This indoor pet ramp makes me so excited! My little Louie is getting older and it’s been difficult for him to jump up onto the couch. I searched online for hours looking to buy some stairs or something to help him out. Then I realized a dog ramp would be better than stairs as he gets older, so why not just go that route now. But I really couldn’t find anything and what I did find was too expensive and bulky. So, being the DIY maven that I am, I got busy!
Click here to see more ideas for aging or geriatric pets below.
Repurposed Cabinet Door for Indoor Pet Ramp
This is my stash of cabinet doors, most of which I got from a good friend in Indiana for FREE! Thank you Shannon! You can see the blue arrow pointing to a tall narrow one.
Testing out the cabinet doors
I actually tried out two different doors. One being longer and more narrow. The other being wider and shorter.
I ended up going with the one on the left.
Materials for Inexpensive Dog Ramp
- Cabinet Door
- Small Piece of Plywood
- Piano Hinge and screws
- Carpet Remnant
- Staple Gun
- Utility Knife
- Scissors
- Duct Tape (optional)
- Paint Stick (optional)
- Wood Glue (optional)
I gathered up the rest of the items needed for this ramp project for my aging pet. I grabbed a scrap piece of plywood and a piece of a piano hinge left over from another project.
Measurements of the Indoor Pet Ramp
These are the measurements for my diy dog ramp. 34” ended up being perfect for my couch height and the space in front of the couch. The depth of the plywood will be determined by your sofa cushion.
Install Piano Hinge
I drilled small pilot holes in the plywood and the cabinet door so I could secure the piano hinge. I only put in a couple of screws on each board so I could do a dry fit.
This is the dry fit. I decided the aging dog ramp may work better if I switched the hinge to be on the underneath side of the cabinet door instead of the top side.
To cover screw tips-use a paint stick
After securing all of the screws, I found out the hard way that they protruded on the back side of the plywood. (note the small red finger print) To protect fingers and the fabric on the couch I cut a paint stick to size and glued it over the points of the screws.
Low pile carpet remnant
Because I never throw anything away—I had this roll of scrap carpet in the basement just waiting for a purpose--like this DIY dog ramp.
Trim carpet to size
The carpet scrap fit around the cabinet board (ramp) perfectly. I just had to cut it to length with a box cutter and scissors.
Duct tape provides a temporary hold
As a temporary solution I used some Gorilla tape to secure the carpet on the pet ramp. I wanted to make sure Louie the nervous Nellie would actually use it before I made it permanent.
Staple carpet in place
After realizing that Louie was indeed going to enjoy the dog ramp, I needed to make it more permanent, by stapling the carpet. The bottom portion of the carpet was cut and tucked much like you would wrap a present. You can see the little corner I cut off on the left.
Did you know Louie has a bad heart? yep, he’s been on several heart meds. The things I do for that baby. 
Indoor pet ramp for sofa
This is how the ramp now looks under the cushion of the love seat. I didn't bother to paint the plywood since it won’t be seen. (you can see the paint stick that covers up the screw points)
During the holidays while Jamie and Andy were visiting, I was able to sit here, using the ramp as a little foot rest. That being said, the ramp is very portable and easy to remove and store (under the sofa) when not needed. I doubt that I will be storing it very often because it’s working so well for Louie.
Now that I have built the dog ramp, Louie can always have his favorite view on the back of the love seat—that is when Matt isn’t hogging it.
Not only does the ramp help him with jumping up on the couch, it also saves his joints the jolt when he jumps off the couch. It makes me smile every time he travels up or down the ramp. It may not look like it, but it’s even wide enough for him to turn around if he changes his mind while going up or down.
DIY Indoor Pet Ramp
You can see in this video that Louie took to the pet ramp on the sofa right away! I was shocked and amazed. For about 2 years I’ve been picking Louie up so he can get on the love seat with me. You can see he likes to lay on the back of the love seat so he can look out the window.
Options for geriatric pets
- Remove a Cushion If you have fur babies you know we’ll do anything we can to help them out in their old age. On the other side of the room there is a couch with three cushions. When I’m not around, Louie will look out that window. He jumps to the spot where I have removed the cushion, jumps on the seat, then walks over to the arm of the couch and climbs up much like he does in the video above.
- Take the feet off your sofa If you have these issues, another option would be to remove the feet from your furniture. My former couch was about 1 ½ inches lower to the ground, making it easier for this little guy. Sometimes just an inch or two makes a big difference for your geriatric pet.
- For the bedroom, add a bench To help your pooch get on the bed, you can repurpose a coffee table into a bench.
Time to bring the dog ramp out of storage
EDITED TO ADD
I had to say goodbye to my sweet Louie on 2.11.15.
On 6.19.16 I brought home this sweet bundle of joy! Meet Lulu Mae!
Lulu Mae loves Louie's indoor pet ramp, at only 8 weeks old she immediately started using the ramp to get on and off the couch whenever she chooses! It sure has made life easier, and I'm glad I stored it in the basement. I love this little one so much, but you probably know that a new pet never replaces the love you have for the best friend you had to say goodbye to. I still miss Louie every day.
UPDATE
After storing the ramp in the basement, I had to bring it out again. Lulu Mae developed some knee issues. I brought the indoor puppy ramp back out for her. It will make it easier on her so she (like Louie) doesn't experience that jolt while jumping off the couch. In addition, Matt (the cat) is now aging and he also appreciates the dog ramp.
What “something special” do you do for your furbabies?
gail
ps See more Pet Projects Here Have some extra cabinet doors? See repurposed cabinet door projects here.
appreciate the instructions and pictures you post for your projects.
we put a bench at doot of bed so when the dog goes to get off, he steps off from that instead of just jumping. as he ages, he will probably need a ramp like yours.