Jump To:
Our Editorial Review
Customer Reviews

PetGentle Reviews: Will It Train Your Dog?

PetGentle

Overall Rating

2.6

97 Customer Reviews

Summary

Using an ultrasonic sound that humans can’t hear, the PetGentle claims it can help you train your dog how to stop barking using sound, light and positive reinforcement.

Write a Review

Our Full Review

By HighYa Editorial Team

Published on: Feb 11, 2019

PetGentle is a battery-powered dog whistle and flashlight marketed as a tool you can use to train your dog not to bark in situations in which he or she shouldn’t be barking.

The device leverages your dog’s distaste for high-pitched noises to correct his or her behavior.

As a former dog owner of a particularly loud-mouthed terrier, I can tell you from personal experience that there’s nothing more frustrating than having your pup unleash a powerful burst of barks during nap time when the mailman arrives.

In theory, PetGentle seems like a pretty effective tool. In this review, we’ll analyze how the device actually works, how much it costs and how it compares to other similar dog whistles.

How the PetGentle Works

Dog owners with vocal pups who seem to bark at the wrong time – or anytime – during the day can quickly reach their patience’s breaking point. Mailmen, car doors shutting, cats walking through the front yard – they're all triggers for barking.

To think that a device like PetGentle can be the solution to this problem can be a huge relief. After all, their website claims:

“Unwanted behaviors can be frustrating and even embarrassing … PetGentle handheld dog trainer makes it easy. (It) gives you control of the situation so you can train, treat and repeat your way to a better relationship with your four-legged friend.”

The PetGentle an ultrasonic noise emitter (inaudible to humans) and a flashlight. Their site says you can use both of these to get your dog’s attention amid his or her poor behavior – barking, for example. The flashlight has a continuous beam and a strobe option.

Basically, the site says that when your dog is losing their mind over the mailman knocking at your door, you activate the device’s ultrasonic sound.

Since your dog despises the sound, he or she will stop his behavior (in theory) and focus on the very ultrasonic noise it wants to stop.

Should he or she seem undeterred by the sound, you can push the sound button again and activated the light. This two-sense approach should be enough to distract your dog from barking.

The product’s website says that the sound is “100% harmless to dogs & safe to humans.”

Pro tip: The device ships with a 9-volt battery.

Do Dog Whistle’s Help With Barking?

The big question with this device is whether or not it’s actually effective in training your dog not to bark in situations in which he or she normally barks.

According to dog walking site Wag!, the key to using these devices is to reward your dog as soon as he or she exhibits the behavior you deem positive. So, when your dog stops barking after you activate the PetGentle ultrasonic sound, provide them with a treat.

If your pup doesn’t do what you want when you activate the whistle, do it again and, if need be, use the light in conjunction with sound. Consistency is the key to changing behaviors – go through the same process every time your dog bakers when you don’t want him or her to bark.

“Repeat this procedure every time your dog barks in an unwanted fashion. Remember to be consistent. Eventually, your dog will associate excessive barking with the unpleasant sound of the whistle,” Wag! notes.

Based on what we’ve read on Wag! And what we’ve heard from experts, using a device like PetGentle is a legitimate way to bark train your dog.

PetGentle Pricing and Return Policy

When we wrote this review, PetGentle offered five different prices based on how many devices you wanted to buy:

  • One device: $39.95
  • Two devices: $69.95
  • Three devices: $94.95
  • Four devices: $114.95
  • Five devices: $119.95

What was interesting is that, while we were on the checkout page, a pop-up window with a Wheel of Fortune-style wheel spun around and stopped on a $10 discount that the site added to our shopping cart. Because of this, our PetGentle cost $29.95 instead of $39.95.

Shipping is between $2.95 and $6.95 depending on how many devices you buy.

The site also advertised a 90-day, money-back guarantee that said you could send your PetGentle back within 90 days to get a full refund. You’ll have to pay the shipping to send it back, though.

We read through the fine print to find more information about the return policy and all we could find was an email address: support@petgentle.com.

We called the customer service line 833-501-3407 and received a message telling us there weren’t any agents available to help us.

Based on this experience, it may take some time for you to get your return process, so keep that in mind.

