Why can't people hear the sound of a dog whistle?

If you don't hear anything when you blow the dog whistle, don't immediately return it to the store. People cannot hear the sound of a dog whistle. However, your dog can do it, and it's because of the unique construction of the whistle and its hearing, which picks up sounds that human hearing can't pick up.

How does a dog's hearing work?

Dogs are able to pick up a wide range of sounds that humans simply cannot hear. This is because of how sound waves travel. Sound pitch is measured in kilohertz. The lower the number, the lower the pitch. Humans can detect sounds up to about 23 kHz, but dogs can hear up to about 45 kHz.

Dog whistles produce a high-pitched sound that the dog will hear, but your ears are simply not built to pick up the sound.

Whistle construction

Dog whistles are designed specifically so that you can't hear them and make dogs significantly less irritated when using the whistle as a training tool. The whistle itself is fairly simple – when you blow into it, it makes noise by allowing air to escape through a small hole. The shorter the tube, the higher the pitch, which is why dog ​​whistles are generally so short.

Beware of unpleasant noise

Don't think that the sound of the whistle isn't a big deal to your dog just because you can't hear it. Just like sitting in the front row at a rock concert, if your dog is close to you and you blow the whistle too hard, it can cause discomfort and pain.

Be careful and watch your dog's reaction to the whistle. Blow only as hard as you need to get the dog's attention. Blowing the whistle too strongly creates too loud a sound and is counterproductive to training. Your whistle may even attract the unwanted attention of other dogs in the vicinity.

The advantage of a dog whistle

Dog whistles are a popular training tool, and not just because their sound cannot be heard by humans. The advantage of the whistle is that it sounds the same no matter who blows it, so unlike spoken commands, the whistle emits the same high-pitched sound every time, so it emits the same signal for the dog, no matter who gives the "command". A dog whistle is a useful training tool even if you can't hear it.