An old dog stops jumping onto the sofa long before they stop wanting to be on it, and the ones who keep trying do the real damage on the way down rather than on the way up. A set of steps removes both the leap and the landing. These give a graded route up to a sofa or a bed, carpeted so paws grip rather than skid off the tread edge on the way back down.

What sets these apart is the hollow underneath, which is not wasted. A paw-shaped doorway is cut into the side so the space becomes a small den, the kind of enclosed spot cats and nervous dogs choose over an open bed when the house is busy. One piece of furniture, two jobs, and the footprint of one. Choose between the three-step and the four-step version depending on how high the furniture you are climbing to actually sits.

• Available as three steps or four steps
• Carpeted treads for grip going up and coming down
• Paw-cut doorway into a hidden den underneath
• White finish on both step counts
• Spares joints the repeated jump and landing
• One piece doing the work of steps and a bed

On sizing. Measure your sofa or bed height first and pick the step count from that: steps that stop short of the seat leave a gap, and that gap is the jump you were trying to avoid. Older dogs also need a few days of coaxing with treats before they trust them.

Who it's for: Owners of older, smaller or short-legged pets who want them on the furniture without the jump, in a home with no room for a separate den.