Uncle Stonnie Explains The Benefits Of Off Leash Dog Training Adventures 

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I've been taking my dogs to off lead area for almost 20 years. Best exercise for a dog is letting your dog be a dog (trot, sniff, fetch, explore, swim all off lead). This is the kind of dog training I'd like to do some day when I retire from teach.

I love how balanced Bella is now. She’s completely comfortable with her surroundings, but still stays close and constantly checks in with Stonnie. I bet this is exactly what her owner was hoping for.

I love how the pups run ahead to sniff & pee but run back to check on their buddy Uncle Stonnie

"The fastest way to teach a dog nothing, is to try to teach him everything at once." What a quote Sir!

I love how that shepard keeps coming back and touching base but she's still running out and having fun

Looks like Bella's learning well. Still likes the security of staying close by, but, much more relaxed with her peers around. I'd call that a good thing.

Until I started watching your you tube sessions, I spent too much time training obedience and watched my poor dog just get burned out. Now we train 10-15 minutes of obedience after we enjoy an outside adventure. They love swimming in the lake, running in the park by our house and now I have amazing loving dogs that enjoy doing whatever I ask. I even get asked how I have such well behaved dogs that come when I call. Thank you for all you do.

This is a great episode. Dogs deserve owners that are responsible all the time, not just when it's convenient for the owner. Thank you for showing how to be a responsible parent.

You understand what is important for these dogs. "Can Do Dogs" that do what YOU like to do. Love it!

Look at Bella. (to my point of view) completely socialized in one frickin' week. Bravo, Stonnie, bravo!

I am thrilled - I start physical therapy Tuesday which means I will be able to get outdoors with my dogs sooner than later. Rain, snow - it doesn't matter - this old chick loves being with her dogs outside bc they love it.

Looks like another beautiful day in the blue grass.

Thanks Stonnie, I needed this today. I’ve had my dog not quite four weeks and constantly remind myself to keep my expectations reasonable as it relates to this yearling Shepherd/malinois/lab mix who has had no prior training and very minimal exposure. We’re doing good, just have to keep on it.

Love all your videos. People at home, find a safe area and do this with your puppy from the day you get them home. Mentor dogs are nice, but you and your dog is great. You just have to stay tuned into your dog and off your phone. I’m lucky I get to do this twice a day with my dogs.

Look @ that Shepherd, she’s making huge strides thanks to Uncle Stonnie!👍🏼🇺🇸

Love watching you push videos out this week. Always working my clients towards understanding freedoms as rewards.

Love ❤️ Uncle Stonnie! Best trainer in the Land of The Free. Had knee surgery a week ago. My pits are sitting in their yards, which are extremely spacious, looking at me with loneliness and sadness in their eyes because I can’t exercise them until I’m healthy. It’s killing me. But when I’m healthy again…I’ll get back to putting in work with them. Thanks for the videos brother.

Thank you!!! Your training is only as good as the work you put in yourself! Amen! I’ve learned so much from your videos and my malinois thanks you too.

Such integrity and honesty. With patience and perseverance you take your stand in who you are.

i'm so glad you're out here, stonnie! Thanks for being an inspiration and a source of experience.

Every day my favorite dog and I go for a walk in the wilderness without a leash. He always -very discretely- is keeping an eye on me, and when I get lost, he always knows the most direct way to the car. He never runs away 😍 Secret: We started off leash walking when we first met 10 years ago, when he was 6 months old ♥️

Another great video! There’s an area near my house that I let our 3 year old off the leash and he does great. We have leash laws here too and he understands that sometimes he has to wait until people and dogs they are out of sight before I let him off the leash. If he does come into contact with a dog or person, he ignores them and continues on his adventure! He’s a black lab and I’ve been working on his training since he was a puppy. I learn so much from your videos. Thanks.

that shepard keeps coming back to check on him then go and play .... what an awesome dog

Uncle Stonnie: The fastest way to teach a dog nothing, is to try to teach them everything at once. Me: YES

Thanks for the boost Stonnie! Just came back from a walk with my 5 month old dog and she kept getting tangled in her long leash. I'm gonna keep it up because I want her to be able to run completely off-leash one of these days so we can have more fun together. Love the videos, keep up the good work! Your videos keep me motivated.

Always something to learn from your videos stonnie.

Pack structure pure & simple. Uncle Stonnie gets it. Always enjoy watching videos of your pack. Excellent job showing and explaining!

Always love taking the dogs on a running adventure, myself, Uncle Stonnie!

