SaraC Posted January 26, 2009 Report Share Posted January 26, 2009 Jake, now 5 months old, is a very smart and quite obedient puppy....most of the time. Since Thursday, we have been going to the newly opened dog park in our town. The first day we went we had the area all to ourselves, which was GREAT! He had a ball being able to run and jump, off lead. WOW, is he FAST! One draw back is it is located near a major highway. I was having a hard time being heard over the tractor trailers and cars screaming past. While trying to call him back to me, I got to thinking how I could get his attention (while doing the flamingo dance and whooping about).... when I remembered reading about whistle training! For those of you that don't know, Jake is a rescue and my (our) first puppy. Yes, we knew what were getting into with a BC... I had kept the whistle that my Mother had carried on her keychain. She passed away last October. On Friday morning, I started training Jake to come to the sound of the whistle. Whistle, treat, whistle treat...a little distance..whistle, treat. He got it in no time. Today, we tried it at the park, EASY COME! Even while other dogs and distractions. SOLID RECALL! Around 11pm, DH took Jake out for his final walk, and after coming into the house, he had directed Jake to come find me. It's a nightly routine. DH thought all was clear when he went to put the garage door down...it wasn't! Like a flash, Jake was out!! DH called for me, "THE DOG IS LOOSE, HELP!" I didn't think twice. I ran, grabbed the whistle off the coat rack, and immediately started blowing while running into the driveway. In a matter of 5 seconds I could hear his jingly collar, then I saw a very excited puppy barreling at me! I gave him loads of praise while looking at my DH, who had tears in his eyes. We were both so releaved that Jake was safe!! I realize that we were very LUCKY with small amount of time we have been whistle training, that our sweet boy chose to come. So, I want to say, THANKS MOM, for leaving me your whistle! I will keep up the training!! It might have saved a life, ours from shear fear and possible heart attacks, and Jake's...though it was late, he still has a great interest in cars... Lessons learned! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bc4ever Posted January 26, 2009 Report Share Posted January 26, 2009 Thank doG everything worked out! Mom's never really stop watching out for us do they? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
afrancis Posted January 26, 2009 Report Share Posted January 26, 2009 PHEW! That happened once when Skye was little and our neighbour (who follows everything very closely ) ran outside yelling, "The baby's loose! The baby's loose!" I love happy endings, but they can go wrong so easily.... I have whistle trained with Skye as well. It is a GREAT way to ensure recall either when your voice won't carry or for a really quick, foolproof result. Although sometimes you can get more than one dog! To reinforce your whistle training, try playing hide and seek in the house with Jake. Put him in a sit stay, go hide, and then blow the whistle to have him find you. And then reward. Ailsa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SaraC Posted January 26, 2009 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2009 To reinforce your whistle training, try playing hide and seek in the house with Jake. Put him in a sit stay, go hide, and then blow the whistle to have him find you. And then reward. Ailsa I am glad to read your pup was safe. Thank you for the IDEA! I am always looking for things to do with him during these cold winter months. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BNM1980 Posted January 27, 2009 Report Share Posted January 27, 2009 I had a similar experience a couple of days ago. Someone left the gate open, and Blake got out and went trotting down the busy street outside, with me scuttling after him, totally ignoring my frantic attempts at recall. Usually, there's a lot of cars going back and forth, but his guardian angel must have been watching him. In the minute or two minutes it took me to catch him, there was a total lull in the traffic, and we didn't see one car. Then, just as soon as I had him by the collar, the first car came, followed by several others. It was really, really close. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cody & Duchess Posted January 31, 2009 Report Share Posted January 31, 2009 We have a border collie/springer spaniel and a border collie - both rescues. I did it first with the border/springer (we got her first). We hike in the mountains of northern new mexico - they both come back with the whistle call and it was surprisingly easy to teach them. Just reward and over the top praise the return. The border collie/springer chases deer - so sometimes she can go far. Sometimes it takes five minutes- but she always comes bouncing back. (she has been doing this for 4 years). I would not do around roads - but miles of wilderness makes this the most special hikes for the dogs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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