This adorable Australian Shepherd has the most bizarre quirk and will only walk up the stairs – BACKWARDS.
Nervous rescue dog Biden always looked at stairs suspiciously and now tackles them backwards so be doesn’t have to look up.
Biden’s owners Taylor Toretto and his wife Morgan Feltmeier rescued him at four months-old.
The couple noticed that Biden struggled on some floors, but especially stairs. He would hop up the first few steps before freezing and then walk up backwards, one step at a time.
Biden, now four-years-old, has delighted and puzzled his owners for years.
Taylor, 29, of Portland, Oregon, USA, said: “He’s always been a bit shy about things, or people he is uncertain of.
“When it came to stairs for the first time, he would hop up the first couple of steps and then freeze like he did on some floors. He would then turn around and start going up backwards, one step at a time.
“We assumed this was due to wherever he was before we rescued him. We noticed immediately he would struggle on some new surfaces.
“He would be hesitant for a while and often freeze like ‘What do I do’? He sometimes would eventually start walking or scooting backwards across the surface to get through it.
“We’re not sure why, but we think he just has more confidence when he’s not facing the thing that’s freaking him out.
“Some people think it’s a coordination thing, but honestly the way he approaches it requires more coordination we think.
‘At first we were confused, though once we confirmed he was safe, we honestly found it pretty comical every time.
“The odd thing is nowadays he’s gotten pretty good at stairs and can make it all the way up pretty ok (usually).
“But every now and then he’ll lose momentum on the way up, and slowly but surely (while making distinct eye contact with one of us) he’ll freeze, turn around, and start going up one paw at a time backwards.
The couple have taken to calling Biden, ‘Burrito’, to avoid any political connotations.
Taylor added: “My dog’s name is Biden though we’ve been saying Burrito lately.
“People have such strong reactions given the political climate. We’ve been wanting less drama around it.
“He is a miniature Australian Shepherd or American Shepherd depending who you ask. We rescued him at four months and he is now four years old. Our relationship with him is great!
“Over the years we’ve built a great feel for the things that make him nervous and feel prepared for his reactions.
“Trucks, motorcycles, sewer drains, blenders, some men, etc. but nothing really cracked us up like his early relationship with stairs.”