Stonnie, I love this idea. Want to know if where you are is completely fenced or not. My dog got out of our fenced yard the other day. She has what I term "selective hearing" when it comes to the come recall. She was nowhere in sight . I called her name and come. Then I called "I got the ball!" Needless to say a brown streak came flying through the woods. We walked down the road and then came back to the house. No getting mad and no punishment. Upon returning to the yard, she got her ball. Thanks for all your videos, they are a great help in training.

Wise words, great actions.

Love these vids, thxs Stonnie

You never disappoint. I always learn something from you. Thank you! My black lab is just 10 months old and has done really good with my limited knowledge of training until recently she has started darting out the door and running off.

You're so lovely, you and your training ethos and your cameraman and family assistants. I love to watch for your training expertise and for your calming kind theories on life. Thank you ☺️

I love stonie he’s such a good pack leader , it shows how important it is to match yourself with the right dog . Me personally really tough guy and I like to rough it … tend to get to curious on trails and like to challenge my body so I need a breed that can match .

Love The positive easy going energy.

Love love love this video! Homer and I love our off leash adventures!

Thanks Uncle Stonnie. I fall in the category of high expectations but need to work on the effort and that helps me come to an understanding of my partner's perspective. Really appreciate the straight talk. I also have noticed the german shephard tendencies you mentioned. I think you are kind and polite about your views and everyone needs to respect each other's opinion or put themselves in the other's shoes before they pop off with some harsh judgement. Thanks again for the videos! Very encouraging. I have a GSP and hope to get him to the point as you say where he can be himself in public and not have to worry about micromanaging him.

Beautiful!!!

My 1 year old mix and I hike off trail every day. Even if it's just a short 1 mile conservation trail. (that one has the most other dogs!) She gets to run and be free. But she always checks on me. I soon realized she leaarned to come to me better when I call out "Different trail" then just "come" or "here" lol I love the way you train!

always love your videos

Love your videos!

Thank you for a deeper knowledge!❤️

I sure enjoy your videos. They are helpful to me. TY

Delightful to see Bella's progress.

Love this show, great advice,dogs look so happy 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

So true about training outcomes taking time. We have a 10 + month old yellow lab and have worked basic obedience and retrieving training multiple days a week for the seven months. Only recently have we seen and become confident in allowing our dog to be off lead with us in environments similar to Stonnie's pre adventure area. It simply takes time, commitment to doing the training, and patience. No one is perfect, not even dogs.

I love the message of your videos. Put in the work and have patience. I’m building a “small” small challenges course in my back yard. That was inspired by you.

the German shepherd's face at 12:10 is perfect. :D Keep it up Uncle Stonnie. I love your videos and mentality when it comes to dog training.

I'm lucky enough to have a dog community that is rich in variety from training to breeders , rescue shelters and just general dog lovers. This is so helpful regardless of your training methods or end goals for your dogs.. I don't always agree with everyone but that's fine and doesn't matter in the long run, all that matters is the community as a whole grows stronger with each and every dog.

You’re the best man.

Lets go! Been on a roll lately!!!

Great video Stonnie!!!

Awesome videos.

Great video

This is really good, I have been doing this with my new dog for about a year. Just allowing her to run around without imposing a bunch of rules. She has quickly learned to check in…. That GSD is gorgeous

So good to see how Bella keeps checking in with you; lovely to see the bond of trust which has developed between the two of you.

My GSD has turned out lovely all down to you and your lessons she played with a young pup this morning and she was like a helper dog so patient and happy i live in the town I find her small challenge coarse in walls benches Anything to let her enjoy life I walk 30 minutes to find a spot where she can be off leash for as long as we are having a good time it's taken me all of her three years as I a seventy year old woman with her first GSD best companion ever thank you

I love your videos Stonnie. You really know what you're talking about. Absolutely awesome work. I hope one day I can be as good with dogs as you are now I grew up with a lot of aggressive dogs that couldn't be around each other in an environment that just wasnt good for dog training to say the least. So I feel I have developed a lot of bad habits and really do not understand most of the dogs psychology. I have two dogs now and through your videos I really see how much I've messed up in the past. I really look forward to hopefully be able to fix some of these problems with the dogs I have now and hopefully never making the same mistakes again in the future.

Now you’re just showing off, what a beautiful place 👍

Another great video Stonnie. We have off leash areas and parks where I live and I enjoy taking my Chocolate Lab to them. She really enjoys them also obviously. The only challenge I have and need to really work on is her recall, when I need her to come right away. She’s almost 6 years and I’ve only had her since April, so it’s a challenge to get the recall going, especially when there’s so many other distractions and things to explore. Otherwise we have a blast at our adventures. LoL. 👍🏻😎🇨🇦

We live in the country, surrounded by fields. There's a nice lane around them, by woods. In the winter I had my Golden off leash, but once the snow melted things were a mess and he had more options other than trails I had blazed. Once summer came, I had to keep him out if the fields, poison ivy, and animal dens. So back to the long line. Our older dog is a great mentor, and I use attention to him to get the jealous Golden to come running back. 😁

Hi, Stonnie! I really love your video especially on how you handle all the dogs you got there. I like your property as well wherein you could spend time to exercise your dogs. Wish I could walk my dog (10 months old belgian malinois).

