Teaching a Dog to Ring a Bell to go outside

Today I was being interviewed at a local radio station about dog training. A caller off the air asked me about teaching a dog to let you know that they need to go outside. One way you can do this is to teach the dog to ring a bell. A few years ago, I taught my Akita puppy to ring the bell when she wants to go outside. The way I did it was to first teach my dog to “target” objects. That is, to teach her to touch objects with her nose. I started off with teaching her to simply touch my open hand and rewarding her with a treat when I felt her cold nose on my palm. Once she got the hang of touching my palm, I added a verbal cue such as “touch.” Once your dog learns to “touch” an easy object like your hand for instance, you can move on to teaching her to “touch” objects like a bell hanging on a door. Then, it is a matter of her making the association that every time she touches the bell and the bell actually rings, the door magically opens and she can go outside to play or go to the bathroom. It may take several sessions for the dog to make the connection that touching the bell means that you will open the door. I have woken up in the middle of the night to the ringing of the bell because one of my dogs had to make an “emergency” potty break. The funny thing is that my older dog who was never taught this behavior has picked up on it without any formal training and he also rings the bell when he needs to go outside. The following video demonstrates how to teach a dog to target an object and it also shows one of my dogs ringing a bell to go outside: 

Caveat:  Some smart dogs will start ringing the bell just to go outside and chase the squirrel or play.  In these cases you must pay close attention to the behavior of the dog and her potty schedule.  If I think that she really needs to go I open the door and escort her outside.  If no potty happens, she comes right back inside.   By careful observation, you can tell the difference by the urgency of the behavior.  My dog started doing this and when I put her back inside, if she tried to ring again soon after (and I was pretty sure there she did not need to go to the bathroom, I ignored the ringing).  Eventually the dog will learn that she gets to go outside for potty breaks but will be brought back in or ignored if the ringing is not related to going to the bathroom or if it is repeated or excessive. It requires pretty good observational skills and knowing your dog's typical "I need to pee behavior." So, you can see that there is a downside to this method and you will have to be careful about how you manage this behavior.

Peeing in the Rain

A common complaint from dog owners is that their dog does not like to go outside to pee in the rain. My dogs are the same way.  I open that back door, my dogs take a peek outside, see and smell the wetness and in the house.  So what do I do on rainy days?

Wait for a break or light rain - most dogs don't like to go outside during torrential downpours so wait for a break in the rain or at least when it is a light drizzle.

Misery Loves Company - the simplest solution is to put on my raincoat and boots, leash up my dogs and walk around the neighborhood.  My dogs are willing to go out on a walk in the rain because, well, their walks are a positive experience and walking out in the neighborhood is always fun and exciting for them.  I also believe that dogs are more willing to walk on wet sidewalks than wet grass.  So, while it is not so fun for you to walk out in the rain, I find that this is the easiest way to coax your dog outside.

Put Peeing on Cue - the other thing I did when my dog Kiku was a puppy was to put peeing on cue by teaching her to pee when I said the words "go pee pee."  On rainy days this helps keep your excursions outside short and efficient. Even if your dog is an adult, it is not too late to teach your dog this verbal cue.  So this is how I taught my dog to pee on cue:

1) When you go on a walk, watch for signs that your dog is about to pee.  For female dogs, it is when they begin to squat and for male dogs leg lifting is a good sign.  When you see your dog begin these behaviors, say your cue (e.g. go pee pee, go potty, etc). Some people say "hurry up"  or "go now" but I never liked that phrase because people have a hard time saying it in a positive tone.  It tends to come out anxiety-ridden or impatient

2) When your dog finishes eliminating, say "yes" and reward my dog with a treat.

3) You will need to do this for a few weeks so your dog makes the association between the words, "go pee pee" and the actual act of urinating.

4) After a few weeks, test your dog to see if they understand what the verbal cue means. When you get close to a spot your dog likes to pee at, say the words, "go pee pee," wait 10-15 seconds and see if your dog begins to eliminate.  If your dog eliminates, say "yes" and give a treat. If not, you may need to repeat steps 1-3 for a few more weeks before attempting step 4 again.  Eventually, you will be able to tell your dog "go pee pee" and your dog will know that it is time to go.

The above tips have been tried and true for me however, the following tips may also work for your dog:

Raincoats - some dogs do not like being rained on and a raincoat may help.  

Wee wee pads - on very rare occasions where I had to leave the house for extended periods of time on a rainy day, I may leave a wee wee pad by the back door where they normally exit into the backyard.

Covered balconies and outdoor areas - for apartment and condo dwellers, sometimes it is helpful to teach your dog to go out on a balcony.  Putting wee wee pads or boxes of sod can help encourage the dog to use this as an alternate elimination area but it helps if the dog is introduced to these areas early on when it is not raining.