Baby Gate for stairs?

[TaChapm]

We will be moving into our new house next week and I neet to get on the ball with my babyproofing. I need to know what is the best gate for the top and bottom of the stairs. Right now we have The First Years hands free pressure mount gate, but I don't think that this will work well for the bottom of the stairs. We also are trying to keep it cat friendly. I have visions of her jumping the gate and falling down the stairs. Any suggestions?
TIA
Tara
Mommy to Jackson 11-10-02

[Momof3Labs]

Tara - you might want to look at the Baby Proofing board. There have been some good baby gate discussions there!

[ppshah]

WE have a Kidco Center Gateway at the bottom of our stairs and it works well for us. I ordered it from Babyage.com

[pl71]

For the top of the stairs you should use a wall mounted gate, not a pressure gate. There's a chance that a toddler could push a pressure gate over, which is dangerous at the top of the stairs.

Kidco makes great gates. I use the Kidco Safeway gate at the top of the stairs. The Kidco Center Gateway would be good for the bottom, I have one of these in a doorway. Very sturdy and easy to open and close.

One type of gate to avoid is one like this: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B000046S31/qid=1085141675/sr=1-12/ref=sr_1_12/104-1768543-7434349?v=glance&s=baby This was the first gate I used (for pets) and it was horrible. The rubber at the door handle wore through our wall. Plus it was extremely difficult to adjust the width and get into place, and every time we opened it it would slip. It was loud, the bar at the bottom was big and in the way, and it was ugly. It was such a waste of money, we got rid of it after a couple months.

As for cats, we originally tried all these gates at the top of our stairs to attempt to separate 2 cats who fight. Sadly for me, after a day or two of contemplating the new challenge, they've been able to get over everything without any problem. They jump on top of the gate, balance for a second, then jump down. If your cat can just onto a table, he'll probably be able to jump over the gate if he really wants to get to the other side. Our thin 7 lb cat was able to just walk through the end of the Center Gateway gate (between the last bar and the wall, it's wider there because of the pressure mount). She can't fit through the Safeway gate at all, but can easily jump it. I now have 2 Safeway gates mounted one over the other, it's the only thing that keeps my demon cat away from the wimp.

A possible cat friendly option is the Lascal Kiddy Guard gate since it retracts completely when not in use. A cat might also be able to push under it since it gives a little bit. This gate is okay for either top or bottom of stairs.

Patty

[luluc]

I have the Lascal Kiddy Guard gate and am very pleased with it. It is on the expensive side but it is worth the money in my opinion. I like that it retracts when not in use so our cat has no problem going up or down the stairs. It takes a little while to figure out how to operate it but once you understand it it is very easy.

I did read a review where a women said her 15 month old figured out how to crawl under it, since it does give a little, and he feel down the stairs breaking an arm. If you install the gate according to the directions it should be 6 inches from the top stair which ours is and the give would not allow our daughter to crawl under it. My daughter is very active and she hasn't even attempted this. I also feel that a gate is an added safety measure and if you are leaving your child alone long enough for them to figure out how to crawl under the small gap then you are asking for trouble. I always supervise my daughter when upstairs and the gate is there to keep her from falling down the stairs if she quickly runs out of the room or falls near the stairs. Not to leave her alone up there and have the gate keep her in. ;) I just say this b/c if anyone is considering this gate and sees a bad review like the one above please consider things like user error. I love this gate and it is very, very safe.