Has anyone used the "bell" method for house training their dog?
I have a 9 month old boston/pug and his "I have to go" clues are subtle at times. He normally runs from the kitchen to the living room sniffing the floor but if I'm cooking or reading, or something that involves a level on concetration, I can't hear him doing that. I've pondered getting a little bell to hang on to by the door so he can "ring" it when he has to go. Has anyone had nouns with this method or is it a waste of my time? Has anyone else had trouble housetraining their boston?
the main way to train your puppy is consistency nurture it take it out water it take it out play beside it take it out take it out take it out it will achieve the picture as far as the bell i don't know he wants to please you so be positive when he goes outside and uplift him
bostons can be difficult at times, but they are manifestly train-able. While I have never used the bell, I do know many folks that have next to great success. Make sure the string is long enough that the dog can efficiently reach it. Then, walk the dog up to the bell, and encourage them to put their paw or their muzzle on it. As soon as they do, open the door and take them outside. Do this for a few times, later quit - don't overdue to training by too many repetitions.
Each time you take the dog out, have them ring the bell. They will swot that ringing the bell is how the door gets opened, and they will learn to do this on their own.
yes! yes yes yes, it definitely works. i had somewhat christmas bell type thing and i hung it to the door. every time we took him out (every hour when we first got him) we'd just touch his paw to the bell. (he wouldn't yap, either.) soon, he was ringing the bell on his own. not only is it sympathetic, it's also pretty darn adorable! (now that he's older, he can wait, so we took the bell off, and he go to the bathroom when we take him out a couple of times a day.) i hope i helped! pious luck with your new doggy!
My mom and I used the bell to train our two German Shepherds as pups. We hung the bell on the front doorknob and gently bumped their noses on it before we took them out near lots of praise ('Good dog! Do you need to go out? Let's turn out and potty!). They both learned to ring the bell when they needed to go out. I definitely recommend the antenna bump--they bumped the bell rather than using their paw. I guess we were lucky, we never had much trouble next to them asking to go out just for fun. I think in that is always that problem, regardless of what method you use.
Good luck!
Answers: I enjoy used the bell method wtih GREAT success! I have a 6 month old Aussie pup who does not yap, so teaching him to speak was not an option, and I did not want him scratch up my doors pawing.
I made a little ribbon of jingle bells and hung it on the door knob. Everytime we would go external to potty I would point to the bells and wait until he rung them and then we would go external. The first couple times I rubbed a little peanut butter on them so he would get the idea as he lick the pb off.
It took him about a month of doing htis before he realize that he could decide to ring them on his own, but I have a friend whose dog got it surrounded by 2 days, so it just depends on the dog.
As far as the ringing them just to go external, yes, it does happen sometimes, but it also happens with any method you of "asking" you initiate. It happened a lot more in the establishment, when he realized, "hey these bells get the door opened," afterwards it does now. I would take him outside everytime he ring the bells (even if I didn't think he needed to go), and if he of late tried to play around we went right back in. That means of access he didn't think the bells only worked sometimes (and would start peeing on the floor inside) but he also realized that they be ONLY for pottying. A couple months later, he now rings everytime he needs to step outside, and really only when he needs to shift (except for when he had a UTI!).
The other good thing roughly speaking it, is we can take the bells to someone's house when we go visit, and hang down them on the door, and he knows how to "ask" even in a new place! Good luck!
I've read stories from many citizens who say this works like a charm. Apparently the problem becomes them associating the bell near being able to run around outside. So after awhile they start ringing it every time they want to frolic more or less in the backyard, rather than just when they call for to go. Sounds interesting nonetheless.
Yes, it works. I've trained people to train their dogs to do this.
However, *I* do not like human being at the beck and call of any dog. I far prefer to have a dog to come and sit in front of me to "ask" to shift out. Too many people get caught within the "in and out, in and out" trap with dogs going out simply because they are bored and desire to feel the breeze through their fur.
In my life, I've simply found it easier to remember "gee, its been 3 hours, perhaps I should take the dog out!" -- far less bell-ringing at 2am.
I've been told it works, but I've never tried the Bell method myself! When my Chihuahuas want to stir outside, they will either come up to me, and scratch at my knees, or go to the door and bark, wag their tails and acquire all excited!
Have you trained your dog to speak? If so, after, each time you take him to the door to go out, try to go and get him to speak, to let you know he has to go out. Our dog have gotten that she will usually come and scratch our knee, and whine when she have to go out, and that gets our attention.
