How to Teach a Dog to Be Housebroken Using a Bell

Dogs are essentially clean animals that do not like soiling their dens. Given the opportunity to eliminate outside, they will readily do so. Unfortunately, dogs lack the ability to ask to be let outside when they need to "go." When they signals by whining, barking or scratching at the door, they are often told that they are "bad." The bell is a simple tool that offers your dog a dedicated cue that means one thing: going outside to go to the bathroom. It is a simple task to add ringing the bell to the housebreaking task.

Things You'll Need

  • Bell on long ribbon or strip of jingle bells
  • Collar
  • Leash
  • Clicker (optional)
  • Training treats
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Instructions

    • 1

      Hang your bell next to the door you go through to take your dog outside to potty. Keep the door closed to prevent your dog from being confused. Ringing the bell should be the only thing that opens the door for your dog.

    • 2

      Put your dog on a leash each time you bring it out to go to the bathroom. Bring your dog outside frequently when housebreaking. At the very least it should go out immediately after being let out of its crate in the mornings, a half an hour after each meal, immediately after energetic play and shortly before bedtime.

    • 3

      Use your dog's paw to ring the bells every time you take it outside through that door. Add a command such as "potty" or "go out" to the action, if you would like, by giving your command each time the bells ring. Neither the action nor the command means anything to your dog yet, but your dog should soon start to associate the sound of the bells with elimination.

    • 4

      Take your dog to its assigned potty spot.

    • 5

      Wait for your dog to eliminate. If you have a clicker, click it once when your dog is finished and give it a treat. Give your dog a treat as quickly as possible after it has finished eliminating.