Loving that black n tan GSD! Used to have one that really resembled her.❤❤❤

Damn! I agree with your philosophy.

You do a great job with all the dogs you train. Don't listen to the haters they always going to be out there!!!! They envy good things

I love that Bella has made such good headway. Fantastic job Uncle Stoney. I do wish I could have an area like yours. I live in the country and have a good gravel and dirt road. I can't trust my Jack Russell mix off leash 😂. I still have a great time walking with her. 🙃☕🐾💖

Love your common-sense videos. They are just lovely to watch while cooking dinner. So calming, and decompression walks (or adventure walks as you call them) are just so important for a well-behaved dog. Do you have a list of field lab breeders you enjoy working with?

My GSD loves camping because he is off leash, listen even more than on leash, loves to play into the water, etc..dogs have to enjoy the life of being dogs

How do we start to try off leash? I have a 18 week old malinois mix. (Actually a lot like the Dutch you have in the video). She is leaning “here”. But her attention span is the duration of a fly. Sometimes she just runs after whatever catches her attention. We are doing the long line currently. Again: love your theory and training! Be realistic! Thank you!!!!!

Yes. People don’t understand that dogs need to explore off leash. There is a leash law in my city and every now and then I come across people who feel it is their responsibility to enforce it. But I still think it’s worth it, even if I get a fine.

100% Agreed with everything u said people are almost always the issue when it comes to training and behaviors of dogs and I can't stand a man that can't accept himself better or worse and instead of fixing themselves or the problems they blame everyone else 🤔 THAT WAS REAL TALK love your content and realness keep being yourself and being and blunt and leading the pack in the best direction possible.We don't need them in the group anyway 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣💪🙏👍✌🤣💯Keep doing U 💯✌💪❤

Its really cool. Labs just run around but shepherd and malinois check back in with Stonnie and George. BTW, Great job training, George

Fun!👍😁

Looks like heaven to me

I’m so grateful that I live where I can take my dogs out and turn them loose. I was on a trail in Abingdon, Va with my 12 year old golden retriever, Shadow, off leash. He was carrying his favorite stuffed animal, a blue hippo. (Shadow moves so slowly, I could catch him if I walked with crutches. ) A little boy with his grandmother rounded the bend. She grabbed the boy like they were facing a rabid mountain cat. Then she screamed that I was violating federal law with my dog unleashed!😂. Busted! Hahahaha.

This man needs some kind of award. He’s gotta be a retired operator.

Thanks for your videos Stonnie! I use a weird mix of your videos and Victoria Stillwells to train my lab fosters I find that it’s a good mix for my suburban lifestyle😂

I had to share this video with my husband right away. We have about 1.5 miles of mowed paths through the woods at the back of our house that we love to walk our dogs on once or twice a day. Our 7 year old Malinois mix is allowed to go leash free. My husband and I disagree with whether or not our almost 6 month old Dutch Shepard should be allowed to. He walks her on a leash. I allow her to run with a 100 ft long line. She’s been taking these paths since she was 2 months. She knows the trail, knows the routine, she’s got a good strong mentor dog, she comes fairly quick when I call, and she often stops and waits for me or at least checks in. My husband wants her to be formally training almost all the time. I think she needs time to run and play. We both watch your training videos and Nate Schoemer’s training videos. Here’s to hoping this video can help persuade him to give her a little more freedom. I throughly enjoy watching you work. We recently used your techniques for introducing our puppy to water. Playing fetch in the creek is now one of her favorite things. Thanks for making these videos and sharing.

I always tell my clients that my dog is better at teaching a dog manners than I or any other human could ever be, because she's speaking their native language. I love seeing other people using mentor dogs.

My malinois is smarter then me! Uncle Stonie and him have made me a better handler 😃 it's work I love💖

Oh when I die and come back as a dog I want to go to Uncle Stonnie's !

Stonnie, I have a Kangal that is almost three years old and he despised his crate. He made it clear that he not only hated it, but proved to me [very early] that he would not destroy the inside of the house. I think I was lucky and blessed all at the same time. My only real issue is recall, which is a must. Easier said than done.

