How does your dog let you know they need to go potty?

[sassafras]

Maisy really doesn't. She has a particular spot that she will just park herself in a perfect, full-attention sit and wait for you to notice. In an emergency, she might whine.

Pip whines or just lays there and pants pathetically. For overnight emergencies he will whine or bark to wake us up.

Squash is the most overt. He either stands in The Bark Spot barking or runs back and forth from wherever you are to the back door, barking. He will wake us up overnight barking, too.

 

[Whisper]

Neither of my dogs give crystal clear signs they need to go out (whining, barking, scratching at the door), but Millie is obvious. She demonstrates really excited behavior (play bowing, panting, running in circles) and when I get up she runs to the door and looks at me pointedly.
Fable doesn't really. She sniffs around the area where the door is, but I need to not be staring at the computer screen to notice. Mostly I just let them both out at regular intervals.

I've seen a lot of doorbells for dogs to let you know when they have to go out. Opinions?
The ones that start out with a treat inside the bell to lure the dog into pressing it, I see a problem with Fable. I can clearly imagine the "BING! BING! BING! BING! BING!" behavior expecting treats long after they were fazed out. She's persistent that way.

 

[StillandSilent]

When I started with the bells, they were just jingle bells on a ribbon. I rang them myself every time I took Shaman out, and he picked up ringing them in a few days. I didn't give treats, since going outside was the reward.

We did go through a period where he rang the bells every 5 minutes, but bell ringing earns you a walk to the potty spot and nothing else, so he got bored with that pretty quick

 

[Dagwall]

Jubel will come sit in front of me and stare into my soul, maybe bark or whine if I'm not getting the message. But this isn't exclusive to the 'I need to potty' situations. This can also apply to 'feed me' time, 'it's time for a walk', and the 'I'm bored' times as well. Basically if I'm getting this treatment I factor in what time it is to my response and when was the last time he ate and walked.

Barking and whining usually has more to do with food and walk times. And since someone else mentioned it. If the water bowl is empty he picks it up and carries it into the living room. Helpful when I'm in the living room, not so much when I'm in the kitchen and then have to go retrieve the bowl from the living room to fill it.

 

[Finkie_Mom]

None of mine really do anything except for Jari. If he REALLY has to go he will whine near the door. But I tend to let them out regularly enough anyway that he's only had to do that a handful of times. Kimma if I'm sleeping will whine if it's an emergency - I'm very thankful for that! I'm sure if the others had to go while they were in their crates at night they would make some noise, but I haven't had to worry about that.

 

[*blackrose]

Abrams will go to the door and stare at you. This works because I have a two room apartment. When I'm visiting family I just let him out frequently.

Cynder holds it forever. When she is about ready to explode she'll come up to you, look at you, maybe pace a bit or half get in your lap. Then if you ask her if she needs out she runs to the door like a maniac.

Chloe does the same as Cynder.

 

[maxfox426]

Morgan stands at the back door and noses the handle. I hang a spare collar there so I can hear him poke at it.

But that isn't reliable enough. Because that basically just means, "I want outside." Doesn't matter if it's a need to potty or a desire to just run in circles like a dork.

Stage two of asking to go out is me asking him, "Do you REALLY need to go out?" At which point, he will either just stand there and half-wag (aka: no, I just want to run around like a moron) OR he will go grab a toy and pay me with it (aka: YES! I need to pee!).

 

[Beanie]

When Georgie came here my mom bought some bells to hang on the door. Payton and Georgie will both hit the bells with their nose. Before the bells, P was a fan of the "I'm standing by the door! Here I am! I'm by the door! You know I have to pee right because I'm standing by the door!!"

Auggie throws himself bodily at the door and will bark if it's super urgent because he all of a sudden realized he ABSOLUTELY MUST GO POOP RIGHT NOW. Sometimes he hits the bells by accident since he's violently chucking himself against the door.

Pepper does nothing. She'll just hold it until you let her out.

 

[halblingefrau]

I have a doggy door out to my backyard, so the dogs don't really have to tell me unless I have shut them inside for whatever reason.

Lucy cries and sits by the door. If I don't pay attention, her whine gets higher pitched and louder. She will eventually wee next to the door if I'm in another part of the house and don't hear her.

Angel won't really try to get my attention. She'll pace a bit, but she'll basically hold it until she just can't anymore.

 

[Slick]

I've seen a lot of doorbells for dogs to let you know when they have to go out. Opinions?
The ones that start out with a treat inside the bell to lure the dog into pressing it, I see a problem with Fable. I can clearly imagine the "BING! BING! BING! BING! BING!" behavior expecting treats long after they were fazed out. She's persistent that way.

