bell ringing

[cherylw]

Hi all,
I am new to the board and I am really enjoying reading all the posts. I am intrigued by the bell ringing thing. Just how did you all start this?
Cheryl,Beau,and Scarlett

[Frzframe]

My little bell ringer is a 8 1/2 month old tweenie named Mitzi. I started her with the bell at maybe 6 months by saying "outside" then taking her to her bell and making her touch it with her nose or head to make it ring then I took her out. She caught on real fast and at 1st she would just barely touch it to make it ring but now she puts her whole body into it and makes it ring out loud and clear. But a word of caution if your baby is anything like mine it'll ring the bell to go out all the time or just to get attention she thinks she is missing out on.

~Shonda

PS This isn't a cure all at our house Mitzi still is having accidents (which aren't really accidental because she knows she needs to go outside) in the house. <IMG SRC="http://dachsie.org/ubb/cwmsmilies/cwm13.gif" border=0>

[Oscar's Mom]

We started bell ringing in january, Oscar is 2. I started by trying to show him how to ring the bell by hitting it with his paw and then holding a treat right next to bell so when he went to take it he would ring the bell and I'd say "good bell". I'd try to get him to ring the bell everytime we went out side. He caught on within a couple of weeks. But he doesnt ring the bell every time he has to go out but it is getting better.

[Augie Dog]

**cross post**

Never too young or old to start.
Our bells are 1" Christmas bells. We have them tied to the handle of our sliding glass door just low enough that all he has to do is stand up and bump them with his paws or nose. To teach Augie I rang the bells everytime we went outside. Ring them loud and for about 5 seconds saying pee time, poop time or in my case poopeedoo, it covers both.

It took two weeks of doing this EVERY TIME he goes out. One night it clicked and he has rung the bells every time he wants out.

I have a new rescue now. We are doing the same thing. One week past, he knows the bells but has not rung them himself... yet. It takes time, but it is well worth it!

Good luck!

D S A & B

[cherylw]

I am going to give it a try. I think Beau will get the message pretty quick as he runs to the door at the first mention of "go-side", Now little Scarlett is not as quick on the uptake so she might take a bit longer. She has come so far since we rescued her a little over 6 weeks ago that she may surprise me. Thanks for all your input and I will see how it goes.
Cheryl, Beau, Scarlett

[Kristy]

I started the bells this weekend and Schnitzel (my 8 month old standard) did great. I hung sleigh bells on the door and rang them before I opened it. The very next time Schnitzel had to go out he rang them with his nose. I was so proud of my smart boy. He finally seems to be getting the hang of alerting me to go out. No accidents for 4 days and counting!
I think the keys are: Really getting upset at him when he goes in the house (which is hard when he looks at me with his almond eyes), treating and praising him every time he goes outside, and having a regimented schedule for the times he goes out. <IMG SRC="http://dachsie.org/ubb/cwmsmilies/cwm42.gif" border=0>

[MarissaM]

The bells are wonderful. We have a piece of ribbon with silver bells sewn on it with a loop around the door knob. It stops about 4 inches above the ground.
We began by ringing the bell when we went out and Chloe caught on in about a week. She rings it with her nose. We're working on Fritz, but he'll get it soon enough!