How the PetGentle Compares to Similar Devices

You have two main choices when it comes to dog whistles: battery-powered and breath-powered. You can either push a button or blow into a whistle.

We went to Amazon to find the top-rated battery-powered and breath-powered whistles and found the following two items:

  • MightyPaw Training Whistle: $7.99; 3.9 stars from 54 reviews
  • Modus Ultrasonic Dog Trainer: $31.99; 4.4 stars from 79 reviews

Based on our research of dog whistles, we don’t see any performance differences between a mouth whistle and battery whistle. Both seem to serve well the purposes of training your dog not to bark.

That being said, the Modus gets better reviews than the MightyPaw. It’s hard to say what the difference is between the two in terms of performance. Some people may like the ease of the battery-powered device – just click a button and the tone emits.

Whistles require lung power and cleaning, and these things take a bit more effort than the PetGentle, for example.

To us, choosing between a battery-powered whistle training and a breath-powered whistle trainer is a matter of your needs for value and convenience.

If you are on a tight budget, breath-powered whistles offer the best value. If you have $30 or $40 to spend and want convenience, the PetGentle is probably the best choice.

The Final Word: Pros and Cons of PetGentle

Typically, when you buy products like this, there are two main questions:

  • Is the price competitive?
  • Is what it claims to do a legitimate solution for your problem?

We believe that PetGentle offers competitive pricing and is a legitimate solution for the problem of a dog who likes to bark at appropriate and inappropriate times.

There’s enough evidence from dog sites and dog experts to back up the idea that consistent use of a dog whistle along with treats can train your dog only to bark in situations you want him or her to bark.

Now, our claim that the device is competitively priced is based on a comparison to other battery-powered ultrasonic trainers. Breath-powered do whistles are significantly cheaper.

In general, we believe our research and various experts point to the fact that the PetGentle can be a helpful way to bark train your dog.

Customer Reviews

2.6 Stars out of 97 Reviews
5 Star:35% 4 Star:2% 3 Star:2% 2 Star:6% 1 Star:54%
38% Recommend This Product
Start your review of PetGentle:
Sort Reviews By

Posted on Jan 24, 2023

Don’t waste your money on this

By John T., Warren, OH, Verified Reviewer

We have huskies and my daughter brings her 2 over also and they just look at me like why are you doing that and keep on doing whatever they want to do. They are well-behaved but I don’t want them barking all the time, so I bought 3 of these hoping it would help. I guess I have expensive flashlights now. I hope no one else gets stuck in the same situation!

Length of Use: Less than 3 months

Bottom Line: No, I would not recommend this to a friend

Pros and Cons

No “pros” were specified in this review

They don’t work

They don’t stop barking

They are too expensive

Helpful Review? 3 People Have Voted

Posted on Aug 18, 2022

Doesn't work

By Frank G. , Omaha, NE

I did not find this product to work at all. When I try to get my dog's attention (from about 7–10 feet away), sometimes he looks at me and then goes about doing what he is doing. Usually, he just ignores me.

Length of Use: 6–12 months

Bottom Line: No, I would not recommend this to a friend

Pros and Cons

No “pros” were specified in this review

It doesn't work

Helpful Review? 2 People Have Voted

Posted on Nov 24, 2021

Useless

By Jennifer W., Leicester, England, Verified Reviewer

Took a while to arrive. The red light works but my dog shows no reaction. He just carries on barking! I checked battery and removed the wrapping. No difference. Not worth the money. Was only shown good reviews.

Length of Use: 3–6 months

Bottom Line: No, I would not recommend this to a friend

Pros and Cons

No effect

No “cons” were specified in this review

Helpful Review? 4 People Have Voted

Posted on Aug 12, 2021

Really bad product!

By Louise V., British Columbia, Canada, Verified Reviewer

My beagle did not even react to the light or sound cues. This is an utter waste of money! Can’t believe so many people are being scammed on Amazon and Facebook. They offered to refund me $51.96 and keep the product. Why would I want to keep the product if it doesn’t work! I paid $86.58 and get $51.96 back? When other people on reviews returned the product to Idaho, there was no such address. This is a TOTAL SCAM. Buyer beware!

