question: how to make a "" silent "" whistle...

[forrestdweller]

... for dogs

as already mentioned in a few recent posts: currently i'm living together with a dog (local breed of hunting dogs, looks similar to a Beagle). my little munchkin shows great promise as a hunting dog -- she has a super nose, is smart and a 30+km jungle walk at 8month old == no problem. however... discipline isn't her strong point so far (she's just one year, so basically still a big puppy and in training); we just returned from our daily beach trip when we had to incidents where she took off on her own , all my calling and whistling being ignored. as i don't like to shout and whistle (==to avoid attention from hominids/ to alert wildlife to my presence) i'm planning to train her to "silent" whistles.

has anyone made one?! (i've made "normal" whistles from timber, bamboo, antler, crocodile bone etc. so i know how to do that already)

thanks!

 

[Broch]

1st - most of the whistles I have ever made have been silent - as in they didn't work

2nd - my experience of beagles, or any 'hounds' for that matter, is that they are untrainable to the whistle - they are bred to run. If you want a dog that responds well to the whistle you should get a gun dog. OK, this is where I admit my experience is limited to training British dogs - retrievers, spaniels etc. (and regrettable experiences with beagles and hounds). I don't think it's for nothing that a thousand years+ of using hounds in the UK has resulted in the use of the very load horn

 

[bobnewboy]

It’s not too hard to make a whistle that works, the problem for one which operates at high frequencies is of knowing its working

The pitch of the whistle is related to the length of the tuned cavity, same as any organ pipe - the shorter the pipe, the higher the pitch. For a pitch above the usual limits of human hearing - which diminishes with age and hearing health anyway - you will need either a very clear indication from your dog that it’s working, or some other way of testing it, perhaps electronic.

Cheers, Bob

 

[forrestdweller]

It’s not too hard to make a whistle that works, the problem for one which operates at high frequencies is of knowing its working

The pitch of the whistle is related to the length of the tuned cavity, same as any organ pipe - the shorter the pipe, the higher the pitch. For a pitch above the usual limits of human hearing - which diminishes with age and hearing health anyway - you will need either a very clear indication from your dog that it’s working, or some other way of testing it, perhaps electronic.

Cheers, Bob

judging from my little munchkin's reaction my signal whistle isn't working... (it makes my ears ring...)

guess i'll be making a whistle with a short pipe which i can almost not hear and try to train her to that (so far it's a 50/50 success rate when I whistle -- today she took off across a road without responding in any way, hence me posting this question...)

 

[forrestdweller]

1st - most of the whistles I have ever made have been silent - as in they didn't work

2nd - my experience of beagles, or any 'hounds' for that matter, is that they are untrainable to the whistle - they are bred to run. If you want a dog that responds well to the whistle you should get a gun dog. OK, this is where I admit my experience is limited to training British dogs - retrievers, spaniels etc. (and regrettable experiences with beagles and hounds). I don't think it's for nothing that a thousand years+ of using hounds in the UK has resulted in the use of the very load horn

i've no idea what the breed is called -- the local name just translates as "" hunting dog" in english and there's only one type of hunting dog around here which the locals use (for hunting)... .Olli (who's named after a good friend in Korea (who happens to be a korean horse) was a gift from friends and has been my sole companion for 8months from the age of six weeks onwards... she has been great company on many jungle trips and almost got hit by an 18" widow maker when she was about 5 month old...
even if she's not always paying attention i'm very fond of her...

 

[santaman2000]

I wish you the best of luck but to be honest she should have been trained to this much, much younger. Whatever signal you use I recommend that you sound it every time you feed her or do anything else she deems pleasant. Soon enough she’ll associate it with the pleasurable activity and come to it. Much like Pablov’s dogs.

 

[forrestdweller]

i don't claim to be a dog expert, so there's some learning involved for me.. i've been training her since she was old enough to go for walks with me (first on a dirt road, later on short jungle trips) -- giving her a belly scratch(she really likes them) when she reacted to me whistling for her or calling her. about 95% of the time she pays attention but occasionally there's something more interest in than me (and today was one of those days...). incorporating whistling when feeding sounds like a good idea so i'm going to include that into her training.

 

[santaman2000]

. ........about 95% of the time she pays attention but occasionally there's something more interest in than me (and today was one of those days...).......l.

LOL. That’s the hound in her. Sounds like her breed was developed to be somewhat independent. Be patient; you’ll get there.

 

[Dogoak]

Sound advice from Santaman.
Do you give a reward when she comes? One trick I found was to find the dogs absolute favourite, for one of my past rotties it was cheese, other treats and nibbles it was a hit and miss affair but he'd do anything for a piece of cheddar. A collie that I had took me awhile to suss out, food wasn't a great enticer but the reward he loved was pure affection.
Your always going to be battling with instincts! Good luck.

 

[Janne]

Pavlo’s dogs, not Pablo’s!

