A dog was left distressed and spent the night at the top of the stairs after climbing a staircase and refused to come down.
Ashleigh and Paul Hargrave, both 51, from Coventry, were staying at an apartment in Ashton Under Lyne, Manchester, and brought their four-legged friend, Zoe, with them for a mini getaway.
But the couple was forced to call a pet behaviour specialist after Zoe became distressed when she climbed a spiral staircase and then refused to come down.
The dog, which is bred to tackle extreme environments, became spooked, despite Ashleigh and Paul trying to coax her with treats and an evening walk.
Ashleigh, who works as a university programme manager, said: “We first realised that she was scared to come down the stairs when we were getting ready to take her for her evening walk. She was too scared to go back down and treats and coaxing just weren't working.
"Zoe was really agitated and we were afraid she would lash out and bite. The stairs were open and steep, so we didn’t want to try and carry her, especially in the distressed state she was in as it could have caused an accident.
“She wouldn’t accept any attempts to try and move her, and it was clear that she was staying put, and was too scared to move a muscle.”
The Siberian husky spent the evening at the top of the stairs and was still there the following morning.
It was at this point that Ashleigh became concerned and called a local pet behavioural specialist, Rachel Bean, for advice on what to do next.
Rachel used a special 'confident handling' behavioural technique, which gave Zoe the confidence to climb down the stairs herself after hours of fear and upset.
Ashleigh said she was in tears after she was reunited with Zoe and filled with complete relief.
Ashleigh adopted Zoe from charity Suki's Canine Rescue, and has been taking care of the pooch for 18 months. She added: "When Rachel came it all ended really quickly and for Zoe it was like nothing had ever happened.
Rachel went up to the top of the stairs and used a technique that she has used on street dogs in Thailand, which allowed Zoe to focus on moving forward, but coming down at her own pace.
"It was a massive relief because Zoe had been really scared until that point," said Ashleigh. "We were really worried because she hadn't been able to go out since the night before. It is horrible to see your dog in a situation like that, but Rachel was wonderful."
Canine behaviourist and qualified veterinary nurse Rachel Bean, 52, who lives in nearby Grotton, Greater Manchester, said: "Poor Zoe had a complete mental block, and the key was to get her to move forward gently, and do the descent eventually by herself.
"I have worked with dogs in situations like this before, and it's always scary for both the dog and the owners, as all the usual things that they use to help their dog relax don't work."
Ashleigh added: "Zoe recovered from it straight away, she went out for a big walk later that day and it was like it never happened
"But the next time we are booking somewhere to stay we will definitely make sure there are no spiral staircases."
