Dog hearing sense is as good as dog smell. Dog hearing system has a complicated structure. Here we will tell how it works and what and how do dogs hear. This information may be very useful for dog trainers and owners.
Sound pitch of 130-140 decibel causes pain. Its growth or reduce to 10 db is perceived as growing or reducing of sound twice.
Knowledge of sound pitch of various sound sources is used in service dog training.
In should be noted, that dog ear does not perceive sound that is lower surrounding sounds by 1.2 db. Thus, word command should be given louder than the background sounds, otherwise a dog will not hear it. Each sound around causes change of dog ear perceiving ability, that is also very important in dog training practice.
Long being in a noisy space causes tiredness of dog hearing and nervous system. To bring it back to normal state it requires rest. It is achieved by placing of a dog into a silent, sound-isolated room.
Dog Hearing VS Human
Complicated dog sound system performs its function in quite a special way. A dog perceives sounds that are not available for human ear among the variety of sounds around. The top sound level that is available for human ear is 18-20 thousands vibrations per second. But dog is reacting to sounds up to 36 thousands vibrations per a sec.
Dog sound system have been detailed discovered by academician Pavlov by the method of conditioned reflex. It have been discovered, that dogs hear sounds and distinguish them by pitch, power much better than people. Dog may distinguish the same note made by a violin and an other musical instrument. Dogs also perfectly distinguish the source of sound.
Dog ability to distinguish the source of sound have been discovered many times. At one of these experiments a dog (German Shepherd) was placed in a circle with 3 m diameter. There were placed 32 sound sources in the circle. A dog would come to the place where he heard a sound and got food if the source was indicated correctly. After some training the dog distinguished sound sources without fails. The same task appeared to be unresolved for a human, even when the sound sources were limited twice.
As for the sound sharpness, dog prevails over human greatly as well. If human reacts to a weak sound on the distance of 3-4 m, a dog perceives on distance of 24 m. Sharp dog hearing ability is widely used for dog training. It should be noted, that distinguishing of voice commands appears not at once, but within some training period. Dog voice commands training should be started first with rough voice variations and only after some time it gradually becomes more complicated.
How Do Dogs Hear Verbal Commands?
Word command for a dog is a complicated sound irritant. Dog command training is based not on verbal understanding, but on fine sound distinguishing. It requires a clear understanding of a trainer. A definite verbal command should be always pronounced in an equal and clear voice. The most efficient are short and clear-sounding. The same word may indicate various signals for dog behavior if pronounced in a various voice (quiet, assured or frightening). Usually the way of pronunciation of the same command is used to intensify its action.
Ultrasonic/High Pitch Dog Whistle for Dog Training
Sharp dog hearing ability is barely used in dog training. Though high pitch sounds are very efficient for service dog training. High pitch dog whistle is an efficient tool for dog training. Its benefit is that its ultrasonic sound is not confused or mixed with the background noise. Silent dog whistle sound is perfectly perceived by dogs even on long distances but keeps silent for people. Ultrasonic dog training whistles are designed the way to make a dog whistle sound perceived by dogs and safe for dog and human ears.
Dog Training Sound Devices and Whistles for Dogs:
