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My girlfriend and I are getting our first Fox Red Male in less than 2 weeks I am interested in hearing more about this, we absolutely love your approach!
The best way to choose a labrador is by the color of your floor covering. If you have dark floors get a Black lab if you have light Colored floors get a yellow lab. Lab owners will know what I mean.😂
We have 2 black labs, it’s amazing the weird places you find the *glitter*. I made pizza dough one night, washed the bench a couple of times, rolled it all out and sure enough, the glitter was there, on top of the dough balls.
“All dogs want to be labs and all labs want to be black labs…”. So we have a black chubby! He is exactly as you have described. He’s so calm and chill, wicked smart. And polite according to our neighbors. It’s takes FOREVER to take a walk because everyone wants to greet him and love on him. They know his name, but not mine! We’ve had several labs over the years, but this one….super Fast learner…or it may be that we are the fast learners in his eyes! The breeder matched him with us I believe. He knows his dogs and gave his yellow to a little boy who’d recently lost his father to Covid. Please don’t retire! People want to be trainers, and all trainers want to be Uncle Stonnie!!
Sorry not all Labrador want to be black. My Yellow Labrador was just fine being just who she was. A leader the pack followed her . The smartest dog ever for me to train. Like she all ready knew it all just wanted directions. 🐕🦺🐕🦺🐕🦺😎❤
@@larrysmith8635 and yet, you comment with black dog emojis! Just kidding, we had two yellow labs before this black one. Labs are great no matter the color!
There´s Labradors and the rest are just dogs... That chocolate lab puppy melted me! He just wants to please you, and do the exercises even when you don´t have him on a leash, that is the typical Labrador retriever attitude: "can I help you? can I be with you? can I love you?" It´s been 3 years since my two labs passed (black male, yellow female, both passed at age 13 within a month of each other) and I still miss them like it happened last week.
Black Labs are the most well rounded in my opinion. Lost mine after 14 great years over a year ago & miss him every day. I rescued him when he was 11 or 12 months old so had no idea how he would be. To this day he was our Best Dog Ever!
We rescued our black chubby when she was 7 months old, I took her to obedience classes because she was a bigger dog than I ever had. She did so well and I learned so much. She is nearly 14 now and is THE best dog ever. Taught her cool tricks and she loves people. She has cancer now and I’m so sad. I hope to get another one after I retire…but know she’ll never be like my girl.
My heart understands your great gift to have been partners with your " Best Dog Ever. " It's a blessing to have experienced such unconditional love, understanding and joy. Bless you 💞
I love all of the colors of a Labrador retrievers. However, my favorites are the chocolate and black Labrador retrievers. I really enjoyed this video. Thank you..
I had a fox red yellow lab many years ago that was the smartest dog I have ever had or dealt with. We lived on a horse farm and he was athletic, had mad stamina, was the best companion and helper I've ever known and could learn absolutely anything. He could open gates for me, retrieve the newspaper from the main road, put trash in the can and recyclables in the bin, drag limbs to the fire pile, just to name a few. He was an outstanding companion, and is missed every day. I always refer to him now as Clancey the Wonder Dog.
I was a puppy raiser for a major guide dog school. They bred their pups for temperament. I raised blacks, yellows and a Black and Tan. I was challenged many times about the Black and Tan being a full Labrador. Yes she was. Most of them were fairly easy to train, they loved the rewards of being a successful student. However my last pup, a black, was a pistol, full of energy. His blind partner was totally in love with him. Labrador Retrievers rock.
As a Boxer owner, I’m not sure why this video popped up on my feed lol. I ended up watching the whole thing, and this gentleman is really good at what he does! Hey, we all love dogs, and they all do the same thing for us. Fill us full of love and joy.
Please don't retire! I watch your videos every morning while I eat breakfast for inspiration to get out there and be a good active owner to my 10 month old yellow Lab. People compliment me on how well behaved he is and that's due to you. You're the best trainer on UA-cam, and there is no replacement. 😄
❤We had an ‘English’ Chocolate (God rest his soul).He was my service dog (PTSD). He was a breeder’s stud who was put up for adoption at 2 years old. He was incredibly easy going and a really sensitive dog who was perfect for PTSD identification. He was ok on short hikes when we were stationed in Germany and we knew when he needed a break. He was so easy going that he rode the gondolas on the ski slopes in Austria and Germany without any hesitation. He loved to get in the water reservoirs at the ski areas in the summer and would lay on the edges of the ski slopes in the snow after the slopes and lifts had closed for the day. The Germans, who are a huge dog loving culture, noted how well mannered he was (“for an American dog” they’d say!). He pretty much came that way- he never lived inside a house (he lived in the pack as a stud on a farm and in a big barn and yard). He adapted quickly to learning how to walk stairs and live in a house. He had to learn that taking walks was ‘normal’ and learned to love walks. I loved having an English Chocolate. When I’d go to the gym, he’d simply lay and watch me on the treadmill or lifting weights. (Work harder peasant as I lay here like the royalty I am!!!!). He was my sweet angel boy. Miss my Ruger. 😢
I wanted a smart and energetic labrador and so I got a black field lab. Walter's 9 years old and has the energy of half his age. He's also very independent and likes his space...he's loving and kind to everyone and can go non-stop all day. Walter's the only reason I go to the beach, hiking and I bring him everywhere. I've become extremely active to match my lab's needs!
Hey 👋 Stonnie! We got a genuine “Yellow” field Lab at 8 weeks old, and rescued a 2yr old Black field Lab from a kill shelter. Both were incredible family dogs. The black was stressed and had reoccurring behavioral issues , while the yellow came with pedigree papers and was super easy to train from the start. As the years went on, we established a trust and incredible bond and broad vocabularies with both dogs. But, I have to tell you the black lab was our heart dog- one in a million. Labs are so smart. Relaxed, friendly, and protective when required. Neither of our dogs was as attentive and well-mannered, well-trained as Henry or Mr. No Name, but for our nuclear family, they got us up and out, walking, hiking, running, and socializing with neighbors. I’m wondering as an old retired guy, if another Lab is in my future- and if I could make myself interesting enough and worthy of having another Lab. We’ll see what happens.
Hey @grandpa_eric ! My husband and I are retired and we have two black labs. We walk them everyday, take them everywhere we can, and have lots of grandchildren around, ages 17 - 2. Our labs love walking the neighborhood. They know every neighbor, every dog, cat, squirrel and bird there is to know-and the dogs have been a terrific vehicle for getting to know neighbors because they are so well behaved and love everyone. We have children that wait in front of their house to come see Maggie and Luke and I can’t tell who is happier-the dogs or the kids ❤ We’ve also had people talk with the dogs who were very much almost hermits, and built a bridge that way. I’m making this too long. I’m trying to say, if you are healthy enough and can get out and about with a Lab, go ahead. But I really love your thinking of the dog’s needs over your own wants. Bless you!
@@DOSU490 Wow!! You’re so nice. Labs make life better, don’t they? Sounds like you agree and are doing all the right things. We’re fortunate to have a granddog named Wally who we dog-share sometimes for my son. We have 5 grandkids- my son(named Luke!) has 2 kids- a 3 year old, and an infant. Wally literally jumps into the air when we arrive, as if I was away serving a tour of duty. Nice, huh? Wally looks like a Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever, but he’s a 4 1/2 year old mutt- a pretty mutt, lol. He’ll be here soon to stay with us until Thanksgiving. I’m glad you reached out and spoke from the heart. It’s hard not having our own dog. As if I’m in hospice care and my life is about to end. I can tell you my wife says I’m happier, more relaxed with Wally here. We get up and out, as you do. Yet we understand the commitment of dog ownership, and I worry about breaking that bond. Thanks for reaching out, and your kind comment.
@@grandpa_eric Aww, thanks! Dogs and family really make life worth living, don’t they? I hear what you are saying about the bond. One thought is adopting an older dog from one of the lab rescues, or even fostering. Lots of great dogs needing good people, as you obviously know. We got started on loving Labs (although all dogs are wonderful) when we adopted a chocolate lab no one else would take because when they picked him up (we think he was simply abandoned 🥵) he was depressed and had silver dilute which they thought meant he was a senior-he was also huge-and we said, heck, we’re not that young anymore either! Ha! So we brought him home, kennel cough and depression and all-he was soon cured of both-and we absolutely fell in love with our gentle giant-and that began our love of labs. God bless and be well! ❤️
We had a beautiful chocolate lab and when he passed away we found a yellow lab, both were wonderful dogs. We moved from Nevada to NC to Florida with the chocolate and he was wonderful never had an issue. The yellow was also great born & raised in Georgia, she loved traveling with us also a great dog. The worst part of having them was saying good bye when they passed away.
I’ve had lots of dogs over the many years: 3 Labs, 1 Golden, 2 Pyrenees, 1 Shepherd. They’ve all been wonderful. But two of the Labs were my soulmates. One was Yellow; one Fox Red. The Yellow was incredibly tolerant when my now-adult children were toddlers. She would put up with anything. The Fox Red had the best attitude of anyone - human or canine - I’ve ever known. She was just happy about everything. She was thrilled to find a branch to carry around, so I called her the Branch Manager (as in a bank)! I have two Pyrenees now - they’re lovely - but before I fall off the twig, I’d love to have another Lab. And I think you’re saying that a Chocolate would be best for an old coot like me.
I saw an add for two adult labradors seeking a home on FB recently . together..i really dont have the space since i have a mixed Maremma..but adopting an older labrador is a beautiful act of charity. A different ball game. Very reserved. A guardian dog like Pyranee however rare it is great to adopt an older lab.and there are mixed labradors who are adults and less hyper
Look at all those GOOD dogs! Yep, pair up with the dog that matches your lifestyle/goals the best. At 63 and a home body, I'd be crazy to get a high energy field bred dog. But a dog that needs enough going outside to get me up and more a bit more wouldn't be a bad thing. Balance. Even camping, I'm not the guy planning on 10 mile hikes each day. I'm the guy hanging out at camp, reading, drinking coffee and such. That little white lab, or one of those chocolates would be my cup of tea. Those manic field dogs are great to go visit for a day, or for a weekend.
I've been looking for my new companion and I'm surprised how people respond to me taking my time to find the right fit. Apparently a lot of folks just go with the first dog they think is cute. No wonder so many dogs end up in shelters! i'm getting a lot of criticism for passing up great dogs who I don't feel are a match. I'm looking for an adult so to me it is crucial that we start with basic lifestyle and behavior comradery. It is one thing not to have had training but another as to whether the dog is interested in learning. Not to mention that I need to fall a little bit in love when I first see the animal!
@@convincedquaker we found each other! i found a six month old pyrenees at the pound. they had her at a community adoption event which made it possible to spend two hours together before i officially adopted her. though i must admit, i fell for her the moment i laid eyes on her. we've been together for six weeks now. thank you for your encouragement! my last pup was a golden pyrenees.
I’ve had 4 Labs. My current chocolate is amazing. Her temperament is perfect.. she loves to fetch but not too much. When we travel she is perfect. She lays in the back seat and is as quiet as I’ve ever seen. Thanks for this video. I learned a lot.
We had a fox red lab that just passed away this summer at 15. His physical build was more show style- shorter, big chest, square face. He was a great family dog, he was always so gentle with our daughters. We now have two lab puppies 7 weeks apart from different breeders- a yellow (white) lab- from show lines- very trainable and very chill. Our other puppy is a dark chocolate- with the light hazel "crazy" eyes. He is cute as can be, but can get into stuff when he is bored. I can tell we will have to keep him exercised well. Loved this video!
Two Labs, the first was a field line from Utah, a Dudley when the rest of the litter was black, 90 pounds at a show weight. The second one is a very dark chocolate female, pretty small at 60 pounds and also from field lines, both her parents were duck dogs, so both of these dogs are (were in the case of our recently departed male) high energy, fast recharge, and in need of stimulation. The best thing that our older dog learned, and taught our younger dog, is how to be self calming and self advocating. If they have to be cooped up for a few days for a long trip, or if the in-laws are taking care of them, they don't turn destructive and just remain calm until they can get run properly again; and self advocating so they can tell us when they need attention and what sort they're looking for, whether that be retrieving or hiking or just a simple walk. Since our older dog passed recently though, we're didn't go looking for another Labrador. Not that we wouldn't love one, but our young girl also gets a vote, and she likes playing with dogs twice her size, so we went with a closely related breed: a Newfoundland. More energy and an even faster recharge than a field lab, but also perfectly happy being a couch potato, so as a companion for our high energy dog it's a perfect choice - exactly as much play as she wants. Now here's to hoping our house survives... As an aside, our older dog learned an incredible vocabulary, we estimated it at over 1,000 nouns and dozens of fully conjugated verbs by the time was 8 or so, and scarry smart. When I hurt my back and sent him to get my wife and he couldn't, he brought my cell phone instead... when he was three. He knew how to be consistent in his lies, just a wickedly smart dog, but also just happy being called a good boy, so he never got out of hand.
Our chocolate is just right for us! While she was a ball of fire as a puppy, she has adapted to living with 2 old people well! Very intelligent, well mannered, super sensitive, and loves everyone. Definitely PetSmart greeter material.
Thankyou stonie for addressing the issue of the " don't exercise so much when young". I'd gone 20 yrs between pups and couldn't get my head around this 20 minutes exercise for every month of life. I soon realized my fox red girl was having non of that. She is nearly six now has amazing energy levels. Have only heard her bark about a dozen times. Has a definite need to carry and retrieve. Is a total ball fetching maniac. Having said all that she is chilled in the house and garden.
I have a Silver Field Bred Lab. What a joy he is to our family. I got him to hike with me and to hang out with me on our farm. He is an awesome hiker who can hike 15 miles per day without taking a break. The only problem I have with him is his anxiety camping. The least amount of noise in the woods sets him off especially owls. He barks at turkeys, hawks and buzzards. He loves to swim and roll in the mud. He is the best truck/car rider in the world. He goes everywhere I go. He has never given us a problem in the house except for the shedding. He is three years old and just keeps getting better each day as we have followed your advice from the age of six weeks old until now. Thanks Stonnie
My brother has a silver Lab as well, and she's a great dog. Like yours though, she is more of a barker/natural guard dog and more protective than other Labs. Or certainly more than my black Lab and the English Labs that are bred for show. I think this is something Stonnie has said in other videos too.
My husband brought home a fox red puppy with light eyes that was the craziest dog I ever met. Very high energy. Sliced and diced me with her teeth and nails for the first year. We rescued a 3 yr old Golden Retriever when the Lab was a yr old. That helped to settle the Lab down some as they played really hard together, running and retrieving discs. The Golden is the sweetest dog we've ever owned. The Lab is much better now at 2 1/2 yes old, although she still has her crazy moments. My husband works with both of them on training. Hopefully, the Lab will settle down even more to a normal Lab energy level as she gets older. We're in our 60's and she was more than what we were expecting to deal with at our age. She does really well with our great granddaughter though, so that's a plus.
I have a 4 year old female Fox Red. She is very American and very athletic. She barks a lot and needs a ton of exercise. I wouldn't trade her for anything because I have an active lifestyle and she is so much fun. I agree with everything Stonnie said about the Fox Red.
I have a 2.5 year old Silver lab that's a field size. He's high energy and a retrieving machine (his eyes dilate, and he can focus on nothing else but that ball/stick/or whatever we're throwing that day. I have to store his fetching gear outside of eye shot in the house or he'd just stare at it wantingly all day til I gave in). We also do a lot of hiking, running, and he does loads of tricks. I wanted a Silver lab because they were so neat looking to me and unusual. Luckily he came from very good stock and has zero skin issues or eye issues that I've heard about. He wants to cuddle, but just doesn't have the capacity yet to do it gently. Usually you get a good smack to the face with his big hard head, because he's soooo excited. I take him everywhere with me that allows dogs, to expose him to as much as possible. He is still capable of quietly hanging out in the house (finally after he turned about 1.5). He has his own backpack and backpacks for 4 days every year carrying his own gear. He's also a swimming machine and has been on many kayaking trips with his own life jacket. He recharges after a 2-5 minute dip in the pool, river, lake or what have you. He's so much fun and keeps me busy, definitely my ride or die!
Was so excited to watch your take on the differences between the Labrador variations associated with the color differences! I have boarded dogs on my rural property for 15 years and have noticed these differences as well. My anecdotal observations; The ‘English’ labs are, in my opinion, more sedate, more stable. The American standard, field labs, the opposite. But the color differences, in my observations, are the most interesting, I find the yellow, are more nervous, more anxious, the Black, the opposite. However, the Chocolates were like a box of chocolates, never knew what to expect. BTW, I have boarded an English fox red, so they are out there! Thank you for this video, I found it as helpful as fascinating!
I have an English Dark Chocolate lab. ENGLISH is the key to me calm and does not bark. I paid extra for an ENGLISH but worth every dime for senior citizens. Love your videos. You are so knowledgeable and down to earth. More people need to see your videos when selecting a dog. Thanks sad you may retire one day
Stonnie, your video/channel was just recommended to me today. I’m glad I watched it. I’ve owned labs for 30 years but only blacks and yellows. One yellow happened to be a “double chocolate” and be a little lighter than fox red. I prefer blacks too and try to take my two, Isaac and Abby, with me as many places as possible. I have to compliment you on your demeanor, tone, and presentation. It was an absolute joy to watch this, and I particularly love your obstacle course. I can’t wait to watch more of your videos.
Great video. I started out with a Chocolate Lab about 40 yrs ago because the breeder was going to put her down and gave her to me for free. Shae was an English version and was one of the best dogs I ever had. Since then, I have stayed true to the English Chocolates. I also have always had Staffordshire Terriers. Having the two breeds in my home (at the same time) has been a real pleasure. In fact, I my Staffie helps me in my business rehabilitating fearful and aggressive dogs even more than the Lab. She has such a laid back style and helps put the other dogs at ease. Together they have helped many dogs learn to be comfortable with things they used to fear. The lab taught the Staffie all there is to know about swimming and diving in the water. Both love to ride in the car and be close to me all day and then curl up next to me and relax in the evening. It's a great way to spend your life.
Told my breeder I wanted a Yellow Male Lab with a face that belonged on an alpo can and was naturally lazyI waited a year and a half but man she delivered. Best dog.
We have 2, 6 year old Black Lab Girls (Littermates) Father was English, Mother was American and thus we ended up with one American, the other English. I wholeheartedly concur with your breakdown. One is more agile, athletic, energetic versus the other more laid back after a smaller amount of stimuli, although high focus when she does engage. They each appreciate different Games or Toys; Hikes versus Walks ( one likes to stay close - the other loves to roam). One cares about water completely different from the other. We've been fascinated by it and the more we learn the more appreciative we become of this amazing Breed and all your shared insights 🤗 On a last Note: you simply can not Retire ... you are too much of a Treasure with invaluable knowledge. I'm certain there are thousands of Dogs out there which lives have improved because of the information and techniques you share. You have certainly changed our understanding for the better, on how to handle dogs in a myriad of ways - not just in training but the wellbeing, how to properly care for our K9 Companions . 1 example - your Heat Indicator Vlog - how a Dogs Tongue works when they drink. Thank you, for all you do 🥰🐕🐶
Agree with everything you’ve said here. I had a fox red Labrador for just over 13 years, before they became ‘fashionable.’ A great dog. The most loyal and loving companion to me and my family and gentle with my young children. He loved a fuss and a love more than any dog I’ve ever known. You could not give him enough cuddles and vice versa! However, he was of quite a nervous disposition and wary of new people. Once he’d met you, he was fine but he wasn’t the gregarious labrador who loved anyone and everyone at first sight. He liked to meet people properly first. However, he loved all other dogs without exception. I never saw an ounce of aggression from him either. Not once saw his teeth bared in even the slightest of snarls. Never growled or grumbled at any of us, ever. The vet could poke and prod him any which way and he never reacted. He was not a quiet dog. We knew when anyone approached the house. Nervous barking would follow every knock at the door; worrying a stranger might be entering of course!!He would also bark at the window if people lingered outside the front of the house. I’d describe the fox reds as being very intelligent dogs who are ‘over thinkers.’ My boy analysed everything and didn’t miss anything. You could hear the cogs constantly turning. He was only truly relaxed when he was receiving the massive amounts of fuss and cuddles he used to want from his family 😂 or when he was out in the countryside on his many long and lovely walks. We were able to give him copious amounts of exercise in the English countryside daily. So yes, you could well have a mixed bag if you have a fox red. They are not the most straightforward of Labradors but by God they are beautiful - mine was stunningly handsome (not to be boastful but I was told almost every time I took him out.) He hated the attention being nervous but he was always commented on. Fun dogs. Up for adventure. Fiercely loyal and loving. Athletic and with an ever ready battery. My soul dog Henry. We take on another Labrador puppy next month - yellow (fox red dad, black mum). Wonder what he’ll be like and whether the nervous trait will prevail or be watered down somewhat? We shall see but we are ready for him anyway and we know what we are letting ourselves in for 😂🐶🧡
Im not a lab person, I have had German shepherds all my life, but I like labs and I've known a few friends who have had one. Maybe it's my age, but all of my friends had black labs. And they all were good, sweet dogs. One friend had a male lab that I swear, everytime I stopped by, was in the process of trying to fit a huge log through the front door. If it wasn't a log it was a really big stick. He never gave up on getting these things through the door. Any German Shepherd I've ever owned would have dropped that very quickly, and said " if you want that in here get it yourself."
We ranch in Wyoming and have had stockdogs. My last one was accidentally killed. I opted for looking at something different. An English puppy literally fell into my life. I'd always admired Golden Retrievers. This puppy is an English Lab x English Retriever cross; the family breeds them for service / therapy use. All I can say is she is the easiest, smartest, most attentive puppy I've ever had. Cream with dark skin. She is a real blessing. I've really enjoyed your videos. Thank you.
Ive had so many labs, both of field and show lines. We rescued a fox red lab once (ended up being the best dog we ever had), the poor guy was neglected badly, and only 1 years old, but looked so aged. He was kept chained up outside with no dog house, on a 4x4 cement pad. You could see right through him, ribs everywhere. We gave him the best life ever, and he was nick named "Eeyore" for his completely chill vibe and nothing fazes me, way of life. Best boy ever. I miss him.
Hi Stonnie, great video as usual. I have had a black English that was so calm and trained easily. A chocolate English that trained easily but a bit more energetic than the black and yellow. My yellow English now has been the best lab that I’ve ever had. He was very easy to train in obedience and rally. Even got his service dog certificate at twelve months. He loves to fetch; but, like you said he quits after about ten times. All of them love/loved swimming. All love/loved to go everywhere with me. I had one field black lab and one yellow field. Both very high energy. All the labs were loving and love people, especially kids. As a sixty six year old, I really love my yellow slow and easy happy go lucky go anywhere senior pup. ❤
awesome video. I had a red fox lab. but he was mixed, mostly lab and SO SO SO INTELLIGENT and sensitive. thanks again for your video. your accent is so cute!
As a single mom I had a yellow lab who was soooo beautiful: healthy, sweet and loving, loyal. Never barked! Smart and eager to please. Fast forward to my 60’s decided to get a dog and wanted a lab, but didn’t get a yellow as I thought I didn’t want to expect what I’d had before. Got a beautiful black lab. Their eyes and coats are magic! She Loved to fetch, not affectionate, total energy, nonstop. Spent lots of time, &$ training her…yes, I still love her, but she’s like a different breed. Wish I’d watched your color video 10 years ago! We learn so much with our dogs. They are all a blessing!
We have an English fox red, our breeder is in southern Ontario. I previously had a field red retriever, and he was very lean, athletic and literally would not stop until you made him. Our english retriever is very strong, more stout, but agile, can jump and is fast, but he’s only good for short retrieving sessions. So yes, I would definitely agree with personality differences.
Hi Stonnie - Long time fan here! Our current lab is a 2.5 year old female - she is a white labrador but much more of the field style - lots of energy, quick recharge and lots of stamina. She requires the most exercise of any dog I have ever had. And she has golden eyes. The phrase "crazy eyes" definitely suits her! When she gets excited or overstimulated she is over the top and you can see it in her eyes. I am training her in agility - she is athletic and agile and very very fast. I hope age settles her mind in the arena. She does have a nice off switch in the house and will settle and cuddle. Until it's time to retrieve again!
We had a black lab mix (Colorado) and a field yellow (Harlee) a few years ago. Colorado was definitely more chill, except when there was a rock chuck to get. Harlee is exactly what you described for a yellow- anxious, nervous- but all-around great dog. Loved to fetch. When they passed, we had to get another lab. Well, we got 2. A yellow and chocolate. Yellow has a stockier build, is a quick learner, loves to be chased, is more vocal, and is nervous with new things, people, or places. Good shop dog for my husband. The chocolate is a taller, leaner build, is gregarious, and would fetch and swim all day. Thanks for your time and effort Stonnie! We appreciate good dog trainers!
Aussies are my breed, and I can absolutely agree with you that color is linked to personality. Not only that, but shade of color, patterns, eye color, pigment, or lack of. Color genetics get so very complicated. I can also look at a dog, and tell you which part of the country they came from, and look at the show dogs and tell you which line they are off of and who bred them. I'm sure you can as well with your labs.
I’m fascinated by this- do you show your dogs or are you just really involved in the fancy? Can you share a little about personality it’s connection to color with Aussies? My mother is getting a sheltie (her fourth) this winter and she’s hopefully getting a blue merle (but we’ll see what the female will produce). She has had two sables, and currently has a Sable Merle, who is the most laid back, easy going, friendly, sweet sheltie she ever had. I know it’s a different breed, but I’d love to hear more of what you’ve observed.
Blake is a nearly 3 years old showline male. He’s my first dog and I was lucky to start watching your videos right when he arrived. I am raising him to face challenges together in the environment (I learnt your lessons), we are a registered water rescue unit, he loves to fetch balls in the high brush, and we spend lots of time together on land and water whenever possible. He loves all people and other dogs, except huskies and akitas. he is not a high energy lab as he loves his relaxing spells in the day. I am happy so far, I feel that the breed characteristics were already there and I have been able to shape them in a way that fits our characters. thank you so much Stonnie !!
The black was very energetic and needed more exercise than our family could provide. The chocolate was bred as a bird dog and no amount of attention or exercise could keep her satisfied. She just wanted to run away to find any food she could. Totally out of control. The yellow is just the right level of playful retriever who after exercise, calms down and is a great affectionate pet. He also sleeps 12 hours a day.
@@Mikael-jt1hkYour comment seems a bit mean. There’s nothing wrong with knowing yourself and selecting an appropriate dog, in terms of energy levels. Everybody’s better off that way, including the dog. Personally, I’m so lazy that even my pale yellow lab would have been too much to handle if my relatives hadn’t helped. He was a wonderful little weirdo ❤ RIP
Our black girl is 50/50... best of both worlds! I noticed she was already quieting down by 6 months... but her "quiet" is not the same as our previous yellow bench-bred girl. We have a huge yard with grass, trees, boulders, downed logs, and horses outside the fence. I'm a jogger/hiker, love training, and accept we will do a lot of tossing the ball. She crates on command, we keep a small pen around the open crate l, and she knows it means "chill". She only does reasonable alert barks, otherwise very quiet. I don't have to free-run or jog her everyday now, at 1 year. Some evenings when I'm tired, I do the ball toss down the hallway and she's fine. We won the lottery. ❤️
We had English red fox pure bred for 12 short years. Most chill, loveable and fun baby. Easy to train, loved tracking as much as playing at the off leash park. My shadow and after 3 years still miss him everyday. 😢❤️
Hey Stonnie, Big fan of your channel and philosophy on dog training. I’m a retired 67 year old Michigan man. I have a 21/2 year old red fox lab. I’ve tried to emulate your training methods in my back yard. I have had many labs in my lifetime. Sully is very energetic and loves to fetch. I work with him 3 times a day trying to tire him out. Being retired I have the most time I’ve ever had working with a dog. This summer I successfully had him ride in the kayak with me. If I don’t wear him out he is the first ever dog to be self motivaded to just take off and run around my house and yard for almost a1/2 hour. His energy level is amazing. All my other dogs were English style. I’m so glad I waited for retirement before I got the red fox lab. I wouldn’t have as much success with him if I had not watched your videos. I love your motto. A tired dog is a good dog. He”s not perfect and he gets so excited when anybody comes over.Maybe I’ll check your online course out. I think your channel is right on for training dogs. Thank you. There are a couple of breeders for red fox labs in Michigan. Ours was in Ithaca, Michigan. And there’s one further north. In our extended family we have 3 red fox labs.
We lost our almost 13 year old yellow lab 6 weeks ago. My heart is broken and we decided to not get another one at this point. He was amazing and hope one day to fall in love again with another big head yellow lab. Just afraid we might not have the same experience with them being as awesome as our love we lost. Hoping one day to mend my broken heart.
I had a black lab. She was a lot of fun. She was the only dog we could trust to take horseback riding with. Unfortunately she die at age 6. I have a lot of fond memories of her. She was a rescue too.
Have had all colors(except "silver"). Upon occasion, even have a litter. I tell people, "chocolate literally are missing a chromosome", but they still want what they want. Hate to compare it to a car but if you want red or white your not gonna settle for black. So I gave up that fight(my preference is black) yrs ago. I will say, in training any black I have had trains quicker (if you can keep up) and remembers easier. I have a black one now that can work out in the community for hours every day. My imported, yellow bench male nope-he''s done after about 40mins.(All certified through chic so there's no excuse other then stamenia). The stamenia has literally been bred out of 75% of the bench labs. I have a chocolate I'm working with now but it's a rare one..super loving and wants to please. Most chocolates love, but you have to come to them..this ones unique and it amazes me each week what its capable of I gotta say go with black. Something about the way the sun hits on those dark eyes&coat! . So sad to hear Stonnie may be retiring.. but grateful for every ounce of wisdom he's shared with our family and our extended pup pack over the yrs. I share your videos almost every week.🎉
I have three labs. Yellow, brown and black. They have the same mother and father. Each came from a different litter. I had no idea color went with personally. I can confirm everything you've said! Amazing!! We love our pups!