Length of Use: Less than 3 months

Bottom Line: No, I would not recommend this to a friend

Helpful Review? 6 People Have Voted

Posted on Aug 10, 2021

Waste of £33

By Bruce H., Cambridgeshire, United Kingdom, Verified Reviewer

I tried a couple of cheaper versions, read the article below and reviews, paid £33 not realizing it was distributed from America, our Yorkshire Terrier heard something but certainly didn’t take any notice of it. Absolute rubbish. I was unable to leave a review as it just kept stating the line was busy.

Length of Use: Less than 3 months

Bottom Line: No, I would not recommend this to a friend

Pros and Cons

No “pros” were specified in this review

Doesn’t work

Expensive

Not UK origin

Helpful Review? 7 People Have Voted

Posted on Jun 3, 2021

Junk

By Charles W., Boaz, AL, Verified Reviewer

This thing doesn’t work. It is a $47 laser pointer.

They will refund $23.97 for your trouble.

I don’t recommend this unless you just want to give your money away.

Length of Use: Less than 3 months

Bottom Line: No, I would not recommend this to a friend

Helpful Review? 11 People Have Voted

Posted on May 5, 2021

Not good at all

By Marcus P., Aberdeen, Scotland, Verified Reviewer

This device didn't work at all with my dog, he didn't pay any attention to it at all. Waste of money for me but not saying that it won't work with other dogs.

Length of Use: Less than 3 months

Bottom Line: No, I would not recommend this to a friend

Pros and Cons

No “pros” were specified in this review

All off it

Helpful Review? 11 People Have Voted

Posted on Apr 30, 2021

They're dogs, not cats

By Greta V., Factoryville, PA, Verified Reviewer

If this is ultrasonic then my dogs must be deaf. The only thing that gets their attention is the red light, and then they have to fight with the cats who are also chasing it. Did not change a thing when they were barking at the neighbors again.

Length of Use: Less than 3 months

Bottom Line: No, I would not recommend this to a friend

Pros and Cons

No “pros” were specified in this review

Doesn't do anything to stop their barking

Helpful Review? 10 People Have Voted

Posted on Apr 25, 2021

Time will tell.

By Julie M., Eagle, ID, Verified Reviewer

I thought it wasn't working well until I realized that the 9v battery, which comes with the unit, was tightly wrapped in plastic and not plugged in! When I first opened the battery case, I saw that it had a battery and it looked like it was plugged in but my dog didn't react the way I thought she should. After careful inspection, I found the problem. Now my dog responds and I hope my ability to use this tool will bring me the results I want. So far, so good!

Length of Use: Less than 3 months

Bottom Line: Yes, I would recommend this to a friend

Pros and Cons

It's easy to use.

Instructions on its use are easy to follow.

Comes with a battery.

Very small font for the instructions makes it hard to read.

The battery looks like it's already plugged in and the instructions do not mention to remove the wrap and plug it in.

Trying to find where I put the unit when my dog starts barking!

Helpful Review? 8 People Have Voted

Posted on Apr 17, 2021

Never received product paid for!

By Susan Q., McMinnville, TN, Verified Reviewer

The company is a sham! Paid money for a product that I never received. Wrote an email to state that I did not receive the product. Company is no help! Found tons of bad reviews for the company. I wished I had checked it out before sending this fraudulent company my money! Don't order anything from this company!

Bottom Line: No, I would not recommend this to a friend

Pros and Cons

No “pros” were specified in this review

Never got it, charged me $61.00 for nothing

Helpful Review? 6 People Have Voted

Posted on Mar 22, 2021

Don't waste your money

By Donald C., Lexington, SC, Verified Reviewer

Purchased this device recently for my dog and his barking when in the yard and walking. It does not stop his barking at all. Waste if money.

Length of Use: Less than 3 months

Bottom Line: No, I would not recommend this to a friend

Pros and Cons

No “pros” were specified in this review

Device does not work

Helpful Review? 7 People Have Voted
Showing 1-11 of 97

Our Promise to You

In order to safeguard you and ensure helpfulness and relevance, our compliance team manually assess every customer review before it goes live.

We have a zero-tolerance policy for fake reviews, and companies cannot control or alter any reviews at any time.