Ding Dong!
Open (the) Door Policy
On the lighter side, a trick that helps both 2-and 4-legged family members
Now there’s a thought . . .
What if simply ringing a bell, or in Arty’s case learning to DING the bell, would open the door? How nice it would be for Arty to let me know he wants to go outside. He would know when he sounds that DING, the door would “magically” open and he’d be free to run outside. There would be no guesswork, no wondering. Arty would know when we heard that bell, we would open the door - a positive, predictable response. The same goes for us. When opportunity knocks, or in this case, when the doorbell rings, think about the blessings of opening your door and welcoming others into your home this holiday season.
You want me to touch THAT?
Arty had a little bit of a challenge with actually having to TOUCH the bell.
Arty enjoys the sunshine so we began our training outside. We want to show the progression of learning to ding the “butler bell”. 🛎️This gives your pup a clear & fun way to ask to go outside.
He already knows how to ring the jingle bells hanging at the door, which you can see below in the third video. However, another great way to ask to go outside is to use a “butler bell”🛎️ At first he did very well. Then he got frustrated and didn’t like touching the bell with his nose - or his toes! Over time and with practice, Arty got the hang of making the bell DING. We worked on it a little more outside till he regularly sounded that ding!
To accomplish this trick, it’s helpful for the pup to know “touch”. Arty knows the word “foot” as well, and I use that word to have him untangle his legs from the leash, or to place his foot on a stool (see this blog post for a good example of using the word “foot” for teaching a trick). Another great idea is to place a treat under the bell🛎️and when they touch/move the bell looking for the treat, the reward is right there! Practice having your pup touch the bell, whether with nose or toes. Be patient and only reward when they touch it, and/or when it makes a sound. At first, it doesn’t have to DING. Sometimes it is scary to just touch it, so also reward a touch.
Once we were successful outside, we went inside. After all, this would be the end goal: DING the bell inside the house to go outside. The video inside the house shows his preference to ringing the hanging bell versus DINGING the 🛎️— TRAINER ERROR -I forgot to remove the hanging bell before asking him to ding the butler bell. He was pretty committed to NOT using the butler bell. I then removed the hanging bell so there would be no more confusion. Sometimes we give confusing messages too. Mistakes are made. So just as in training Arty, another really important thought when learning something new - allow for mistakes! And when mistakes are made, laugh it off and try again!
*Training Tip When training your pup, always have more time than the pup, allowing time for letting the pup think and try. It may take a while, and you may need to help your pup to touch it. Maybe hold the treat really close to the bell, or guide their paw to touch it. Be careful not to be too pushy in your training. Your pup may be timid or fearful. Give them some time with it. But once they get the connection of the 🛎️to the treat, they will readily DING it! And even if they don’t DING the bell, you can DING the bell and quickly open the door for them to go outside. That way, the pup associates the DING with OPEN DOOR. Once they learn this, then give this trick a name. After a while, Arty just goes over to DING the bell when he wants to go outside, no words need to be spoken.
As soon as Arty made the bell DING, I quickly opened the door. That open door was his reward! The closer the reward to the desired behavior, the bigger impact it makes in their mind, making it easier for them to learn. Arty learned a fundamental truth: a clear message removes guesswork and gains the reward. DING the bell, and the DOOR OPENS! So when we hear the doorbell, we know exactly what to do. No guesswork. No wondering.
That simple exchange - a clear request and an immediate and welcoming response - works both ways. The DING opens the door, no matter what side you’re on.
This holiday season, let’s have an Open Door Policy and practice the same simple clarity. Remove the guesswork for yourself and your community. If you are struggling and need a friend, ring the metaphorical doorbell and give a clear signal. And when the doorbell rings, be ready to offer the same clear reward: an immediate, welcoming open door.
Take it from Arty ~
An Open Door Policy is the best!
