 1/8" hole in the plywood to correspond with the pre-drilled hole in the hitch.
Insert the bolt through the flat washer, plywood and hitch.
Now apply the lock washer and nut.
Tighten the nut until the flat washer and top of bolt start to sink in the plywood.
A round 10" diameter piece of 3/4" plywood can also be used eliminating any sharp corners.
This dog step is easy to use and easy to store in the back of your SUV.
If you often pull a boat or trailer you can easily switch between the trailer hitch and dog step.
We hope you and your big dog found this information about a dog step helpful.