We have had three labs in our family: #1: Sandy Koufax, Sandy was female-yellow with slight pigment. Right in the middle of the color line. She wasn’t white and she wasn’t reddish at all-just plain yellow. Pedigreed (never got the papers, because we didn’t really care). We live in South Texas, so there are a lot of field dogs, both black & yellow- bred for hunting. Sandy was energetic. She would play fetch till she dropped and was a great family dog. Unfortunately, she was such a good retriever, she retrieved a baseball that was pitched to my son. My son didn’t see her, & she receive the bat on her head at about age 4. She was our middle child, and so she didn’t get the attention she deserved. She was always into things, chewing cable lines, digging giant holes, one under an underground sprinkler pipe & rested her chin on the pipe (looked quite fetching-haha-pun), digging up shrubs, etc. etc. We moved when she was about three, and I started walking her every day, 2-3 miles. She got lots of good smells, and boom, she calmed down. Walks or maturity, who knows?She was never trained well enough to be in the house, so when we had a hurricane, we had to board her, because even the garage was not good for her style of living. She loved being outside, she tolerated the heat. She had a body of water she could use to cool off. She died at age 13. #2: is Babe Ruth. Babe (female) is Chocolate. She looks English, but has a lot of drive, and also would fetch until she drop. I was quite sick shortly after she arrived and hired a trainer to help me. so I’m still training her at age 12. She gets some of Maggies lessons. She barks at everything, and is slow to respond to my requests, but trained enough yo be one of the family. She is in the house most of the time, because I know better how to have that happen. Although, she acts more like a field dog, she had two champion hunters in her pedigree. She’s a sweetheart! She’s healthy as a horse, and I think she’ll be with us for a while. Number three: #3 Maggie del Mago: Maggie is also named a baseball player (Chicago, cubs player, Javier Báez, del Mago-the magician), is an interesting girl. She is looks like a field dog, and acts like one too. She’s much darker than Sandy. Her shade of yellow has a lot of rust in it. She has a rid of rust that runs right down her back. At first I thought she must not be really be pedigreed. Come on in She runs and runs and runs, she swims and swims and swims, we boarded her when she was about 1 1/2 years old. The boarding owner had a pool for the dogs about halfway through our trip. He asked me to order more food. I had put in enough food for a month and a half. She was swimming all of the time he would send videos of her swimming While the dogs other dogs were roaming around, sniffing each other lying around. She and babe are very close. She is 3 1/2 years old now when she got home from the border., She was skinny as a rail. Her ribs were sticking out. I took her to the vets, everything was OK but she was a bit anemic. After she got back into her routine at home, she was fine, but she still swims and swims and swims, runs and runs and runs, she is very attentive to me once again, my health problems ferret flared up, and she is so attentive I think she would’ve made a great service dog after looking at your video today, I think your assessment of the usual characteristics is spot on. Ha ha no spots on my abs. She is darker than Sandy was, and a bit more focused on, her boss, me. Then Sandy Wes. Babe has always been her own self. She acts more like a field dog, but looks like an English. She has a ton of hair, a bit curly, but very active. I do think she gets more tired quickly like in English, but she was bred to hunt. Unfortunately our dogs don’t hunt and they are lazy home dogs we love them. Thank you for your work I discovered to you while I was training Maggie. Maggie gets her middle name Nomado, because she is so smart. She can open most of the doors in our house, even one that has a regular door knob if it’s not All the way closed, she can flip hooks off of screen doors. We have to buy those that have a special spring to close it so it won’t flip open easily. She is very smart not to say that baby isn’t smart. She brings me her bowl and Maggie‘s bowl after they eat, so I can wash them, all of my lives or a great family dogs or are. All very smart. It would be hard to bring a different breed in the house once you’ve had a Labrador retriever.
No way you can retire! Maybe downsize a bit, but your videos are a great inspiration. I’ve had black, white, chocolate and currently a perfect yellow labs. They were all perfect at the time, though my black had more the personality of a yellow. He just didn’t love being a dog. The white was a total prima donna and ended up crazy as a loon. The chocolate was the sweetest and most faithful dog ever. My current yellow is a rescue neighborhood bad boy who is classic. He gets along great with the wpg who is only 2. I enjoy your videos immensely! Please continue.
I rescued a red fox lab from a kill shelter down south; fell in love-the most stunning boy; smart, very strong prey instinct, hi energy-- loved other dogs; loved running on the sandbars; amazing retriever & jumper. Walked him 6- 7 times a day-- took him everywhere. Still dream about him. 98 lbs @ just 2 yrs--a lot of dog & an athlete. Next time around- think a chocolate may be my speed . Love your videos-- thanks. Laura
First time viewer. OMG, wish I could teletransport from Ohio right into your video enjoying life with oodles of loveable labs! My Chocolate Star now 6 yo. Previous BlackJack was rescue. Labs bring love and happiness! Thank you for your video!
Ive had 4 labs in my life. 1 black field bred, one bench mixed with Rottweiler, one bench yellow, one bench yellow mixed with hound. I can validate everything Stonnie has said about the black and yellow. I would add that in my experience the black labs are more confident and dominate. Not in an aggressive way, but they very quickly are able to get other dogs in line and establish themselves as the ‘top’ dog. The yellows are more docile and willing to not be the top dog which makes blacks and yellows a good mix if you have multiple labs. But like All labs they all loved to eat, liked everyone and everything. The field bred dogs LIVE to fetch. As in that is all they want to do. They like food, but a throwing item can hold their attention like nothing else.
I also wanted to add that my field bred labs has spent time with Stonnie and I have spent time with Stonnie and have yet to have Jim tell me something that I found to be wrong. He is a true master of his craft.
We had a white lab x golden retriever and this video is just reminding me of what a goofball he was. He was here for a good time, but also a long time, nearly 13 years 💖
My yellow field lab was the only yellow in her litter. Her life's ambition is to become a chocolate. Anytime she gets wet she HAS to find mud or dirt to roll in.
@@cherylwoodwardmy black lab LOVED mud. He'd find mud or water to play in if it were the size of a penny and no one knew it existed. He'd find it and roll in it. He was amazing and smart, perfect combo between show and field (maybe a tad too field, but he had 2 national field champs in his litter. And he definitely was a field lab, but had a little bit of a show lab look to him in his older years.) Best dog ever. Everyone loved him (he tolerated everyone, but wasn't super-cuddly.) Not really food driven, completely ball/fetch driven. Unless chicken was involved. Then it would be a hard decision for him, but I think he'd pick fetch. I used that to my training advantage, of course.) But a tad bit too energetic for me. Still best dog ever. It's been about 5.5 years since I lost him and I still think about him *every day*. I'm now starting to think I've healed enough and maybe rested almost enough to get back in the lab game. But I'm so worried I won't find another in the same ballpark as great as my old boy. Sadly he had really aggressive osteosarcoma and I had to put him down at 9.5, but his brain was still so amazing, it was the hardest decision of my life.
We have two fox red Labradors. They are 1/2 siblings. We chose Labradors because we loved the colour, of course their papers say yellow as it should. My service dog is a darker red and he’s gorgeous. Our girl is a bit lighter. We are lucky to have our pups. We did a lot of training. Our girl is higher energy and one her younger. He’s 2 1/2 and she’s 1 1/2. My husband and I have grown up with all different breed. We researched for a long time and two years picking a kennel. Labs are gorgeous and loyal. People do stop us often to love them up nd ask questions. I have watched you since the beginning and you been a huge help! Thank you for all you do.
My yellow lab (recently passed at 15 years of age) was high energy. I could take him out and exercise, work him, and he’d still get into trouble! And this was a mismatch for me. But we worked it best we could and he lived a long, very happy life. He was always a very happy boy who loved everyone and everything. I miss him terribly.
Hey there - As usual, you nailed the important points that people really need to understand about Labs. In my experience, field dogs (aka - American Labs) are high energy with a narrower nose, and, usually, short coated. Whereas, show dogs (aka - English Labs) are more laid back, stockier, and feature a broader head or nose profile. Over the 30+ years with labs, we have had pure bred and mixed labs, English and American. We currently have 2 English labs and they are both registered as "yellow", but actually are red and white. We purchased from a breeder that specialized in therapy dogs and kept her bloodlines strictly English, although these dogs do not fit the "standard" color/temperament described, they do have the English lab look. We are older and when we were seeking dogs, we knew we did not want a high energy dog that demanded full time action/entertainment. These guys fit perfect into our routine and lifestyle. People need to be realistic about what they really want from a dog companion and not try to match a dog's look to what they think "looks" like what they want. Dogs are not a fashion accessory. You can find the right dog for you by focusing first on temperament and then you can chose a color out of the available litter. If you love them, they will be a great dog for you. My 2-cents.
In the UK there are working dogs and show dogs. The working labs are a slighter build and seem to be more active than the show labs- which are stockier. Never seen a working line choc lab. They are all fairly well built.
It never seizes to amaze me, I always learn something new watching your Vlogs! Thank you for being such a Champion for K9's. It's Trainers, especially you, that provide the Information and hands on videos that make us better , more thoughtful, compassioned caretakers of these incredible Souls.
I am a psycopedagog, I never new there were psycopedagogs for dogs. Everytime you say puppy, you can change it for child. You are great and so interesting. I bet you are a great dad
Currently enjoying our 3rd Lab. My first was a “blackie” when I was in my 20’s. He was as you describe as a “field lab” - very high energy, lived for retrieving etc. I selected an “English style chocolate” 35 years later as I read exactly what you stated, not as much energy or recharge rate. Got a 2nd chocolate 5 years later (unfortunately my initial chocolate died of cancer at 8). Both chocolates were English style - energy wise - especially now that I am 68, very easy dogs to live with. And yes my 2nd chocolate has those “yellow” evil eyes, lol.
I have an American black lab. She was one of 10 puppies in her liter. 9/10 were all black, 1 was completely white. Her mom was a brown lab and her dad was black lab. Both were award winning hunting dogs and AKC certified. Our dog has SO much energy. She is very well behaved because we have done a ton of training AND we have to get energy all through out the day. We live in Colorado so we do adventures regularly, play fetch multiple times a day and go for a long walk every day.
Stonie, first off, I love your videos. Informative and enjoyable both! I've had a yellow, black and chocolate labs and they are all different in personality. My yellow is a Dudley and he is by far the smartest of the three labs I've had and he wants to play 24/7. My chocolate female is laid back. She'll chase a ball maybe twice and then she goes on her own way but she's a lover. My black lab was the most aggressive lab I've ever had. Very protective of my kids and very stubborn. Those are just some of my observations of raising labs for the last 40 years. Thanks again and good luck in retirement
We’ve got a female black field lab. Sweetest thing ever. My wife and I are both very active. Hiking, mountain biking, field running, XC skiing. It’s great to have a pup that wants to do it all. But we could give her more and she’d never, ever stop. Great quote, “All dogs want to be labs, and all labs want to be black.” 😂
We have had three Chocolate Labs. All three were/are English types. Our first Lab - a male - was high energy and loved to retrieve. He had a high motor and loved to swim and dock dive. He was sweet and eager to please. He was a velcro dog. He was a perfect fit for us. Our second was a female from a champion bloodline. She didn't care much for retrieving and was very easygoing. She was mildly fearful and barked at all who passed by the house. She was lovely. She never met a stranger she didn't want to be friends with. She didn't like to swim or leave her feet unless I was in the water with her. Once in the water with me, she turned into a Lab!! Our current boy, and most dynamic of them all, and a great nephew of our female Lab, is built big, he has a bold confident personality, is friendly, will retrieve for awhile and then signals what else you got for me to do? He loves to show affection and be your best buddy. I tried agility with him, and did great for three weeks, and then one week said in his way, I am bored where is there a lake for swimming. He climbed the high a-frame without fear, strolled on the balance beam, did the teeter-totter and shot through the tunnel like a champ. The trainers were impressed with his fearlessness and confidence. One day, he let me know with his sudden abrupt sense of boredom he was more suited for water than land activities. We had fun, but, he loves the water more than any dog I know. He is also demanding of my attention, and will be strong willed, but a session of play in the yard satisfies his need for attention. He likes to go on adventures with me. He is absolutely good natured with people and other dogs. We are a perfect fit. You couldn't ask for a nicer dog. Thanks for your videos, Stonnie. Keep up the great work.
