We both know how annoying it can be when your little canine relieves herself in your living room. The good news is that you can now train your dog to go out whenever she wants to potty, thanks to dog bells.

However, there are a bunch of mistakes that dog owners make during dog bell training, which may lower the effectiveness of the training.

That’s why you should learn some of the dos and don’ts of dog bell training if you want the most out of the dog bells.

Table Of Contents

Dog Bell Training Dos

By the end of your dog bell training sessions, you obviously expect your dog to ring the dog bell whenever she wants to go potting outside.

If she rings for other reasons, it means the training was unsuccessful. And since you want absolute success, look at what you should do for effective dog bell training.

1. Use Specific Commands

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Just like humans, dogs can respond to particular commands if they understand them.

In dog bell training, you should start by asking your dog to touch the bell before any further steps. Words such as “touch,” “bell,” and “potty” are perfect for introducing your dog to the bell.

If you don’t use commands, your dog may get confused about what she is supposed to do with a suspended bell.

2. Take Breaks During The Training

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According to research, an average dog has an attention span of about 15 minutes. This may vary depending on the dog breed, age, and health condition.

That said, you should limit your dog bell training exercises to 15 minutes at most, with puppies having less training time.

Anything longer than that will render your little pet tired, restless, and resistant, which is bad for training.

On the other hand, breaks can help your dog regain her energy and become more attentive and more comfortable to control.

3. Follow Three Effective Processes

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First, your dog needs to know about the bell, and that’s where the touching step comes in. Once she knows how to ring the bell at a command, hang it on the doorknob and let her touch it again.

After that, the last step is to open the door at every ring. These three steps form the starter pack for dog bell training your dog.

4. Reward Your Dog For Mastering Each Process

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In general, rewarding your dog after a job well done is the best way to show her that she’s doing great.

This is a great motivator, and within no time, she will have mastered all the aspects of ringing the bell and going outside to potty.

To make her enthusiastic about the training, offer a treat, or congratulate her whenever she completes a required step successfully.

5. Be Patient

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Usually, dog training seems like a tough job, mainly because most dog owners are impatient. Your dog won’t learn as fast as you can (well, this depends on whether you can learn quickly).

Even though some dog breeds like poodles are generally intelligent and highly obedient, you may need a little patience to dog bell-train them.

Patience will enable you to take it easy, even when your dog performs poorly after the training.

6. Bell-Train Your Dog For Pottying Only

(Click Here To Learn More About Dog Doorbells For Potty Training)

At first, your dog will think that ringing the bell means going outside for whatever reason. However, train your dog to know that the bell is only for pottying.

You can do this by opening the door without her ringing the bell during playing time.

Dog Bell Training Don’ts

Human is to error, and so is any dog handler that doesn’t have a clear picture of how to dog bell train a dog. These are some of the don’ts when it comes to training your canine on how to ring the bell.

1. Don’t Yell At Your Dog

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Yelling has never made anyone happy, not a dog, not a human.

Therefore, avoid yelling no matter how frustrated you feel, as this will only make your pet fearful and rebellious to the training.

The secret is to be patient, knowing clearly that training won’t happen overnight, and that your innocent dog just needs some more time.

2. Don’t Stop Rewarding

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Treats are a perfect motivation for your dog if you want her to keep following commands, at least in the initial training stages.

They are still crucial in the last step of dog bell training your dog, which involves ringing the bell and going out.

Most dog handlers ignore treats in this step, but you shouldn’t unless your dog has fully mastered the art and is already motivated to keep doing it.

3. Don’t Start With Loud Bells

Typically, the way the noise from your vacuum cleaner irritates you is the same way your dog feels when loud bells ring.

In worst cases, your dog may experience noise phobia and become overly anxious.

And since your objective is to dog bell train your dog without scaring it away, start with much quiet bells that will give your dog the confidence that everything is just fine.

With time, you can increase the loudness bit by bit – you also want to be able to hear the bell ring from your bedroom, right?

Just make sure the bell isn’t loud enough to throw your pet into a state of panic.

4. Don’t Force Your Dog

Any kind of dog training should be voluntary. You may be disappointed if your dog completely ignores the bell when you introduce her to it.

This may tempt you to try and force her towards the bell, especially if your neighbor’s dog accepted the bell at first sight.

Whatever happens, don’t shove anything down her throat. Be patient, and with time, your dog will come around and start playing with the bell.

That’s when you should grab the opportunity and teach her how to ring the bell.

Final Thoughts

Dog bell training is a crucial step in potty-training your dog.

It may be easy to make mistakes that will affect the whole training process, but be careful and take note of the dos and don’ts of dog bell training.