BEWARE the abuse of the bells!

[Theresa and Doodle Dagny]

16 week old Dagny is FINALLY bell trained (thanks to the cat). For those who, like me, may have been discouraged by all the stories of pups catching on to bell training in a jiffy - I'm dedicating this story to you :)

Just this weekend, after 5 straight weeks of accidents and potty training disappointment and defeat, Dagny is bell trained! It's phenomenal! I honestly never thought we would see the day. I understand that accidents are inevitable over the next several months (after all she is a pup) but for now I am feeling relieved and excited.

However, all those stories of abuse of the bells are absolutely true. For the last 30 minutes, my husband and I have been rotating turns to take her potty because she's been ringing the bells every 1.5-2 minutes. She's not even going potty anymore when we're out. I finally had to kennel her because I was tired of the up and down. It has been nonstop!!

What a happy time and happy break through.

Do not give up my friends!! Your pup will catch on...eventually. Hang in there, and take a break when the abuse of the bells begins to happen to you :)

[Rosemary (Ro) and Enzo]

At least, for us, the abuse of the bells did not last all that long. At the time, it did seem like an eternity....but thankfully, it was only a few short weeks. One of our cats...and I honestly believe there is a very devious mind at work here....loves to ring the bells as well. She is an indoor cat only...so I'm sure she just loves to see us all re-act to the jangling. I swear I hear her snicker each time.
As for the pup....you will soon learn the difference between the " abuse" and the real thing. Oh and congrats to Dagny to getting the " bell thing"! WTG!

[Theresa and Doodle Dagny]

LOL, our cat is a stinker too. Thank you for sharing! Ugh...weeks of this?

[Diane, Hurley and Sidney]

What we did with Hurley when he discovered his the bell can get him attrntion beyond going out to go potty might help.
After he would ring the bell and go potty outside we would go out the next time he rang them as if he had to go. We gave him 3 minutes and if he didn't go potty we brought him back in and ignored the bell ringing until around an hour. Then tespinded following the same process.
Hope that made sense.

[Theresa and Doodle Dagny]

Great advice and encouragement. I'll do it!

[Tracey & Spike]

That's exactly what we did! it works!!! Now that Spike is older and fully trained we ignore his bell abuse. And if he is a real stinker we take the bells down for an hour. He gets the hint that they aren't a toy to be played with. Ringing bells means outside on a leash to do the deed. Not playtime. However my parrot now has a perfect imitation of them. So we hear the ringing all the time. Can't tell which is which anymore!

[Theresa and Doodle Dagny]

LOL - I'm so nervous not to respond to the bells right now...I run to the door when I hear them.  I'm sure she gets a kick out of that whole scene too.  It will probably take us all a few days to calm down, and then I'll begin teaching her that the bells mean business :)  Thank you for sharing!

[Chris & Abby]

Great news about Dagny mastering the bells! I'm laughing at your story because Abby just tortured us with her bell ringing tonight. She finally laid down for a nap. Diane, I'm going to try your technique and see if it helps break the bad habit.

[Theresa and Doodle Dagny]

LOL - they are just too cute!

[Kathryn Clark]

Great stories! Dewey abused his bells once he figured out he would be walking by the fresh cat food dish on the way in and out in the mornings and evenings. He started ringing them all the time in the hopes of grabbing an extra bite. Once we figured that out we moved the cat food. Sly animals!

[Theresa and Doodle Dagny]

Man, they are so smart :)

[Marie and Hoka]

LOL!!! We have had serial bell abusers.  Our dear departed Chinook-mix Torrey figured out if she rang the bell, you would leave your food unattended! She'd ring it, watch you get up and go steal it.

Hoka goes through phases of abuse now at one year old.  He loves the yard. If I know he has been let out sufficiently, I take them down for a few hours in the evening. 

This way, I am not making him think the bells don't work, only that they are missing for periods off time.  Like a do not disturb sign.  I wouldn't do this with a pup not solidly house trained.

[Rosemary (Ro) and Enzo]

I would agree...you are walking a thin line when taking the bells down or ignoring a hit, when teaching a young pup, Sendibg mixed signals. This throws the" consistency" theory out the window. . We use to distract Enzo with a toy or treat. If she went back to the bells and hit them, then she was taken out. If she showed she just wanted to play outside, we came right in.