Content

• To step
• Part 1 of 3: Establish a routine for your puppy
• Part 2 of 3: Crate training and potty training your puppy
• Part 3 of 3: Training your puppy with the bell
• Warnings
• Tips

When you get a new puppy, house training can be a major problem in your home. You can save time, energy, and stress by teaching your dog to use a bell when he needs to go outside to relieve himself. For best results, combine bell training with a standard schedule and crate training.

To step

Part 1 of 3: Establish a routine for your puppy

1. Understand the importance of a schedule. Your puppy needs to live on a schedule that you determines. By regulating feeding, sleeping, playing and walking, you help him fit comfortably into your life. The routine will give him comfort, and you will have fewer "accidents" along the way to have.
2. Establish a meal routine. Most puppies should be fed four meals a day until they are 12 weeks old. After that, they should be fed 2-3 meals a day until they reach maturity. Feed your puppy the amount recommended on the label. Many labels only list the total amount a dog should eat during a day. You will have to divide those amounts into portions that you feed throughout the day.
   • To allow your puppy to grow well, it is better to feed it at set times than to leave the food on all the time. If he does not finish his food within 15 minutes, remove the container with the remaining food.
   • Very small breeds often develop low blood sugar (hypoglycemia). To keep their sugar levels healthy throughout the day, they should be fed four smaller meals throughout the day.
3. Set an exhaust schedule. After every meal, play session, and nap or nighttime sleep, let the puppy out to relieve himself. He will need a few weeks to adjust to the schedule, so expect accidents at first. However, as the puppy grows up, he will be able to survive longer periods between walks.
   • Puppies 6-8 weeks old should be able to toilet every hour during the day until they are house trained. At night you have to take them out every 2-4 hours.
   • Puppies 8-16 weeks old should be able to keep it on for two hours during the day and four hours at night.
4. Set a regular sleep schedule for your puppy. This also includes a regular bedtime that immediately follows walking out. Even when they are only eight weeks old, puppies will sleep a full eight hours straight at night. However, most will need to get out to urinate at least once a night. Do this 2-4 hours after you put your dog to sleep.
   • It is best to walk the dog every two hours for the first two nights to be on the safe side.
   • Start extending the time between nighttime outlets from every two hours to every four hours over the course of several days or weeks. This will depend on the breed and how much your puppy is sleeping. -- Judge yourself.
   • Daytime naps are important for puppies, but if you let him sleep all day he won't sleep at night!
5. Create a play schedule for your puppy. Playtime is an important part of your puppy's development. During play, he will learn that he is not allowed to bite or scratch, while working out his meals and growing up strong and healthy. It also depletes him, so he doesn't have excessive energy that keeps him awake during scheduled naps or sleep times. A regular playing schedule will keep him on his sleep schedule.
   • Training sessions should be fun enough for the puppy to count as play time.
   • Keep your puppy safe while he plays. Help him avoid things like falling, getting stuck, or eating / chewing things he shouldn't eat / chew on.

Part 2 of 3: Crate training and potty training your puppy

1. Buy a crate for your dog. Crate training is the first step in toilet training. Choose a crate with enough room for your dog to turn around with ease. But it shouldn't have so much space that he can relieve himself in one corner and sleep in the other. If your puppy learns to associate his crate with going to the bathroom, he will not want to go into the crate to lie down or sleep.
   • Expect crate accidents in the first few weeks, even if it is the right size for the puppy. Don't lose your patience though! He is still learning.
   • If your puppy is a larger breed, consider purchasing a crate with adjustable baffles that can be removed as the dog grows.
2. Get your puppy used to the crate. Place the crate in a busy area of ​​the house where people are often present. The living room is a good place for crate training. Leave the crate door open for the puppy to explore at its own pace, and give him a treat each time he enters the crate.
   • After he gets used to the crate, start by closing the door and leaving him in it for extended periods. Put him in the crate at night and at other times when you are not at home or can keep an eye on him.
   • You can move the crate between the rooms, and put it in your bedroom at night, for example. But always make sure it's somewhere your dog feels safe.
3. Determine a regular place to have his needs relieved. Take him to that place every time you go out with him. If he associates relieving with a very fixed place, then the chance of accidents in other places will be less likely. It will also make cleanup easier in the future as you will know where he likes to go.
4. Limit the time your puppy spends outside. Minimize how much time he plays outside during the first 2-4 weeks of potty training. Playing outside with your dog while in the middle of potty training will confuse him about what to do when he goes outside. When he's potty trained, you can start having more playtime with him outside.
5. Encourage your puppy to urinate or defecate on command. Choose a specific word or phrase to use as a command for him to relieve himself. Go pee or go poop are examples. When you go out with him, use the same expression and tone every time he needs to urinate or defecate. If your puppy goes to the bathroom after you give the command, praise him enthusiastically and give him a treat.
   • You can also choose to use a separate command, specifically to encourage your dog to poop. Young puppies need to defecate more often, so it can be helpful to teach a dog a separate command to associate with defecation.
6. Put the puppy in the crate if he doesn't urinate on command. This is not a punishment, but a training tool. If your puppy doesn't urinate within a few minutes of giving the command, put him in his crate for 5-10 minutes. The dog may howl or squeak when you crate it, but don't let it out. It will confuse his learning process.
   • Take him outside again after 5-10 minutes and give the command again.
   • Repeat the process until he attempts to urinate after you give the command.
   • When he finally goes to pee, repeat the command and reward him by praising him and giving him a treat. Then leave him back in the house to play.

