Bell Training

I realize this post is a repeat of one at Old Mill Doodle Blog, it’s so helpful that I thought it was worth repeating.

This training method is used in conjunction with a crate. Until your dog is reliably housebroken, any time your dog is not being supervised, he/she should be in a crate or on a leash by your side.

Training your pet with bells relies on consistency. Training time depends on your effort with your pet. No dog is too old to learn this behavior. This system is based on the great psychologist Ivan Pavlov’s discovery, that one form of learning is a result of repeated stimulus. By ringing the bell each and every time the dog is to go outside (creating a stimulus), the resulting action will be the reward of being able to go outside. Your pet will learn to associate the stimulus of the bells with the ability to go outside.

Step One:

Hang a large bell on the inside of the door(s) that your pet typically exits your house from. Your bell should hang approximately 25 inches down the inside of your door. Your dog only needs to nudge any part of the string to ring the bell. Your Bells should stay on the door (or on a small hook next to the door) at all times so that your pet can access whenever he/she needs to.

Step Two:

Each time you take your pooch outside for a walk, or outside for any reason; state a simple command phrase, we suggest “Outside…Ring the Bells”. Get your family involved! All members of your household should be consistent and use the same wording and actions with your pet.

Step Three:

After stating your command phrase, tap the bell with the dog’s paw. The dog should see AND hear the bells.

Step Four:

After ringing the bells and saying the command phrase, follow through with praise to your pet and allow him to go outside. (You should not reward your dog with a food treat, as the reward of going outside and praise from his favorite person is reward enough. In addition, your dog will then associate treats with ringing the bell rather than going outside.)

DO THIS EACH TIME YOUR PET IS TO GO OUTSIDE. CONSISTENCY IS KEY!

It’s very important to keep the puppy in the vicinity of the bells until he/she is trained.

Listen for the bells. You will start hearing them ring. You may be in a different room while your pet is ringing the bells…..go let him/her out!