I mentioned earlier that Leo has only ever alerted with the bell a single time, so take my experience with a grain of salt ;-)

What I've done is attach a hanging bell (I just bought a bird toy, but you might be able to find an actual dog bell made for the purpose) next to the door slightly lower than Leo's nose level. Whenever we go out to potty (but not for walks or other times), I reach down and ring the bell. I also (one time only) smeared some peanut butter on the bell, so that Leo nosed it and made it ring, and got used to the idea that he could make it ring himself. That's it.

The idea is that the dog after a while associates the bell ringing with going outside to potty and will therefore ring the bell themselves when they need to go.

 

[Dizzy]

Bodhi has a bladder of steel and I have to almost force her out for a wee.....

Fred whines and it's very irritating!! But obviously useful

 

[Elrohwen]

I'm not sure Watson has ever asked. We take him out on a schedule, generally 4-5 hours apart (wake up, lunch, dinner, bed time) and he just goes then (and occasionally chooses not to go). Once or twice he has sat at the door to the garage (how we take him outside) but I think he wanted to go for a walk more than a potty break. Haha. He has a bladder of steel in the house, but pees instantly on any vertical surface outdoors, so he's pretty easy.

 

[Saeleofu]

Gavroche very, very rarely tells me he needs to go out. He's simply rather not go out if he can avoid it. To him peeing once a day is more than enough lol. So I tell HIM when he needs to go out, and stand there and tell him to pee so he can come back in. Especially this time of year. On the rare occasion he DOES tell me he needs to go out, that means it's an emergency - and this only ever happens overnight. He'l stand on the bed and stare at me creepily until I wake up and see his manatee lips in front of my face. Usually this happens after he fake-peed his way inside the night before

At home, Logan will first run from me to the door and back, and if that doesn't work, he'll add in barking. When we're out and about, he'll lead me to a grazzy place to pee if we're outside, or give me a quiet whine and lead me towards the exit if we're inside.

 

[smkie]

Neccy..one sound..very soft... mhmmmmmmmm wait. a few minutes later the same. Can also mean their are cats or Pepper in my chair.

Victor a highly aaannoying whine or blantent standing in front of the door wiht anztzy dancy pants.

Pepper. Tongue flicking, ears folding back poop face stare. And when you take her out, and she won't go but starts this as soon as you sit down it can be as bad as any annoying whining.

 

[Gypsydals]

We have one of those magnetic screen doors for the summer. So they come in and out at will during they day. For the times when the inside door is shut.
Peewee just lays by the door and waits till you notice him.
Ivan will nose the door handle, and run back to you then back at the door to repeat if its an emergency(or first thing in the morning). If its just regular, ohh I have to go, he waits until you move then hes up and runs to the door.
Phoebe is too young to tell yet. I have caught her a couple of times going up to the door and nosing it similar to what Ivan does. But shes not super regular at it yet.

 

[Moth]

Menchi likes to stand by the door and stare at it with longing...if it is an emergency she will pace and add Shar Pei whale song to the procedure.

Watson just taps the door with increasing urgency using his paw and paces.

 

[Snark]

I get the stare... even at night, although Riley will shake his head so his ears flap, which usually wakes me up so I'm eyeball to eyeball with him. All of my dogs have been starers (is that a word?)
My parents' english cocker would stand quietly pointing at the wall next to the door, never the door itself. She was a little odd.

 

[~Dixie's_Mom~]

Summer is of the group who believes that staring into your soul desperately is the best way to tell me she needs outside. She will put her front feet up on you and just stare indefinitely. If you tell her to go away she'll come right back and stare. Trey was also one of these.

^This is Chloe.

Violet will sit at the back door and stare at you. If you don't notice, she will whine at the back door. If you still don't notice or you are in a different room, she will take Chloe's method except she will come set her head on your lap, stare straight up at you and whine.

 

[ACooper]

Phoebe used to find me, sit nicely, and do a hard stare until I noticed...lol She had the best bladder/intestinal control of any dog I've seen....if she had an accident, I knew she might need a vet.

Orson, I made the mistake of letting him notify us with a whine....which of course turned into asking for anything that way. "I'm hungry" whine...."I want my toy behind the couch" whine...."I'm bored" whine...ugh. One saving grace is different whines for different things. His "I need to poop" whine is very low and urgent while his "I'm bored" whine is high pitched and annoying so you can tell what needs immediate attention.

With Crowley I didn't want to create a whiner so I made back door bells. Friday morning it's like a light bulb clicked on for him....he's started ringing for potty and hasn't had an accident in 2 days. At the moment, it's very cold here so he rings only when needed lol

 

[smkie]

I hate being stared at. Specially by a certain dog that then will not go when she is out. I have been known to throw a blanket over her head for being stared at relief. After you have been out half a dozen times without success (this only happens when it is really cold) I just can't take it anymore.