Wow KF, spiral stairs, I'm impressed! One house I looked at had them and I was almost scared myself to go up. No way for the dogs I think - they were hardly as wide as my shoulders, so narrow my foot didn't fit on the steps, and so steep I held on with both hands! The house was old and my opinion is that this was originally just a shaft and they put the staircase in it to have one indoors instead of having just the outdoor staircase.
I feel MUCH better now thanks to all of you!