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.
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.
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.
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.
When we wrote this review, PetGentle offered five different prices based on how many devices you wanted to buy:
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.
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:
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.
Typically, when you buy products like this, there are two main questions:
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.
Posted on Apr 1, 2019
It is just a piece of plastic with a battery...the light doesn’t even work. When I contacted them, they immediately offered 65% back if I just kept it. I don’t understand how they sleep at night, ripping people off. Do NOT BUY THIS!
Waste of time and money...
Bottom Line: No, I would not recommend this to a friend
Posted on May 8, 2019
I have 3 dogs, I bought this to help train my stubborn 11-month-old Great Pyrenees puppy. The other 2 dogs are already trained Terriers. As far as I can tell this is an expensive fancy light, period! I have used this for over a week now. The red beam grabbed all 3 dogs' attention at first, now they completely ignore the device. There isn't any stopping or even hesitation in any of the animals, There isn't any indication of any sound being emitted i.e. turning head, ears changing position, any body language to even hint at a sound being emitted and certainly not stopping or even any hesitation when the device is being activated. Don't waste your money on this device, kinda expensive for a flashlight! I will send a clip of the purchase verification in the next e-mail as I do not have an order number.
Bottom Line: No, I would not recommend this to a friend
Posted on May 17, 2019
My dog's ears don't even twitch or move, so I doubt it works. The manual picture shows a switch on the side but mine doesn't have a switch. I tried the light trainer and stubborn trainer and light and he does not even twitch or move or his ears at all! Waste of money.
Bottom Line: No, I would not recommend this to a friend
Posted on May 27, 2019
I purchased PetGentle about a week ago. My dog is a disturbing barker when he sees any movement. From the day I got it, it never worked. Nothing came on. The lights didn't come on. When I called for a return and a refund, no problem. I paid $42.90 and I received back $24.90. Where's the balance? And I could keep it? Who wants it. I am notifying the BBB. I want the balance of my $42.90. By the way, the battery is wrapped in plastic to be removed. Until you call for help you would never know this. Do not purchase.
Bottom Line: No, I would not recommend this to a friend
Posted on Jun 4, 2019
Not only does this not work on my pitbull's barking, it doesn't faze him in the least. They charged me two different charges for ONE of these. I have a $42 charge and a $20 charge. Meanwhile, these are being sold on eBay for $10! What a rip off. There's no button on the side, and only lights and an infrared one, but doesn't seem like any sound comes out. My dog doesn't react the slightest bit. I don't know what my order number is because I was never sent a confirmation of the order. If I had, I could have disputed the charges.
Bottom Line: No, I would not recommend this to a friend
Posted on Jul 11, 2019
Ordered the product ($40 something) and it had no effect on my dog. They have a 30-day money-back guarantee but nobody answers the phone. Have tried calling them dozens of times on three different days. Nobody is ever available to answer the phone. Same PetGentle recording comes on every time. PetGentle is a scam and PetGentle is a rip-off. No wonder so many negative reviews online. Don't buy PetGentle, they don't stand behind their guarantee and they are a shell company.
Bottom Line: No, I would not recommend this to a friend
Posted on Jul 26, 2019
Shame on us, we should have read the reviews before placing the order. Order was placed on 7/9/2019 and as of 7/17/2019, no product received. Called PetGentle and get some Middle Eastern speaking female. She states small company (this is a sign). After getting no questions answered we asked for a superviser. Her response was she is one of them. We asked for her superviser or a way to contact a CEO or CFO. Her response was sorry I can't provide you that information. Asked to cancel the order and again her response was I cannot do that. I cannot kick myself hard enough. Please others, think twice or three times before buying from PetGentle. STAY AWAY FROM PetGentle!
Bottom Line: No, I would not recommend this to a friend
Posted on Aug 5, 2019
I bought two of these hoping it would be the magic trick to help with training our dog. It has not been even the first bit of help. I can only assume it's working as supposedly humans can't hear it. I wish there was something I could hear to know it's working. The light works but that's all I can tell and it's NO help. I feel I just threw $50 down the drain!
Bottom Line: No, I would not recommend this to a friend
Posted on Aug 9, 2019
After ordering PetGentle and looking to see where my order was, I find out the address was wrong. The neighbors claimed they never got my package. I called PetGentle and they said package delivered, they won't send another nor refund my money. I asked to speak with a supervisor and she hung up on me. I'm out my money and the product. This company needs to be stopped. I read all the reviews after I ordered and none of them are good. Take your business elsewhere unless you want this company to take your money. I have been leaving reviews all over about this company and I will continue to get the word out to as many as I can.
Bottom Line: No, I would not recommend this to a friend
Posted on Sep 20, 2019
My dog does very well when I take her outside until she sees a car. When she does, she barks relentlessly and pulls on her leash trying to chase the car. I bought the PetGentle hoping it would be a solution to this problem. First off, I paid for two-day shipping. The package took three weeks to reach me. I called customer service and was told to just be patient, my PetGentle is on the way. When I stated that I paid for two-day shipping the woman just kept saying, be patient. Bad business.
As far as whether or not it works...not with my dog. I know the whistle works because other dogs have reacted to it. My dog seems to not even hear it. I guess it works for some dogs but not all. The site I ordered it from stated that there is a switch on the side used to turn the whistle up, but mine doesn’t have that feature. I’m not happy with this purchase.
Bottom Line: No, I would not recommend this to a friend
Posted on Sep 26, 2019
I placed an order yesterday, September 19th, 2019. After completing my order it did not give me a receipt. I phoned and the female told me it had gone through, she said she would send me the receipt via e-mail. I phoned today to ask as to why I had not received the e-mail receipt. I found the female to be rather rude and the phone line keeps shorting out and when she was talking I could hear a child crying. She just hung up. RUDE and RUDE.
Bottom Line: No, I would not recommend this to a friend
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