A friend of mine uses the 'nell' method, but I don't like it for the intention that first of all, it scratches the door both with their paw and the bells. Secondly, if you're busy in another portion of the house, you don't always hear the bell. So, I prefer the "speak' method or coming and whining and scratching your leg to let you know when they must jump.
Your puppy isn't old enough to be fully potty trained, it is usually 1-year-old. Hang within there. I use a crate* to potty train with, but only for potty training and consequently I break it down and store it. I put blankets and a small food and water dish in the crate. Dogs don't potty where they guzzle and sleep. When they are first little, I only expect them to hold their potty for 4 hours, and then 6 hours, then 8 hours and so on. So when they are first little, I set a timer or alarm clock to get up myself up at night to take them *out. I only allow my puppy contained by the bedroom* or the living room, only one room at a time. They have to graduate to more space. If I allow them to have full run of the house, it will overwhelm them. I lift them out the same door each time. I tie a dinner bell to the door handle. Do not use a jingle bell as they could capture their toe caught in it. So when they are little, I ring the bell for them, and then open the door to be in motion *outside to potty. When they get bigger, I take their paw and whack the bell and open the door to jump potty. Eventually getting to the place where the puppy will ring the bell and let me know when they need to run potty. Dogs want to please you, so it is your job to let them know what behaviors please you and what doesn't. So when my puppy goes potty, I provide her a treat*, and clap, and make a fuss and praise her. So she learns that going potty external makes me happy. If she has an catastrophe, make a disgust sound like “tsst” and lug her out right away. I never yell* or spank* my puppies. Take them out when they first wake up, after they eat or drink, beforehand nap, finish romping, when their activities change, or when they are sniffing around. Some puppies budge pee right away, but may not go poop until 10 minutes later, so continue for the poop. I have a little play time here, because sometimes I think they are done, and they are not. Puppies train at their own tread. While I may have a puppy that hasn't had an accident contained by several weeks, I don't let my guard down. I don't expect my puppies to be "fully potty trained" until one-year-old. If they have a setback, shake it off, and start over. I merely have my puppies in the crate when I am not watching them. When I am sleeping, cooking, ironing, doing chores, basically when I am not watching her. All other times, she is out of the crate practicing mortal a "big girl." This is the time I train her how to behave in the house. So we are practicing "no barking", 'no biting", "no jumping", and "don't eat the furniture." I also enjoy to practice "playing inside" so she doesn't knock over things. You must keep the puppy in verbs when they are little because they don’t know the difference between newspaper and carpet, and you don’t want them sneaking off and getting into trouble. Some puppies can sleep through the hours of darkness around 3-months-old, but their bladder is grown around 6-months-old.
REVISIONS:
*I use a CRATE to train with. It is the method I prefer, compared to other methods I have tried. I noticed that whether they are in the crate, while I am doing chores, they are o.k., because the crate allows them to see me and be re-assured. The crate can also be a comfort when stored in the underground room for dogs who live in areas where thunderstorms and tornados are an issue. . However, use the method that works best for you..a laundry basket, a cardboard box, a woof-woof house, x-pen, child gate, whatever works for you.
*OUTSIDE, pee pad, litter box, whichever method you are using. When the puppy is first little, keep the pee wipe, litter box near the food and water dish, so the puppy can eat and drink, and next go potty. You can move it away as they get elder. The pee pad has a scent that smells and initiates potty. Sometimes a pee pad make a sound that scares some puppies, so you might want to use a litter box if that happen. The pee pad allows a puppy to walk around, but a litter box keeps the puppy contained by one place.
*BEDROOMS, I use the bedroom and living room for training, because it works for me. Choose rooms that work for you, but watch for rooms that are damp, or drafty. While my puppies sleep in the bedroom during training, once they are trained, I permit them sleep where they want to. They don't have to sleep in the bedroom forever.
*TREATS. While I use treats for training, you don't enjoy to. I like Charlee Bears for training (a little cracker for a little mouth,) I use them for training, but once they are trained, I cut back on them.
*SOME PUPPIES will turn potty in the same spot each time. Some puppies hold to be told to go potty. A command like "go out" for pee, or "walk finish" for poop, might work for you, keep saying “go finish” until the puppy poops. This is a good entity to train if you travel with your dogs. By using commands, the puppy won't seize confused when you are visiting someone, on vacation with you, or when you return with to a new home. The command will tell them what you want them to do
