Can I send my gun dog left and right on just the whistle?

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Can I send my gun dog left and right just on the whistle?

It pays in the long run to train your dog to turn to both whistle and hand signals.

By Gun dog training

Wednesday, 08 July 2009

Can I get my gun dog to go left and right simply on the training whistle without hand signals?

Gun dog training expert
PETER BLATCH
Yes, in fact it’s pretty much standard practice among handlers to train their dog to respond to whistle commands.

And it makes sense to do so because there will be times in the field when you can see the dog working, but he can’t see you clearly.

In situations like this, hand signals are pretty much useless and the only way to turn - or control - the dog is by whistle.

In early training however, I use hand signals and the whistle in unison because this helps get the directional element of the lesson across more quickly, and easily.

It’s also important to have your dog understand hand signals because there will be times when you need to direct him onto a retrieve that’s fallen a lot farther out, or to one side or the other.

So far as the whistle’s concerned the procedure is to use two peeps to turn the dog, one long blast to stop it and repeated peeps to bring it back to you.

If you want to be different you can use two whistle peeps for left and three peeps for right, but the ‘two peep’ procedure is almost always sufficient and certainly a lot less confusing - if not for the dog then certainly the handler!

You can take your pick of whistle but once you’ve trained a dog to it, don’t change it.

Some people prefer silent whistles but most professionals stick to the standard 211½ or 210 Acme because they are reliable, cheap and consistent in tone.