Honestly, she's an amazing dog and lab. I was watching her the whole time and she's gorgeous and so lab. I'm not sure why he's saying she's low-key (I mean, maybe maybe in comparison to the others, but the first chocolate was by far the least interested in doing stuff. The yellow/white lab was one of the best I've ever seen. And I have a strong black lab preference and former mommy to a black lab. My black lab and silver lab nephews were also amazing. I'm totally biased towards black labs.)
Great video. We've had all three colors of the male field labs. 1 chocolate, 2 yellow, 2 black. Chocolate was high strung but could go all day, none stop (beautiful animal). Yellow's always wanted to fetch and play, the black labs were like cats... independent. which is better or worse. Can't say. I wouldn't trade my time with any of them. They each had/have their personalities. Its a commitment to take a dog to raise, so you need to be thoughtful and honest with yourself and your abilities. Finding a great trainer like stonnie to train the human (most important) and the dog is time and money well spent.
I had a red fox lab with a block head over a decade ago. Couldnt tell you the breeder though got him through a friend. He was beautiful. Super docile. I had to take him to training before I realize he wasnt mentally impaired. 🤦🏻♀️
20 years ago we had a yellow lab, the English style. She was not interested in any fetch style games. We would throw the ball, and she would just look at you as if to say, “you threw it, you go get it” As she got in her senior years we decided we wanted a more play oriented dog. We found a great Border Collie Lab mix to join our lab in our family. He was much more play oriented, but on the other end of the spectrum, he was not a snuggler, and preferred to have more of his own space, which is more characteristic of B. Collies, I have been told. He is only recently no longer with us, and hoping next year will be the right time to look at another dog without the painful issues of loss. Thank you for your great videos. They are helping me quite a bit.
I have a 3 yo female chocolate field type with crazy eyes. If she can see a ball, she's in overdrive. I generally take her out 2x a day to throw for her. She has insane amounts of energy and endurance, and a very fast recovery. She's a lot for me to manage, but mostly because she's not friendly with other people and she cannot be trusted off-leash with any dog other than the pittie we already had when we got her. We've been training constantly, Once we got through advanced obedience, we started scent work - which she loves best when I'll throw a ball for her as her reward. I've had lab mixes in the past, but she's my first purebred.
I used to volunteer firing the gun at the hunting dog trials in Prado Basin, Calif and it was always the black labs and duck tollers that took the top two spots. There might be a yellow (white?) lab in the top 3 and the golden retrievers usually didn't even make the master hunter cert. The golden people brought the show dogs. The lab people were a mix of working and show. The duck toller people were all business, all the time, and that business was bringing ducks back.
We've had a chocolate 'show' lab, (a big guy - 80lbs+ / who was just the friendliest fella and absolutely doted on our daughter from the day we brought her back from the hospital). 2nd was a black lab from a working bloodline/ background, quite light at (58lbs). Absolute angel. Never ever did anything michevious, maybe chewed a few handkerchiefs of mine in 10 year but that was it. And was so protective / guarded our then teenage daughter when she had some medical emergencies out in the fields / countryside. Physically was tireless. Uber friendly too and just wanted to be best friends with every other dog he'd meet. We've now got a 6 month old fox red lab. Working (field trials) bloodline. He's absolutely relentless and not tiring either Physically or mentally ! The 5% devil dog comes out if he's bored. And he's a Ginger Ninja. So agile and nimble, and will get into trouble in the house with anything he thinks may be interesting. Sneaks up silently and can be in 3 places at once ! And sooooo smart. - He's great to take out walking in countryside, always listening, checking in, great recall, sit etc even at good distances etc. Not fazed by anything. I try to get the mini adventures in as much as I can - different woods, trails, streams to go go paddle in etc. Absolutely as you say he's going to take some real exercising when he's bigger (which suits me fine - we got him for long walks into the countryside and in the hills - and I'll be early-retired when he's in his prime. But my oh my he's got even more 'go' and tirelessness than we'd expected, even when we thought we knew what we were getting with a field trial line. The one big thing we need to work on is that he's VERY 'imprinted' on me and doesn't want to be anywhere except where I am - even if I'm just off to the bathroom or to the kitchen making a coffee.
Our 3 year old "American" body type black male came from a line of bird hunting dogs that we almost accidentally stumbled upon him from a breeder during covid. He is very athletic, high energy and always ready to charge ahead. He's tall and lean and not stocky like some labs. As a puppy he was a bit of a challenge because of his energy and the fact that we asked him to live in a suburban house (with large yard) with a family with a bunch of kids. Now that he's a bit older he is a big goofball with energy on-demand but he's really just a big 80lb snuggle bug - and he's attached at the hip to my wife and I swear he's the love of her life! He has to be in contact with her at all times if possible and he is incredibly protective of her especially. An amazing and loving family dog that's ready to go on big adventures at any time! No surprise labs are such amazing family dogs.
I totally agree about the fox reds activity level relating to behavior. You did a great job with Bo a few years ago. She was a mess when we brought her to you. We had actually noticed some regression in the past few months because our routine has changed since I haven’t been home to work with her the way I should. My dad is having some health issues so I had to make adjustments to give her what she needs. They are very sensitive.
I enjoy your channel very much which has helped me a lot and you have described my 3 year old fox red labrador girl to a T. She is lively, recovers quickly, loves retrieving, loves to run fast and do agility, loves people and other dogs, has a high prey drive and thinks she is a visla. I did make a mistake because I am much too old for her but I take her to dog club every week where I took her to all her puppy training, get help with the walking, and make sure she does get enough exercise. Her brother is the opposite, a yellow male show type dog, plodding and solid. I wish I could have taken advantage of your training courses for her but being UK based I had to buckle down and do it here. So I am lucky that I got her through her first 3 years without too much difficulty although it was hard at times. Best of all she is a great companion and keeps me fit!
My last lab, RIP at 14 recently, was dark yellow and man you nailed the energy level. Fetch 5,6,7 times a day until he dropped, 20 minutes later…. Luckily I had acreage. Now at 65, looking for another with maybe a lower rpm :) great timely video
I’m a. Dog groomer and retired vet assistant and my grand dog is a black lab. She is the field type ❤ English labs are exactly like you describe I only see the yellow or very light English the chocolate labs I deal with are much more active and hard to keep in a crate after a groom they are trying to tear the crate up or are more hyper on the groom table and a little aggressive sometimes which I hardly see in the black and yellow. The blues almost alway have alopecia but always pretty laid back Love watching your channel
I don't know what I would do without my black Lab "Max." He has a white patch on his chest and white on his snout, almost like a mustache/beard. He is super calm and friendly to everyone and everything.
Maybe it’s semantics, but I think people are confusing “field bred” with backyard bred. Your lab is field bred if it came from a breeder who breeds labs that are actually used in the field and have working titles to prove it. If your lab didn’t come from one of those breeders but it looks taller, lanky, and not like a show bred lab (English) it doesn’t make it field, it just makes it a lab that wasn’t bred to any written standard (aka, bred by a backyard breeder). Doesn’t mean that lab can’t become a great working lab in the field, it just means it came from not the best pedigree. All silver labs will fall under this, because no breeder that wants a good field lab will care about color (and you have to breed FOR silver to GET silver), and silver is not a showable color, so show breeders don’t breed for it. Breeders that advertise color as the selling point and not health, longevity, temperament, breed characteristics, and structure, are doing it for $$ and not for the betterment of the breed. With all the info out there I shouldn’t have to mention a reputable breeder will also do genetic health testing and have a contact requiring the owner to give a dog back to the breeder during it’s lifetime if they can no longer care for it, so none of their dogs will end up in rescues. I know I went off on a tangent, but I couldn’t help but laugh as I read the comments of people saying they had “field bred silver labs” or field bred lab they got from a rescue 😂
I have had two chocolate labs so far. They were great with my kids from birth until they passed on. Super chill, super laid back. Just a great dog if or if you don't have kids.
Our first yellow English was the perfect dog, as you describe, when our daughter was 0-6. We're now on our second, and specifically picked her from the litter because she seemed the calmest, and easiest going. Boy did she unexpectedly turn out to be more like an American field lab! At 3 yo she's calming down. She's a great frisbee dog, hiking companion, swimmer and walker, all of which she needs on a regular basis. Our Cavalier lap dog, Poppy, offsets Daisy's enthusiasm well.
We have hot Summers. My Black Lab's hated the heat, and were constantly seeking shade, unless snow was on the ground. It has been Yellow Lab's ever since. Every single Lab was a great dog. I do prefer the English type. I like the look. I love the attitude. My current Australian Shepherd is a FREAK for retrieving. Me and the Lab watch her go.
That was my only real issue with the black labs - they overheat too quickly sometimes. My poor guy panted the full three years we lived in San Diego. I moved back north to give him the winters he loved and summers I enjoyed, but those winters were too hard and cold for me. I've moved NE since then, without my faithful companion (we started NW, and he passed before moving NE), and he'd probably enjoy it here sometimes, but the humidity in the summer would probably really get to him (it gets to me.) I'm still debating the "right time" to bring a lab back into my house. I miss my guy terribly, but life is a bit less retrieving-centric...
Our two are yellow because I figure they will be a bit cooler in the Florida heat, and also because when they run at someone they're not as scary as a black or chocolate Lab. We used to have a Chocolate that was 110 lbs and he was very intimidating though he was just a big baby. I had an Aussie too once- smart as a whip but if I threw a ball she would just look at me like, now what?
My field black lab was tall and very muscular, all 95 lbs of her. She could be chill or excited - the tone of your voice told her what you wanted - high and excited meant she could be too. Low and even toned meant it was time to be calm, but still happy to see you. She was also very perceptive about whomever she could be a lap dog and who preferred she lay or sit beside you. She had great stamina, but when she was done, she was a 95 lb paperweight. She tried to keep up with her dalmatian friend in the rural area while the people were on horseback. Then she'd just plop down for 15 to 20 minutes. My brother would pick her up and drape her over the horse he rode to get back home, and she was totally chill. My dad didn't like to be licked, so she would just nose him instead. She was a wonderful dog all around and very obedient. We gave her plenty of exercise with long walks and playing fetch. We never had a rodent problem. Though she didn't mind birds just walking up to her when she was chilling.
I started my dog experience in my early 20ies with Beagles. Now exactly 40 years later we have our dogs #7 and #8. - a 14 year old chubby black lab (our second chubby black lab) and a 3 year old Lagotto-Cocker-Mix. Beside our labs we had first my old beagle and than two pugs. I miss all my later dogs. Our labs are/were the perfect fit for my family with 3 Kids and now with a 10 year old grandson living next door to us, Home Office, clients, family trips, daily adventures in the fields, wood and streams and lakes in our neighbourhood. I‘ll do it again. I’love the chubbies and their peaceful and calm attitude and the original colour.