Part 3 of 3: Training your puppy with the bell

1. Include the bell in potty training. Hang the bell near the door you use when you walk the dog. It should hang low enough for your puppy to reach it with its paw or nose. Initially use the bell on a single door. You can move the bell or hang more bells at other doors once the puppy understands how the bell system works.
   • Very small breed dogs and very young puppies may not be able to hold it up long enough to reach the door leading out. In that case, you can hang the bell where the dog spends the most time - for example, the living room. You can move the bell to the outside door when the puppy can hold it up a little longer.
   • It helps to keep the dog's living area small for the time until it is properly housetrained. You can use a puppy door and attach a bell to it.
2. Teach your puppy to associate the bell with positive things. If your puppy seems to be concerned about the ringing of the bell, you will need to get them used to the ringing before using the bell as part of the house training. Hold kibble by the bell and sound it when the dog comes to pick up the treat. You can also spread a little cheese or other treat on the bell and, when the dog touches the bell, reward it with an extra treat. Repeat this process until the dog starts to associate the bell with a reward.
3. Teach the puppy how to ring the bell himself. When you go out for the fixed outlet, put it next to the bell. Always open the door immediately after every hint that the bell is ringing, and give it generous praise. There are a few different ways to train your puppy to ring the bell:
   • Without ringing the bell yourself, tap the wall or door next to it with your fingers and say Outside. Your puppy needs to learn to jump up to your fingers, ringing the bell.
   • Hold a treat just behind the bell and say Outside. The puppy's nose will ring the bell when it tries to reach for the treat.
   • Physically take your puppy's paw in your hand, ring the bell and say Outside.
   • Skip the bell training if you are in a hurry to get out because he has to. Only use the bell at fixed outlet times.
4. Be consistent. Your puppy is very smart and has a good sense of cause and effect. Anything he notices for opening the door / prizes / chunks will be seen as a cause of the desired effect. Allowing variation in what your dog experiences before the door opens will confuse him. Make it easy for him to learn what to do to get out. Keep it simple. For example, use only one of the suggested methods from the previous step - don't vary.
5. Once your puppy has learned how to use it, expand the bell usage. You can either move the bell to different doors, or hang a different bell at each outside door. When traveling, take a bell with you so that the dog can use it on the go. For the same reason, give the bell if your dog is staying with someone else while you are traveling. If you need to find a new owner for your dog, let the new owners know that he has been trained to use the bell and encourage them to make a bell available in his new home.

Warnings

• Make sure the bell hangs tight enough so that your dog can't pull it off.
• Make sure the cord on which the bell hangs is not long enough to get around your dog's (or cat's) neck.

Tips

• Use candies wisely. Treats can quickly satiate a small puppy and discourage him from eating his regular meals. And because puppy food is full of important vitamins and minerals, it's more important to their diet than treats. So give your puppy treats appropriate to its size and consider buying smaller treats or breaking treats into small pieces.
• If you live in an apartment, training with the bell can be more challenging as the dog may have to move further to reach an outlet. You can still use the bell training as long as you learn to respond when your puppy really needs to.
• If your puppy is very intelligent or very bored, he may start to ring the bell as a game to go outside for things other than pee. Assess whether your dog's potty training has sunk properly, and whether it is a false alarm, before automatically opening the door.