recall question.

Can I use a whistle and verbal Queue for recall?

Pros and Cons of just verbal and just whistle. We backpack a lot and the dog may be loose so I am thinking whistle but I may not have it all the time so I was thinking both. I do have a electric collar I can use vibrate as well.

Thoughts.

If a dog is so far away that it can't hear you yell it's too far away.

That said, there's no reason not to teach both and most dogs learn a second cue for the same action very quickly.

that is what I was thinking. Just wanted to make sure. I will need to figure out which one to do first... but thanks

Dogs can easily be taught to come with verbal commands and a whistle.

I use a simple "here" when I call them to be near me within a few feet.

A "Front" command brings them in to a formal sit front position for competition.

A whistle when, as Cathy mentioned, they are to far away to hear a verbal command.

The exact words be they "here", "come", "front" whatever are not important as long as you use them with the consistency they are trained for. Formal or just get over here.

Something else to consider might be a visual cue. In my case, when I'm working with my dog over long distances and a verbal isn't practical, my recall hand signal is to spread my arms out straight. It's a welcoming gesture anyway and she can easily see it from far away. I'm a terrible whistler and I don't carry a whistle so the verbal works great. In all cases, though, I never let her get so far away that she can't see or hear my commands. That said, this is all assuming that your dog is trained to look back at your for commands when working off leash. That's a must. Otherwise, she shouldn't be off leash.

Utility hand signals were a god send when my AKC OB competition Kerry Blue went deaf in his old age.

I'm with Bob on this. All of my dogs have two whistle recalls (my whistle and a mechanical whistle), plus multiple verbal recalls, pretty much indicating to the dog what I want him/her to do upon recall. I use "come", which means front and centered; "here", which is my competition version of "come", requiring a sharp, presentable finish; "c'mon" or "let's go", which just mean get over here or be with me. I also have a long distance redirect, which is "this way". That doesn't mean come, but rather, do not go that way or go anywhere but there.

There is one verbal cue that I see many dogs recall to, which I try to avoid. That is, using the dog's name as a recall. When I got my current dog, she automatically recalled at the sound of her name. I am in the habit of using the dog's name to indicate that a command will follow, and having her come when I used her name interfered with training. If you have more than one dog, using the name before a command almost always comes into play.

Not long after I got my current dog, we were outside playing. A neighbor came over to talk, and Sadie wandered across the street while I was distracted (she has since been trained not to cross a curb without permission). I was starled to see her across the street, and in my panic, yelled her name. She started back toward me, and a car was coming. This reinforced to me that she should wait for a command when I called her name, rather than automatically recall.

Duane said

"across the street, and in my panic, yelled her name. She started back toward me, and a car was coming. This reinforced to me that she should wait for a command when I called her name, rather than automatically recall".


Also an excellent reason to have a rock solid "down" or "platz".

Yes, Bob. One of the things I continually train and emphasize is downing in place at a distance. This made the out-of-motion exercises in our Schutzhund training a little easier also.

That situation was also a reminder to condition myself to remain calm, even if startled.