We’ve had black labs and chocolate lab in the past. Currently we have a fox red lab. The chocolate was huge, a little lazy, but loved to swim. He would only retrieve consistently from water. The black was a lot lazy and at 75 pounds just wanted to be a lapdog. The fox red is the exact opposite. She’s extremely high energy. Loves to swim. We live on a lake and she’ll jump in just for the thrill of swimming. Her bloodline are big hunters and we knew she would be high energy. We retired before getting her so we have the time to exercise her as much as she needs. I can’t imagine having this fox red and still working a 9-5 job. She would be a problem if that were the case. We’ve never had any dog that was this energetic before so it was definitely a learning curve for us. She’s 1.5 years old now. Too many people don’t do the research and that’s why there are so many high energy dogs in shelters unfortunately
I have had two labs both black. My first was an english/show lab puppy I got when my kids were young. She came from a line of master hunters. She was very laid back and calm. She was incredibly smart. She was the perfect dog with my kids. I only had to tell her to do something once and she obeyed. It was traumatic for us when she passed. I waited till I retired to get another dog. I bought an American/field lab puppy. Oh my gosh what a difference between the two labs. Brynlie my American lab is the most energetic dog I have ever had. She is just how Stonnie describes the field labs. I got her at 61 years old. She is two now. She is ball obsessed true to the American field lab traits. Here is an example of how obsessed, she follows me around all day dropping her ball at my feet. If I don’t throw her ball when I stop she barks till I kick or throw her ball. Once I am in my bathroom and my shorts are pulled down she drops her ball in my underwear. The perfect place for her ball and one that I can’t possibly miss. She is so funny. Brynlie keeps me young, laughing and exercising. I am single and alone because of Brynlie I feel less isolated. I have made some very good friends on our journeys.
Are you a fan of my training style, but can’t travel to Kentucky to see me in person? No worries! I offer an awesome online dog training course, which includes access to an array of exclusive videos and content, personalized coaching, journaling, and in-depth mentoring and evaluation by yours truly! If you just need some an advice or have a couple questions you need answered, I also offer professional consulting by the hour.
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Thank you all for your remarkable support over the years! I cannot express enough how grateful I am for your appreciation and patronage of this channel, my training style, and my kennel. Always remember, it’s a great day for a puppy-sized adventure!
The best hunting Lab we ever had was a yellow/white “Cody” who had a heart of gold and a nose like no other
My girlfriend and I are getting our first Fox Red Male in less than 2 weeks I am interested in hearing more about this, we absolutely love your approach!
Yellow lab
How is he doing??
The best way to choose a labrador is by the color of your floor covering. If you have dark floors get a Black lab if you have light Colored floors get a yellow lab. Lab owners will know what I mean.😂
Or favorite color of clothes to wear
We have 2 black labs, it’s amazing the weird places you find the *glitter*.
I made pizza dough one night, washed the bench a couple of times, rolled it all out and sure enough, the glitter was there, on top of the dough balls.
Had a black lab 15 yrs ago still find black hair inside a can of corn just bought last week. Impossiable to get rid of lab hair😅😅😅😅😅
Labs only blow their costs twice a year!
It’s for the first six months, and then the following six months… 😂
I have a chocolate lab with a brown couch. If it wasn't for the chewing I wouldn't be able to find him 😂
“All dogs want to be labs and all labs want to be black labs…”. So we have a black chubby! He is exactly as you have described. He’s so calm and chill, wicked smart. And polite according to our neighbors. It’s takes FOREVER to take a walk because everyone wants to greet him and love on him. They know his name, but not mine! We’ve had several labs over the years, but this one….super Fast learner…or it may be that we are the fast learners in his eyes! The breeder matched him with us I believe. He knows his dogs and gave his yellow to a little boy who’d recently lost his father to Covid. Please don’t retire! People want to be trainers, and all trainers want to be Uncle Stonnie!!
One of my favorite quotes ever ❤
Sorry not all Labrador want to be black. My Yellow Labrador was just fine being just who she was. A leader the pack followed her . The smartest dog ever for me to train. Like she all ready knew it all just wanted directions. 🐕🦺🐕🦺🐕🦺😎❤
@@larrysmith8635 and yet, you comment with black dog emojis! Just kidding, we had two yellow labs before this black one. Labs are great no matter the color!
Every time I see a black Lab when I'm out with my border collies, I think of that quote:)
A lot of people are afraid of Black labs.
“It’s gonna be a little more athletic” as the white lab slips on the canoe behind him 😂
Yes because canoe slipping really reveals the non athletic dog.
@@MasonboyMasielI think it’s called seeing the funny side…🙄
omg thank u for flagging this I've been rewinding & cackling for 12 minutes 😂
😂😂😂😂😂 perfect comedic timing
There´s Labradors and the rest are just dogs... That chocolate lab puppy melted me! He just wants to please you, and do the exercises even when you don´t have him on a leash, that is the typical Labrador retriever attitude: "can I help you? can I be with you? can I love you?" It´s been 3 years since my two labs passed (black male, yellow female, both passed at age 13 within a month of each other) and I still miss them like it happened last week.
A Labrador missed a meal 50 generations ago and they decided that was never going to happen again.
😂❤
Exactly!!!!!! 😂😂😂😂
lol
Truer words never spoken 😂
As a black lab owner I felt that in my soul 😂. The world stops once the food is brought out.
Black Labs are the most well rounded in my opinion. Lost mine after 14 great years over a year ago & miss him every day. I rescued him when he was 11 or 12 months old so had no idea how he would be. To this day he was our Best Dog Ever!
We rescued our black chubby when she was 7 months old, I took her to obedience classes because she was a bigger dog than I ever had. She did so well and I learned so much. She is nearly 14 now and is THE best dog ever. Taught her cool tricks and she loves people. She has cancer now and I’m so sad. I hope to get another one after I retire…but know she’ll never be like my girl.
@kktx4058 He wasn't your best dog because he was a black lab, he was an individual.
Did you rescue or adopt?
My heart understands your great gift to have been partners with your " Best Dog Ever. " It's a blessing to have experienced such unconditional love, understanding and joy. Bless you 💞
I love all of the colors of a Labrador retrievers. However, my favorites are the chocolate and black Labrador retrievers. I really enjoyed this video. Thank you..
I had a fox red yellow lab many years ago that was the smartest dog I have ever had or dealt with. We lived on a horse farm and he was athletic, had mad stamina, was the best companion and helper I've ever known and could learn absolutely anything. He could open gates for me, retrieve the newspaper from the main road, put trash in the can and recyclables in the bin, drag limbs to the fire pile, just to name a few. He was an outstanding companion, and is missed every day. I always refer to him now as Clancey the Wonder Dog.
My fox red helps picks weeds from the yard, literally will pull them out
I was a puppy raiser for a major guide dog school. They bred their pups for temperament. I raised blacks, yellows and a Black and Tan. I was challenged many times about the Black and Tan being a full Labrador. Yes she was. Most of them were fairly easy to train, they loved the rewards of being a successful student. However my last pup, a black, was a pistol, full of energy. His blind partner was totally in love with him. Labrador Retrievers rock.
Black and Tan’s should not be bred.
As a Boxer owner, I’m not sure why this video popped up on my feed lol. I ended up watching the whole thing, and this gentleman is really good at what he does! Hey, we all love dogs, and they all do the same thing for us. Fill us full of love and joy.
Please don't retire! I watch your videos every morning while I eat breakfast for inspiration to get out there and be a good active owner to my 10 month old yellow Lab. People compliment me on how well behaved he is and that's due to you. You're the best trainer on UA-cam, and there is no replacement. 😄
❤We had an ‘English’ Chocolate (God rest his soul).He was my service dog (PTSD). He was a breeder’s stud who was put up for adoption at 2 years old. He was incredibly easy going and a really sensitive dog who was perfect for PTSD identification. He was ok on short hikes when we were stationed in Germany and we knew when he needed a break. He was so easy going that he rode the gondolas on the ski slopes in Austria and Germany without any hesitation. He loved to get in the water reservoirs at the ski areas in the summer and would lay on the edges of the ski slopes in the snow after the slopes and lifts had closed for the day. The Germans, who are a huge dog loving culture, noted how well mannered he was (“for an American dog” they’d say!). He pretty much came that way- he never lived inside a house (he lived in the pack as a stud on a farm and in a big barn and yard). He adapted quickly to learning how to walk stairs and live in a house. He had to learn that taking walks was ‘normal’ and learned to love walks. I loved having an English Chocolate. When I’d go to the gym, he’d simply lay and watch me on the treadmill or lifting weights. (Work harder peasant as I lay here like the royalty I am!!!!). He was my sweet angel boy. Miss my Ruger. 😢
I wanted a smart and energetic labrador and so I got a black field lab. Walter's 9 years old and has the energy of half his age. He's also very independent and likes his space...he's loving and kind to everyone and can go non-stop all day. Walter's the only reason I go to the beach, hiking and I bring him everywhere. I've become extremely active to match my lab's needs!
Hey 👋 Stonnie!
We got a genuine “Yellow” field Lab at 8 weeks old, and rescued a 2yr old Black field Lab from a kill shelter. Both were incredible family dogs. The black was stressed and had reoccurring behavioral issues , while the yellow came with pedigree papers and was super easy to train from the start. As the years went on, we established a trust and incredible bond and broad vocabularies with both dogs. But, I have to tell you the black lab was our heart dog- one in a million. Labs are so smart. Relaxed, friendly, and protective when required. Neither of our dogs was as attentive and well-mannered, well-trained as Henry or Mr. No Name, but for our nuclear family, they got us up and out, walking, hiking, running, and socializing with neighbors. I’m wondering as an old retired guy, if another Lab is in my future- and if I could make myself interesting enough and worthy of having another Lab. We’ll see what happens.
Love how your dogs got you out as a family and how you are now considering if you could make yourself interesting enough. That's so lovely.
Hey @grandpa_eric ! My husband and I are retired and we have two black labs. We walk them everyday, take them everywhere we can, and have lots of grandchildren around, ages 17 - 2.
Our labs love walking the neighborhood. They know every neighbor, every dog, cat, squirrel and bird there is to know-and the dogs have been a terrific vehicle for getting to know neighbors because they are so well behaved and love everyone. We have children that wait in front of their house to come see Maggie and Luke and I can’t tell who is happier-the dogs or the kids ❤ We’ve also had people talk with the dogs who were very much almost hermits, and built a bridge that way.
I’m making this too long. I’m trying to say, if you are healthy enough and can get out and about with a Lab, go ahead. But I really love your thinking of the dog’s needs over your own wants. Bless you!