I love it. (You're views are priceless.) I always include my dogs in every aspect of my life...i've always had dalmatians. Now, being older and in ill-health; I have chihuahuas. They have very different needs...ha...very different. I've adapted. 😒

I admit to being lazy in training my puppy Jeb Bush, the Mexican street dog mix. I rely on Reese, my Aussie husky mix, to teach him. And, she does. She herds him and nips his heals, she’s says something like, “Jeb, Mom is going to dump you here, if you don’t follow me.” (It’s fake news, fear mongering) She’s so smart, all I have to do is point to where I want her to go. No great training skill on my part. It’s all Reese. Each time we go out on an off leash adventure, Jeb gets better.

I have a GSP and a terrier mix that both hunt. The terrier mix has always stayed close while hunting unless treeing a squirrel, but wouldn't just run off. I thought my GSP (4 months at the time) would be the same since she would listen very well in the yard. Well, the first time we went hunting, she ran off and wouldn't come back. But luckily she was waiting at the truck for us scared to death because she was alone. I've conditioned her to an e-collar for hunting trips just in case, but rarely have to use it. (Vibrate) I think her getting lost scared her enough to keep her from taking off. She actually pointed her first woodcock at 5 months, which is hanging on my wall. She still ranges a little far at times, but she's getting there.

I wish I could make paths through my property like you have

Any chance you can do a video on how you put together your small challenges course and how you made some of the pieces like the teeter totter and the A frame ramp. I’m so curious about this. I made the plank walk and jump for my dogs and I have a small picnic table but want to add a couple more things. Thanks so much. Love how you are in this video… don’t put your dog at a higher standard than what you do for yourself, shit happens and learn to roll with it. Don’t expect it to all work out in a day… it takes years! Very true real life expectations!!

I so wish I could do with with my Newfies. People even in trails here are very strict about a leash law and my male is 165 so he looks scary to some. I would love love for them to just do this!

Stonnie, I appreciate all your content, we have learned so much from you. I have a question. What training treats do you use? Thanks again for your work!

Nice, brother. I've had up to 11 off-leash on our two-hour hikes! It's better when you have half the pack as small dogs as they'd be useful for survival when the apocalypse hits and you can't drive anyone home, ever. Small dogs can go after small game in holes making dinner less stressful. (I hope it never comes to this) I wasn't sure I'd even like this video due to the cult-ure on here, but I loved it. - A fellow dog trainer.

maybe not every dog wants to be a black lab, but *every* dog wants to hang out with uncle stonnie. I do too, I just can't afford it. I'd love a video on what's in your training vest!

Hi Stonnie I’m new to your channel. I really enjoy how comfortable you are with all the dogs ! I have a soon to be 10 month old lab she’s really doing well with my training . We have a farm and of corse she will eat deer crap when given the chance . What is the best way to get her to stop ? Our other labs we can say leave it any they will drop it . Thank you for your videos !

Super great video as always. I follow your training and my 1 year old lab is doing great. I want to do more off leash adventures, but am concerned about him running off chasing squirrels and not coming back. Any thoughts on situations like that?

Wish had some big nice off leash areas near us.. everywhere requires leashes in parks and nature preserve areas … worry to let her loose near roads

HI I really enjoy your videos .My 2 yr. old Lab loves to run and swim but it is becoming increasingly hard to find places. Too many people screaming at you to get your dog on a leash and big fines if you don't. It spoils my dogs fun.

This was a fun video. Was that German Shepherd Dog Bella? She was certainly looking good but seemed a little cautious about the cameraman being present and really kept close to you, Stonnie. 😉 My little dog would be one of those you wouldn't find as part of your pack being a small long-haired, double coated breed. I do take him to local parks on a long line (30 or 50 ft.) so he can sniff/explore. Our puppy adventures are considerably more 'civilized' than your wilderness treks as I use a mobility aid to walk but he and I both enjoy getting out and about. You made great points about working with the kind of dog you have, with any of their attendant limitations, and being patient with whatever progress is made. There seems to be a subset of folks who believe a dog trainer should be expert with ALL breeds, able to correct any type of behaviour challenge, capable of training tricks, any dog sport, formal obedience, service dog training, etc. Any dog trainer I've followed on RU-vid seems to have found his/her niche and excels, yet manages to attract trolls that think they're not doing enough or not doing it right. You stick to your guns, Stonnie. 👏👏

Stonnie you do a fantastic job, you are the best dog trainer I have watched on RU-vid. On my 4th dog - 2 Chesapeake Bay retrievers, 1 black lab, now a chocolate lab. All AKC registered with champion blood line. You are doing a great service for those of us that own house dog, that happen to hunt. Thank you!!

I have a sheltie who is a smart and intense little dog. He even responds to your whistling, but I can see why you would never have this sort of breed-thousands of seeds in his coat every day.

Stonnie, could you go into how you transition the dog from your training to having the client take over and is there normally an adjustment. Referring to ones that board with you.