DIY Project: Dog Door Bell

My little dog was having trouble letting us know when he needed to go outside. Well he wasn't having trouble so much as not bothering to tell us. :-) I thought that if we got him a bell he could ring - then he'd let us know. My husband was convinced it was the dumbest thing he'd ever heard of and didn't want me to spend $10 on buying on. 

So I spent $5 and made one! 

The supplies are minimal - bells, ribbon, thread and keyrings. I threaded the bells onto the key rings. (Hint: don't buy the key rings in the jewelry section - they're more expensive - hunt around the kids area - or just look around your house!)

I didn't quite follow directions and bought ribbon that was wider than 1" - but it was so pretty. I found out later that the wider ribbon didn't fit on the door knob as well. So - hindsight - buy the 1" ribbon. :-)

Our niece was staying with us at the time and said she could sew - so off she went. You sew a few loops into the ribbon and then put the key rings on the loops (full instructions below).

And there you go - a doggie door bell! The ribbon did go over the door knob but the 1" would have "fit better" on the knob handle. 

Here's a closer look at the loop with the sewn area and the bells. We bought fabric glue but it didn't hold at all - so we had to go with sewing. 

So the big question - did puppy use the bell? Well - he did once. I tried training him and maybe if I'd had it right when we got him - he would have picked up on it more. Luckily for us - once we got him fixed - he stopped having accidents in the house. Now - big dog paces and that's when I know they need to go. Oh well - it's a cute door bell - and easy enough to make - no need to spend money on buying one if you're in the market!

DIY Doggie Door Bell

Here’s what you need:

1″ Ribbon 

+ thread to match

6 – metal jingle bells

3 – key rings, 1″ or larger

Instructions

1. Thread two bells on to each key ring.
2. Measure the distance from your door nob to the lowest place you want your bells to hang. Add 12 – 15″ to this measurement.
3. Fold over the bottom edge of the ribbon, creating a 1″ loop and sew it in place.
4. Measure up 6″ and fold another 1″ loop into the ribbon. Sew this loop in place. 
5. Measure up another 6″ and repeat the last step.
6. Use the key ring to thread the bells onto the ribbon.
7. Hold your bells up to the door to double check your length. If desired, you can trim your ribbon shorter.
8. At the end of the ribbon opposite the bells, fold a loop over to hang the bells by. If you have a traditional round door nob, this loop needs to be at least 9″ wide, in order to fit over the nob. If you have a lever handle, then you can make this loop smaller. Sew the loop in place.

 Adapted from Kol's Notes.