@@DOSU490 Wow!! You’re so nice. Labs make life better, don’t they? Sounds like you agree and are doing all the right things. We’re fortunate to have a granddog named Wally who we dog-share sometimes for my son. We have 5 grandkids- my son(named Luke!) has 2 kids- a 3 year old, and an infant. Wally literally jumps into the air when we arrive, as if I was away serving a tour of duty. Nice, huh? Wally looks like a Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever, but he’s a 4 1/2 year old mutt- a pretty mutt, lol. He’ll be here soon to stay with us until Thanksgiving. I’m glad you reached out and spoke from the heart. It’s hard not having our own dog. As if I’m in hospice care and my life is about to end. I can tell you my wife says I’m happier, more relaxed with Wally here. We get up and out, as you do. Yet we understand the commitment of dog ownership, and I worry about breaking that bond. Thanks for reaching out, and your kind comment.
@@grandpa_eric Aww, thanks! Dogs and family really make life worth living, don’t they? I hear what you are saying about the bond. One thought is adopting an older dog from one of the lab rescues, or even fostering. Lots of great dogs needing good people, as you obviously know. We got started on loving Labs (although all dogs are wonderful) when we adopted a chocolate lab no one else would take because when they picked him up (we think he was simply abandoned 🥵) he was depressed and had silver dilute which they thought meant he was a senior-he was also huge-and we said, heck, we’re not that young anymore either! Ha! So we brought him home, kennel cough and depression and all-he was soon cured of both-and we absolutely fell in love with our gentle giant-and that began our love of labs. God bless and be well! ❤️
@@DOSU490 Nice. Best wishes to you and and your loved ones.
We had a beautiful chocolate lab and when he passed away we found a yellow lab, both were wonderful dogs. We moved from Nevada to NC to Florida with the chocolate and he was wonderful never had an issue. The yellow was also great born & raised in Georgia, she loved traveling with us also a great dog. The worst part of having them was saying good bye when they passed away.
I’ve had lots of dogs over the many years: 3 Labs, 1 Golden, 2 Pyrenees, 1 Shepherd. They’ve all been wonderful. But two of the Labs were my soulmates. One was Yellow; one Fox Red. The Yellow was incredibly tolerant when my now-adult children were toddlers. She would put up with anything. The Fox Red had the best attitude of anyone - human or canine - I’ve ever known. She was just happy about everything. She was thrilled to find a branch to carry around, so I called her the Branch Manager (as in a bank)! I have two Pyrenees now - they’re lovely - but before I fall off the twig, I’d love to have another Lab. And I think you’re saying that a Chocolate would be best for an old coot like me.
I saw an add for two adult labradors seeking a home on FB recently . together..i really dont have the space since i have a mixed Maremma..but adopting an older labrador is a beautiful act of charity.
A different ball game. Very reserved. A guardian dog like Pyranee
however rare it is great to adopt an older lab.and there are mixed labradors who are adults and less hyper
Look at all those GOOD dogs! Yep, pair up with the dog that matches your lifestyle/goals the best. At 63 and a home body, I'd be crazy to get a high energy field bred dog. But a dog that needs enough going outside to get me up and more a bit more wouldn't be a bad thing. Balance. Even camping, I'm not the guy planning on 10 mile hikes each day. I'm the guy hanging out at camp, reading, drinking coffee and such. That little white lab, or one of those chocolates would be my cup of tea. Those manic field dogs are great to go visit for a day, or for a weekend.
FACT!
I've been looking for my new companion and I'm surprised how people respond to me taking my time to find the right fit. Apparently a lot of folks just go with the first dog they think is cute. No wonder so many dogs end up in shelters! i'm getting a lot of criticism for passing up great dogs who I don't feel are a match. I'm looking for an adult so to me it is crucial that we start with basic lifestyle and behavior comradery. It is one thing not to have had training but another as to whether the dog is interested in learning. Not to mention that I need to fall a little bit in love when I first see the animal!
@@andrealeggett858"When the student is ready, the teacher will come." Take your time. When you and the "right" dog find each other... you'll know.
@@convincedquaker we found each other! i found a six month old pyrenees at the pound. they had her at a community adoption event which made it possible to spend two hours together before i officially adopted her. though i must admit, i fell for her the moment i laid eyes on her. we've been together for six weeks now. thank you for your encouragement! my last pup was a golden pyrenees.
I’ve had 4 Labs. My current chocolate is amazing. Her temperament is perfect.. she loves to fetch but not too much. When we travel she is perfect. She lays in the back seat and is as quiet as I’ve ever seen. Thanks for this video. I learned a lot.
We had a fox red lab that just passed away this summer at 15. His physical build was more show style- shorter, big chest, square face. He was a great family dog, he was always so gentle with our daughters. We now have two lab puppies 7 weeks apart from different breeders- a yellow (white) lab- from show lines- very trainable and very chill. Our other puppy is a dark chocolate- with the light hazel "crazy" eyes. He is cute as can be, but can get into stuff when he is bored. I can tell we will have to keep him exercised well.
Loved this video!
Two Labs, the first was a field line from Utah, a Dudley when the rest of the litter was black, 90 pounds at a show weight. The second one is a very dark chocolate female, pretty small at 60 pounds and also from field lines, both her parents were duck dogs, so both of these dogs are (were in the case of our recently departed male) high energy, fast recharge, and in need of stimulation. The best thing that our older dog learned, and taught our younger dog, is how to be self calming and self advocating. If they have to be cooped up for a few days for a long trip, or if the in-laws are taking care of them, they don't turn destructive and just remain calm until they can get run properly again; and self advocating so they can tell us when they need attention and what sort they're looking for, whether that be retrieving or hiking or just a simple walk.
Since our older dog passed recently though, we're didn't go looking for another Labrador. Not that we wouldn't love one, but our young girl also gets a vote, and she likes playing with dogs twice her size, so we went with a closely related breed: a Newfoundland. More energy and an even faster recharge than a field lab, but also perfectly happy being a couch potato, so as a companion for our high energy dog it's a perfect choice - exactly as much play as she wants. Now here's to hoping our house survives...
As an aside, our older dog learned an incredible vocabulary, we estimated it at over 1,000 nouns and dozens of fully conjugated verbs by the time was 8 or so, and scarry smart. When I hurt my back and sent him to get my wife and he couldn't, he brought my cell phone instead... when he was three. He knew how to be consistent in his lies, just a wickedly smart dog, but also just happy being called a good boy, so he never got out of hand.
Our chocolate is just right for us! While she was a ball of fire as a puppy, she has adapted to living with 2 old people well! Very intelligent, well mannered, super sensitive, and loves everyone. Definitely PetSmart greeter material.
Thankyou stonie for addressing the issue of the " don't exercise so much when young". I'd gone 20 yrs between pups and couldn't get my head around this 20 minutes exercise for every month of life. I soon realized my fox red girl was having non of that. She is nearly six now has amazing energy levels. Have only heard her bark about a dozen times. Has a definite need to carry and retrieve. Is a total ball fetching maniac. Having said all that she is chilled in the house and garden.
Thanks, watching dogs puts a smile on my face.
This is all the excitement I need.
Take care 😊
I have a Silver Field Bred Lab. What a joy he is to our family. I got him to hike with me and to hang out with me on our farm. He is an awesome hiker who can hike 15 miles per day without taking a break. The only problem I have with him is his anxiety camping. The least amount of noise in the woods sets him off especially owls. He barks at turkeys, hawks and buzzards. He loves to swim and roll in the mud. He is the best truck/car rider in the world. He goes everywhere I go. He has never given us a problem in the house except for the shedding. He is three years old and just keeps getting better each day as we have followed your advice from the age of six weeks old until now. Thanks Stonnie
Silvers are not a real lab color. You have a mix bred dog
@@magnoliacreekrabbitry9454 talk to the hand! You will not rain on my parade troll.
@@cottontalesfromthetrail5474 They're not a troll! Silver labs are not a thing
@@jenniferellis7594 stop it troll
My brother has a silver Lab as well, and she's a great dog. Like yours though, she is more of a barker/natural guard dog and more protective than other Labs. Or certainly more than my black Lab and the English Labs that are bred for show. I think this is something Stonnie has said in other videos too.
My husband brought home a fox red puppy with light eyes that was the craziest dog I ever met. Very high energy. Sliced and diced me with her teeth and nails for the first year. We rescued a 3 yr old Golden Retriever when the Lab was a yr old. That helped to settle the Lab down some as they played really hard together, running and retrieving discs. The Golden is the sweetest dog we've ever owned. The Lab is much better now at
2 1/2 yes old, although she still has her crazy moments. My husband works with both of them on training. Hopefully, the Lab will settle down even more to a normal Lab energy level as she gets older. We're in our 60's and she was more than what we were expecting to deal with at our age. She does really well with our great granddaughter though, so that's a plus.
Never happy if not retreating that’s my fox red lab.
Good video. Thanks
Is your pup with the hurt leg looking for a home? ❤
If the fin goes side to side it’s a shark dolphins go un and down remember that
Labs don't start losing energy until they're 5-6 years old...
I have a 4 year old female Fox Red. She is very American and very athletic. She barks a lot and needs a ton of exercise. I wouldn't trade her for anything because I have an active lifestyle and she is so much fun. I agree with everything Stonnie said about the Fox Red.
I have a 2.5 year old Silver lab that's a field size. He's high energy and a retrieving machine (his eyes dilate, and he can focus on nothing else but that ball/stick/or whatever we're throwing that day. I have to store his fetching gear outside of eye shot in the house or he'd just stare at it wantingly all day til I gave in). We also do a lot of hiking, running, and he does loads of tricks. I wanted a Silver lab because they were so neat looking to me and unusual. Luckily he came from very good stock and has zero skin issues or eye issues that I've heard about. He wants to cuddle, but just doesn't have the capacity yet to do it gently. Usually you get a good smack to the face with his big hard head, because he's soooo excited. I take him everywhere with me that allows dogs, to expose him to as much as possible. He is still capable of quietly hanging out in the house (finally after he turned about 1.5). He has his own backpack and backpacks for 4 days every year carrying his own gear. He's also a swimming machine and has been on many kayaking trips with his own life jacket. He recharges after a 2-5 minute dip in the pool, river, lake or what have you. He's so much fun and keeps me busy, definitely my ride or die!
Was so excited to watch your take on the differences between the Labrador variations associated with the color differences! I have boarded dogs on my rural property for 15 years and have noticed these differences as well. My anecdotal observations; The ‘English’ labs are, in my opinion, more sedate, more stable. The American standard, field labs, the opposite. But the color differences, in my observations, are the most interesting, I find the yellow, are more nervous, more anxious, the Black, the opposite. However, the Chocolates were like a box of chocolates, never knew what to expect.
BTW, I have boarded an English fox red, so they are out there!
Thank you for this video, I found it as helpful as fascinating!
