I have a 9 month old boston/pug and his "I have to go" clues are subtle at times. He usually 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 keep by the door so he can "ring" it when he has to go. Has anyone had success with this method or is it a waste of my time? Has anyone else had trouble housetraining their boston?
I have used the bell method wtih GREAT success! I have a 6 month old Aussie pup who does not bark, so teaching him to speak was not an option, and I did not want him scratching up my doors pawing.
I made a little ribbon of jingle bells and hung it on the door knob. Everytime we would go outside to potty I would point to the bells and wait until he rung them and then we would go outside. The first couple times I rubbed a little peanut butter on them so he would get the idea as he licked the pb off.
It took him about a month of doing htis before he realized that he could decide to ring them on his own, but I have a friend whose dog got it in 2 days, so it just depends on the dog.
As far as the ringing them just to go outside, yes, it does happen sometimes, but it also happens with any method you of "asking" you teach. It happened a lot more in the beginning, when he realized, "hey these bells get the door opened," then it does now. I would take him outside everytime he rang the bells (even if I didn’t think he needed to go), and if he just tried to play around we went right back in. That way he didn’t think the bells only worked sometimes (and would start peeing on the floor inside) but he also realized that they were ONLY for pottying. A couple months later, he now rings everytime he needs to go outside, and really only when he needs to go (except for when he had a UTI!).
The other good thing about it, is we can take the bells to someone’s house when we go visit, and hang them on the door, and he knows how to "ask" even in a new place! Good luck!
10 Responses
2010 Feb 11
yes!!! yes yes yes, it definitely works. i had a little 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 bark, either.) soon, he was ringing the bell on his own. not only is it helpful, it’s also pretty darn adorable! (now that he’s older, he can wait, so we took the bell off, and he goes to the bathroom when we take him out a couple of times a day.) i hope i helped! good luck with your new doggy!
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2010 Feb 11
bostons can be difficult at times, but they are definitely train-able. While I have never used the bell, I do know many folks that have with great success. Make sure the string is long enough that the dog can easily reach it. Then, walk the dog up to the bell, and encourage them to put their paw or their nose on it. As soon as they do, open the door and take them outside. Do this for a few times, then quit - don’t overdue to training by too many repetitions.
Each time you take the dog out, have them ring the bell. They will learn that ringing the bell is how the door gets opened, and they will learn to do this on their own.
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2010 Feb 11
the main way to train your puppy is consistency feed it take it out water it take it out play with it take it out take it out take it out it will get the picture as far as the bell i don’t know he wants to please you so be positive when he goes outside and encourage him
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2010 Feb 11
Yes, it works. I’ve trained people to train their dogs to do this.
However, *I* do not like 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 go out. Too many people get caught in the "in and out, in and out" trap with dogs going out simply because they are bored and wish to feel the breeze through their fur.
In my life, I’ve simply found it easier to remember "gee, its been 3 hours, maybe I should take the dog out!" — far less bell-ringing at 2am.
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2010 Feb 11
Have you trained your dog to speak? If so, then, each time you take him to the door to go out, try to get him to speak, to let you know he has to go out. Our dog has gotten that she will usually come and scratch our knee, and whine when she has to go out, and that gets our attention.
A friend of mine uses the ‘nell’ method, but I don’t like it for the reason that first of all, it scratches the door both with their paws and the bells. Secondly, if you’re busy in another part 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 go.
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2010 Feb 11
I have used the bell method wtih GREAT success! I have a 6 month old Aussie pup who does not bark, so teaching him to speak was not an option, and I did not want him scratching up my doors pawing.
I made a little ribbon of jingle bells and hung it on the door knob. Everytime we would go outside to potty I would point to the bells and wait until he rung them and then we would go outside. The first couple times I rubbed a little peanut butter on them so he would get the idea as he licked the pb off.
It took him about a month of doing htis before he realized that he could decide to ring them on his own, but I have a friend whose dog got it in 2 days, so it just depends on the dog.
As far as the ringing them just to go outside, yes, it does happen sometimes, but it also happens with any method you of "asking" you teach. It happened a lot more in the beginning, when he realized, "hey these bells get the door opened," then it does now. I would take him outside everytime he rang the bells (even if I didn’t think he needed to go), and if he just tried to play around we went right back in. That way he didn’t think the bells only worked sometimes (and would start peeing on the floor inside) but he also realized that they were ONLY for pottying. A couple months later, he now rings everytime he needs to go outside, and really only when he needs to go (except for when he had a UTI!).
The other good thing about it, is we can take the bells to someone’s house when we go visit, and hang them on the door, and he knows how to "ask" even in a new place! Good luck!
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This website also has some training info: http://www.poochie-pets.net/
2010 Feb 11
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 with lots of praise (’Good dog! Do you need to go out? Let’s go out and potty!). They both learned to ring the bell when they needed to go out. I definitely recommend the nose bump–they bumped the bell rather than using their paw. I guess we were lucky, we never had much trouble with them asking to go out just for fun. I think there is always that problem, regardless of what method you use.
Good luck!
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2010 Feb 11
I’ve been told it works, but I’ve never tried the Bell method myself! When my Chihuahuas want to go outside, they will either come up to me, and scratch at my knee, or go to the door and bark, wag their tails and get all excited!
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2010 Feb 11
I’ve read stories from many people who say this works like a charm. Apparently the problem becomes them associating the bell with being able to run around outside. So after awhile they start ringing it every time they want to frolic about in the backyard, rather than just when they need to go. Sounds interesting nonetheless.
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2010 Feb 11
Your puppy isn’t old enough to be fully potty trained, it is usually 1-year-old. Hang in there. I use a crate* to potty train with, but only for potty training and then 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 eat 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 wake myself up at night to take them *out. I only allow my puppy in 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 take 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 get their toe caught in it. So when they are little, I ring the bell for them, and then open the door to go *outside to potty. When they get bigger, I take their paw and whack the bell and open the door to go potty. Eventually getting to the place where the puppy will ring the bell and let me know when they need to go 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 give her a treat*, and clap, and make a fuss and praise her. So she learns that going potty outside makes me happy. If she has an accident, make a disgust sound like “tsst” and take her out right away. I never yell* or spank* my puppies. Take them out when they first wake up, after they eat or drink, before nap, finish romping, when their activities change, or when they are sniffing around. Some puppies go pee right away, but may not go poop until 10 minutes later, so wait 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 pace. While I may have a puppy that hasn’t had an accident in 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 only 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 being 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 have to practice "playing inside" so she doesn’t knock over things. You must keep the puppy in sight 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 night 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 if 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 basement 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 gates, whatever works for you.
*OUTSIDE, pee pad, litter box, whichever method you are using. When the puppy is first little, keep the pee pad, litter box near the food and water dish, so the puppy can eat and drink, and then go potty. You can move it away as they get older. The pee pad has a scent that smells and initiates potty. Sometimes a pee pad makes a sound that scares some puppies, so you might want to use a litter box if that happens. The pee pad allows a puppy to walk around, but a litter box keeps the puppy in 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 let 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 have 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 go potty in the same spot each time. Some puppies have to be told to go potty. A command like "go out" for pee, or "go finish" for poop, might work for you, keep saying “go finish” until the puppy poops. This is a good thing to train if you travel with your dogs. By using commands, the puppy won’t get confused when you are visiting someone, on vacation with you, or when you get to a new home. The command will tell them what you want them to do
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