He was Russian, not Mexican!

(Just joking, b is next door to v..)

If you do not want to use whistle, you can use something else, like one of those old fashioned ‘clickers’

 

[santaman2000]

True Janne. We both misspelled it. I replaced a V with a B. You left th second V out with no replacement: Pavlov, with a v on the end.

 

[santaman2000]

I’d also add one other training tip: on the occasions when she doesn’t come to you don’t let your frustration show. Chastising her on those few occasions can undo all the positive reenforcement from the other sessions. The goal is to get her to always WANT to come to you.

 

[Janne]

When we trained our dogs, we figured out the best reward. Food for both. A through scratch on the stomach for the bitch, and a thorough scratch behind one ear for the dog.

But I agree, it is quite late, will be more difficult, but it will work!

 

[Woody girl]

Maybe a lead would be a good idea when near roads or areas where there might be a problem. ? You can get extending leads so that she can feel free but you can press a button to lock the lead or rewind it automatically. That way you have some measure of control untill she is totaly trained up.
I appreciate you may not want to put her on a lead but if her safety is at risk in any way I would not hesitate to use one myself.
I've had many dogs of all ages and breeds. They were all a steep learning curve! Some I never got trained up to my satisfaction but then most were rescue dogs so had issues. The worst was an 8 yr old jack Russel that had to wear a muzzle whenever he went out. He would go for any dog and also any man. He was testing to say the least! But I managed to get him to go out (always on a lead mind) without the muzzle and ignore other dogs and humans. It took almost six months of heart stopping moments everytime we went out though!
Once he got the idea he was fine.. but I still kept him leashed and controlled as I could not afford any court cases.

 

[Dogoak]

Ha, Woodygirl beat me to it, a lead!
My present hound, due to his background, had issues with me putting the lead on once he'd come back. 4 months of lead walking only sorted it out, he had to learn to trust me.
A note to all, not all dogs in rescues have issues, sadly quite a common misconception, they're are plenty that are quite normal

Good luck Forestdweller, perseverance and patience, hopefully, will reward you.

 

[Woody girl]

No, not all recues have issues true. Just that I always took the unwanted problem dogs. Mad dog lover that I am.! Couldn't bear they might be put down just because they'd had a bad time and didn't know the rules.

 

[forrestdweller]

up in the jungle i didn't need a lead but since i temporarily moved to town i had to train her to walk on one. our walk to the beach takes us first down the road, then along a barely used railway everyone used as a shortcut -- over there i take the leash of as it's easier and normally she stays close to me and putting her back on her lead when we reach the road again is no issue. on our last walk she caught the scent of something interesting and took off, no calling and whistling helped.... fortunately100m further she stopped long enough for me to catch up.(lesson learned- no more freedom until we reach the beach )

thanks for the advice from everyone! despite the occasional moment of misbehaviour Olli is an incredible dog who has brought a lot of happiness into my life so i want to make sure she's a happy dog, too

 

[Woody girl]

Dogs are a joy. Much more so than humans sometimes!
You sound totaly smitten with your little four legged bundle of fur.
I wish I still had a dog but I have so many to hug cuddle and fuss on my toddle and totter into the town it's like having several of my own. I always have doggie treats in my pocket. I know all the dogs names... but havnt a clue what the owners are called.
Had a moment of joy today when "Charlie" actually sniffed my hand and allowed me to tickle his ears today. It's taken four months to gain his trust. A terribly nervous rescue dog. Took his first treat off me today aswell. We will be friends yet.
It breaks my heart to see a dog so scared of humans.
Can you get the sort of leash I was on about where you are? They are so handy both for heel control and "long lining "

 

[santaman2000]

Dogs are a joy. Much more so than humans sometimes!
You sound totaly smitten with your little four legged bundle of fur.
I wish I still had a dog but I have so many to hug cuddle and fuss on my toddle and totter into the town it's like having several of my own. I always have doggie treats in my pocket. I know all the dogs names... but havnt a clue what the owners are called.
Had a moment of joy today when "Charlie" actually sniffed my hand and allowed me to tickle his ears today. It's taken four months to gain his trust. A terribly nervous rescue dog. Took his first treat off me today aswell. We will be friends yet.
It breaks my heart to see a dog so scared of humans.
Can you get the sort of leash I was on about where you are? They are so handy both for heel control and "long lining "

I (we actually) still have three dogs at the moment. Mine is almost 15 years old and showing her age. I dread the when the day comes I’ll have to put her down (it never gets easier) and Barbara has the other two, one of which is also an older dog. Do I want another when these are gone? Of course; but I’m at an age I really can’t bear the thought of getting a puppy and outliving it.

 

[Janne]

I assume the silent whistles operate with a Hertz above the human hesring, so above 20 K.
To be frank I think it would be very difficult to make one.

I do not know much about instruments, but the vibrating bit must be very thin?