Potty training going well - the use of the bells not so much!

[Gracie, Jade, & Barkley]

Jade who is 9 weeks is doing well with her potty training (and a hope I don't jinx myself by saying this).

She goes into the utility room or will scrape at the sliding door. We always go out the utility room door and the bells are hanging right by the leash - which is what we use every time we have to go out. I put them there because Gracie would always nose the leash when she wanted to go out and because the door just doesn't have any good place to put them by without hanging them directly on the handle. Gracie silently stares at us from the hallway entrance that goes into the utility room. Gracie was also a last min warning, which meant get her out now! She frequently peed in the garage before we could get her all of the way out.

Jade is so much different, she is a lolligagger. Lol. She doesn't have to hurry, but if she tells me she needs to go out vs me just taking her, then she squats almost immediately once we get to the spot which I'm very grateful for.

So, the potty bells - I nudge Jade's nose or swipe her paw or ring them myself right before we go out. She has really shown no interest in them. We've had her for two weeks. The only time I don't do it is the early morning visits when we should all be sleeping!

What else should I do? Or do some dogs just not need the potty bells?
It would be great for Gracie to use them as well because of where the door is in accordance to where our living room is (all the way down the hall!) She learns well with the click and treat method - so maybe I should do that to teach her to use the bells, should I also do it with Jade?

[Tara Daukas]

I have nothing to add other then I must suck haha!! Rosie is 10 wks and I feel like we haven't gotten anywhere at all! Are you using treats? I'm just using the praise method... which clearly isn't working lol. We have bells too and she just thinks it's a really cool toy :) 

[Gracie, Jade, & Barkley]

I am giving her one zukes mini training treat after she eliminates. As soon as her butt comes up, I am saying yes and then treating just one.
I did just find one tiny little piddle in front of Gracie's crate this morning, which obviously came from Jade, but I let Jade out, then got Gracie out, and I bet she was just excited as it was first thing in the morning. I usually let Gracie out first, then Jade. Lol
The other day when I had to take her to the vet, I didn't feed her her mid morning meal to prevent vomiting (which didn't work), and she kept wanting to go out to get a treat. lol. Trying to work the system already. ;)
I didn't treat Gracie except a few times so maybe that hindered her a bit, I don't know. But, literally Gracie had to go out every 15 - 20 min. And was not reliable until she was 6 months old except she always pooed outside. Gracie was very rambunctious and Jade isn't as rambunctious. My hubby says to wait. Lol

[Missy]

I am a lover of the bell training!  but others have great success without bells too.

it took our pup weeks before he rang the bell.  But, everytime we went to potty, I would take his paw and ring the bell and then leash him up and out the door we went. 

Sometimes, he would sit there and roll his eyes when I rang the bells with his paws!

Move forward until he was about 13 weeks of age and experiencing some longer times in between potty breaks and a little more freedom in the downstairs, and he went over and rang the bells with his nose! 

I dropped what I was doing and took him outside!! and he pottied! It was a glorious day.

Then I spent my summer outside as the dog knew bells equaled outside time.  I went outside every time he rang the bell at first, then I learned that he thought it was play time every time.  So, if I was not ready to play, I still went outside on a leash, gave him time to potty, then it was back inside.

I found this still to be helpful as I travel all year long.  And I take my bells with me.  I hang them at any house or hotel, and he still uses them to let me know!

He will even ring them to let me know when kids are bothering him.

Yes, there are times where he really rings them and I take them off the door and put on the floor, and he even goes over to them on the floor and pushes them around.  But he and I have come to an understanding of knowing when we are battling the mind on playtime vs potty time outside. lol

we are almost 3 years now and we still use the bells!

[Gracie, Jade, & Barkley]

I figured it might take her awhile, but she's already figured out how to bark to go out too. She stands at the back door and barks one time. Just started that today! But, I don't want the bells to turn into some kind of game. Lol. I guess I would just put her in her crate if she asked to go out, but didn't need to - as that is what I would do without the bells. I don't make Gracie go to her crate anymore when she does the fake call of nature, but I would if she was still learning. Usually Gracie does it to her dad, because she wants him to take her out to play or to go for a ride.

[Jessica, Loki and Moose]

Loki was afraid of the potty bells and Moose just tried to eat them so they did not work for us. Something you could try, I put a small mat in front of the door that I have them sit on before we open the door and now if they need to go out they sit on the mat. Hopefully the bells work for you!

[Gracie, Jade, & Barkley]

We, have a runner in front of the door. I like the idea of the bells so that I can hear them when I'm in another room. But. today Ms. Jade also started a bark when she needed to go out. So, I might not need it. And, I really don't want it to become some sort of game of I want to go out! Gracie does something similar with her leash and her dad. Lol

[Linda, Charlie Brown and Beau]

Beau loved loved loved the bells.  He used them to go potty and then would come back in and swing on them.  He went through two sets in 6 months. Actually it was rather comical!  The third set was leather, and I kept them in the drawer for about a month and then when I put them back on the door, he was a little more mature and just used them to go out to potty. When he rings them, you can hear them all over the house. Charlie just barely nudges the bells with his little nose.  My breeder told me half of her dogs like the bells, the others either bark or use their paw.  So apparently bells are not for every dog.

[Gracie, Jade, & Barkley]

Swinging on the bells. Now that puts a hilarious image in my head! :D

[Linda, Charlie Brown and Beau]

Beau is 3 now and he still grabs the bells like they are a bone and rings them loudly like every pit stop is an emergency! LOL

[Gracie, Jade, & Barkley]

:-D

[Kaitee and Orwell]

I don't think every dog needs the bells. My yellow lab used to just stand by the door and whine. Orwell does not know how to do that. The only thing he has ever known is the bells because I started that right away. While he was at the vet the past few days, he didn't go potty very often and when he did, he went a lot because he doesn't know how else to ask. He was a good boy and held it, though, lol. :P

If she is doing good, I wouldn't worry too much.

[Gracie, Jade, & Barkley]

Yeah, I read that about Orwell.
She started barking at the back door today - it's a sliding door so she can see outside. I'm not too worried, but it could be convenient. Gracie just stands in the hallway and stares at us. Or she gets really frisky and chews on us. I should have gotten them when Gracie was training!