House Training a Dog

Find a bell. Use a light-weight bell. (You want to make sure you don't use something too heavy, like a cow bell.)

Remember to choose the right size for your dog. (A dachshund needs a smaller bell than a Labrador retriever.)

Hang the bell from a door knob ...it should be within easy reach of your dog's nose.

(Don't forget that what exactly nose level is is going to be different for different breeds.)

Every time before you take the dog out, say "Outside? Do you want to go outside?"

Now, go out through the door, and manipulate the string so that the dog can't help but bump into it and make it ring.

(You might need to shake the bell a bit so the dog can hear it ring.)

All you have to do is repeat these steps for a couple days.

What will eventually happen is that your dog will start to associate the sound of the bell with going outside.

When the dog is not watching you, place a little peanut butter or soft cheese on the bell.

Now simply wait and watch.

There are a couple of things that could happen ...and both are behaviors you're looking for!

Some dogs immediately smell the peanut butter, go to the bell, and ring it...Perfect! Say "Outside?" ...Now you want to open the door, lead your dog to the potty area, and tell her to "go potty."

Reward the dog when she potties with praise and a small food treat.

Some dogs and a little extra incentive to go and find the bell. %u2028If that happens to you try this: %u2028Hold the bell close to the dog's nose so the dog smells the peanut butter, licks it, and rings the bell.

You can help your dog by shaking the bell so that it makes a sound, if your dog's touch is too light to make it actually ring.) As the bell rings, in a happy voice say "Outside?" ... Okay, now open the door, take your dog right to the potty area, and tell her to "go potty."

While the dog is pottying, softly repeat saying "go potty." Then, you should reward your dog with a treat and praise.

When the dog rings the bell without a problem, without help from you, you should ask him "Outside?"...and now it's time to wait patiently by the door until your dog figures out what you want and rings the bell.

Next, it's time to take the dog outside to go to the bathroom.

Knowing proper strategies for house training a dog is good for dogs of all ages! %u2028It's easy to forget that senior dogs often need more frequent bathroom trips due to bladder problems. ...However, the bell reminds us.

Rescue dogs, for example, find it fairly easy to pick up on the difference between an acceptable inside behavior and an acceptable outside behavior because they may have never lived inside of a house before.

Any dog that lives in a house without a doggy door will keep your home accident-free when they learn how to ring a bell. I love to use this trick whenever I'm traveling with my dog as well.

Simply bring the bell with you the next time you go away and attach it to the door of your room. ...you can forget about having to worry about accidents!