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Originally Posted by yorkieusa  You could try hanging bells on a ribbon from the door knob and trying to teach her to use them. They're smart and learn quickly. If you catch her having an "accident," say the same thing every time it happens. Like, I would say "Uh-oh" and "No!" Then I'd take her to the door and ring the bells with HER nose and say, "Wanna go potty?" Out we'd go and stay until she did. After she went, I'd get super excited and praise her royally, "Good girl! Good girls get cheese!" Then we'd go in and she'd get a little piece of cheese. Consistency is important. Say the same things each and every time. Saying uh-oh can become an important trigger for them when they have an accident. To this day, mine will jerk her head around if I say uh-oh about something else. Mine caught on quickly, but she was a puppy, too. Hope this helps some. The antibiotics could be causing part of your trouble. |
IMO, bells won't help you potty train, but they will make it easier for her to tell you she needs to go out later, especially if she doesn't just naturally bark at the door or scratch or whatever. That being said, it's also my opinion that bells should be saved for AFTER a dog is potty trained (and so be a separate training)....unless of course you have a LOT of time on your hands and don't mind going out every 3 seconds, literally! Remember, if you're using bells, you HAVE to take them out EVERY TIME they ring the bells on their own. And if you're potty training at the same time, that means every time they start to have an accident or seem like they need to go PLUS every time they ring the bells!!! That got old REALLY fast for us!
Also, the advice about going out and staying out until they go isn't reasonable really. IMO, that will seriously encourage what I call a "fun times" pottier. Meaning, "I love to go outside, and if I take my sweet, sweet time, we'll stay out longer!!
If I potty right away, I have to go back in
Soooo, I'm going to play and play and only potty when I'm done playing!" (hehe, couldn't resist the commentary
) My advice would be, plan on going out for 5 min or so at a time, and if she doesn't go in that amount of time, go right back in. [Note: You'll end up going out more at first (because she'll still have to go) until she "gets it", but it WILL pay off!!]
Lots of praise is GREAT!!!! And treats are a good idea IMO too (although cheese might not be such a great idea...to much cheese will block a girl up
). Make sure you have tiny treats (or break up into tiny pieces) AND that they're a good quality treat. We were treating sooo much during training that I worried about nutrition, but as long as you're using a nutritious treat that will help! Personally, I like Little Stars treats by Wet Noses (I get them here:
Little Stars Tiny Treats by Wet Noses from Golly Gear BUT I saw them on the shelf in another town in their "mill and feed" shop.) They a teeny tiny and the PERFECT size for training! Use whatever works for you