I have an English Dark Chocolate lab. ENGLISH is the key to me calm and does not bark. I paid extra for an ENGLISH but worth every dime for senior citizens. Love your videos. You are so knowledgeable and down to earth. More people need to see your videos when selecting a dog. Thanks sad you may retire one day
Exactly!! And they are beautiful!!
Stonnie, your video/channel was just recommended to me today. I’m glad I watched it. I’ve owned labs for 30 years but only blacks and yellows. One yellow happened to be a “double chocolate” and be a little lighter than fox red. I prefer blacks too and try to take my two, Isaac and Abby, with me as many places as possible.
I have to compliment you on your demeanor, tone, and presentation. It was an absolute joy to watch this, and I particularly love your obstacle course. I can’t wait to watch more of your videos.
Great video. I started out with a Chocolate Lab about 40 yrs ago because the breeder was going to put her down and gave her to me for free. Shae was an English version and was one of the best dogs I ever had. Since then, I have stayed true to the English Chocolates. I also have always had Staffordshire Terriers. Having the two breeds in my home (at the same time) has been a real pleasure. In fact, I my Staffie helps me in my business rehabilitating fearful and aggressive dogs even more than the Lab. She has such a laid back style and helps put the other dogs at ease. Together they have helped many dogs learn to be comfortable with things they used to fear. The lab taught the Staffie all there is to know about swimming and diving in the water. Both love to ride in the car and be close to me all day and then curl up next to me and relax in the evening. It's a great way to spend your life.
I always start my day with a smile when you have a new video. I just love watching those dogs! Squash that retirement talk!
Told my breeder I wanted a Yellow Male Lab with a face that belonged on an alpo can and was naturally lazyI waited a year and a half but man she delivered. Best dog.
We have 2, 6 year old Black Lab Girls (Littermates) Father was English, Mother was American and thus we ended up with one American, the other English. I wholeheartedly concur with your breakdown. One is more agile, athletic, energetic versus the other more laid back after a smaller amount of stimuli, although high focus when she does engage. They each appreciate different Games or Toys; Hikes versus Walks ( one likes to stay close - the other loves to roam). One cares about water completely different from the other. We've been fascinated by it and the more we learn the more appreciative we become of this amazing Breed and all your shared insights 🤗
On a last Note: you simply can not Retire ... you are too much of a Treasure with invaluable knowledge.
I'm certain there are thousands of Dogs out there which lives have improved because of the information and techniques you share. You have certainly changed our understanding for the better, on how to handle dogs in a myriad of ways - not just in training but the wellbeing, how to properly care for our K9 Companions . 1 example - your Heat Indicator Vlog - how a Dogs Tongue works when they drink. Thank you, for all you do 🥰🐕🐶
Hello Claudia, how are you doing today, hope you’re fine and safe from the COVID-19 virus??
Agree with everything you’ve said here. I had a fox red Labrador for just over 13 years, before they became ‘fashionable.’ A great dog. The most loyal and loving companion to me and my family and gentle with my young children. He loved a fuss and a love more than any dog I’ve ever known. You could not give him enough cuddles and vice versa!
However, he was of quite a nervous disposition and wary of new people. Once he’d met you, he was fine but he wasn’t the gregarious labrador who loved anyone and everyone at first sight. He liked to meet people properly first. However, he loved all other dogs without exception.
I never saw an ounce of aggression from him either. Not once saw his teeth bared in even the slightest of snarls. Never growled or grumbled at any of us, ever. The vet could poke and prod him any which way and he never reacted.
He was not a quiet dog. We knew when anyone approached the house. Nervous barking would follow every knock at the door; worrying a stranger might be entering of course!!He would also bark at the window if people lingered outside the front of the house.
I’d describe the fox reds as being very intelligent dogs who are ‘over thinkers.’ My boy analysed everything and didn’t miss anything. You could hear the cogs constantly turning. He was only truly relaxed when he was receiving the massive amounts of fuss and cuddles he used to want from his family 😂 or when he was out in the countryside on his many long and lovely walks. We were able to give him copious amounts of exercise in the English countryside daily.
So yes, you could well have a mixed bag if you have a fox red. They are not the most straightforward of Labradors but by God they are beautiful - mine was stunningly handsome (not to be boastful but I was told almost every time I took him out.) He hated the attention being nervous but he was always commented on.
Fun dogs. Up for adventure. Fiercely loyal and loving. Athletic and with an ever ready battery. My soul dog Henry.
We take on another Labrador puppy next month - yellow (fox red dad, black mum). Wonder what he’ll be like and whether the nervous trait will prevail or be watered down somewhat? We shall see but we are ready for him anyway and we know what we are letting ourselves in for 😂🐶🧡
Im not a lab person, I have had German shepherds all my life, but I like labs and I've known a few friends who have had one. Maybe it's my age, but all of my friends had black labs. And they all were good, sweet dogs. One friend had a male lab that I swear, everytime I stopped by, was in the process of trying to fit a huge log through the front door. If it wasn't a log it was a really big stick. He never gave up on getting these things through the door. Any German Shepherd I've ever owned would have dropped that very quickly, and said " if you want that in here get it yourself."
We ranch in Wyoming and have had stockdogs. My last one was accidentally killed. I opted for looking at something different. An English puppy literally fell into my life. I'd always admired Golden Retrievers. This puppy is an English Lab x English Retriever cross; the family breeds them for service / therapy use. All I can say is she is the easiest, smartest, most attentive puppy I've ever had. Cream with dark skin. She is a real blessing. I've really enjoyed your videos. Thank you.
Ive had so many labs, both of field and show lines. We rescued a fox red lab once (ended up being the best dog we ever had), the poor guy was neglected badly, and only 1 years old, but looked so aged. He was kept chained up outside with no dog house, on a 4x4 cement pad. You could see right through him, ribs everywhere. We gave him the best life ever, and he was nick named "Eeyore" for his completely chill vibe and nothing fazes me, way of life. Best boy ever. I miss him.
Hi Stonnie, great video as usual. I have had a black English that was so calm and trained easily. A chocolate English that trained easily but a bit more energetic than the black and yellow. My yellow English now has been the best lab that I’ve ever had. He was very easy to train in obedience and rally. Even got his service dog certificate at twelve months. He loves to fetch; but, like you said he quits after about ten times. All of them love/loved swimming. All love/loved to go everywhere with me. I had one field black lab and one yellow field. Both very high energy. All the labs were loving and love people, especially kids. As a sixty six year old, I really love my yellow slow and easy happy go lucky go anywhere senior pup. ❤
awesome video. I had a red fox lab. but he was mixed, mostly lab and SO SO SO INTELLIGENT and sensitive. thanks again for your video. your accent is so cute!
As a single mom I had a yellow lab who was soooo beautiful: healthy, sweet and loving, loyal. Never barked! Smart and eager to please. Fast forward to my 60’s decided to get a dog and wanted a lab, but didn’t get a yellow as I thought I didn’t want to expect what I’d had before. Got a beautiful black lab. Their eyes and coats are magic! She Loved to fetch, not affectionate, total energy, nonstop. Spent lots of time, &$ training her…yes, I still love her, but she’s like a different breed. Wish I’d watched your color video 10 years ago! We learn so much with our dogs. They are all a blessing!
We have an English fox red, our breeder is in southern Ontario. I previously had a field red retriever, and he was very lean, athletic and literally would not stop until you made him. Our english retriever is very strong, more stout, but agile, can jump and is fast, but he’s only good for short retrieving sessions. So yes, I would definitely agree with personality differences.
Never seen your channel sir. I loved it. Thank you, you seem like a really kind man.
Hi Stonnie - Long time fan here! Our current lab is a 2.5 year old female - she is a white labrador but much more of the field style - lots of energy, quick recharge and lots of stamina. She requires the most exercise of any dog I have ever had. And she has golden eyes. The phrase "crazy eyes" definitely suits her! When she gets excited or overstimulated she is over the top and you can see it in her eyes. I am training her in agility - she is athletic and agile and very very fast. I hope age settles her mind in the arena. She does have a nice off switch in the house and will settle and cuddle. Until it's time to retrieve again!
We had a black lab mix (Colorado) and a field yellow (Harlee) a few years ago. Colorado was definitely more chill, except when there was a rock chuck to get. Harlee is exactly what you described for a yellow- anxious, nervous- but all-around great dog. Loved to fetch.
When they passed, we had to get another lab. Well, we got 2. A yellow and chocolate. Yellow has a stockier build, is a quick learner, loves to be chased, is more vocal, and is nervous with new things, people, or places. Good shop dog for my husband.
The chocolate is a taller, leaner build, is gregarious, and would fetch and swim all day.
Thanks for your time and effort Stonnie! We appreciate good dog trainers!
All colours are best. And honestly doesn’t matter they are the best stress busters. Wherever dogs are found they fill the place with happiness.
Such good natured dogs very sweet.
Aussies are my breed, and I can absolutely agree with you that color is linked to personality. Not only that, but shade of color, patterns, eye color, pigment, or lack of. Color genetics get so very complicated. I can also look at a dog, and tell you which part of the country they came from, and look at the show dogs and tell you which line they are off of and who bred them. I'm sure you can as well with your labs.
I’m fascinated by this- do you show your dogs or are you just really involved in the fancy? Can you share a little about personality it’s connection to color with Aussies? My mother is getting a sheltie (her fourth) this winter and she’s hopefully getting a blue merle (but we’ll see what the female will produce). She has had two sables, and currently has a Sable Merle, who is the most laid back, easy going, friendly, sweet sheltie she ever had. I know it’s a different breed, but I’d love to hear more of what you’ve observed.
Let me guess, blue Merle is the most neurotic?😄😄😄
Blake is a nearly 3 years old showline male. He’s my first dog and I was lucky to start watching your videos right when he arrived.
I am raising him to face challenges together in the environment (I learnt your lessons), we are a registered water rescue unit, he loves to fetch balls in the high brush, and we spend lots of time together on land and water whenever possible.
He loves all people and other dogs, except huskies and akitas.
he is not a high energy lab as he loves his relaxing spells in the day.
I am happy so far, I feel that the breed characteristics were already there and I have been able to shape them in a way that fits our characters.
thank you so much Stonnie !!
Hello Giovanni, how are you doing today, hope you’re fine and safe from the COVID-19 virus??
We have had one of each Black, Chocolate and Yellow. The Yellow has the best temperament and most easily trained.
The black was very energetic and needed more exercise than our family could provide. The chocolate was bred as a bird dog and no amount of attention or exercise could keep her satisfied. She just wanted to run away to find any food she could. Totally out of control. The yellow is just the right level of playful retriever who after exercise, calms down and is a great affectionate pet. He also sleeps 12 hours a day.
@@Mikael-jt1hkYour comment seems a bit mean. There’s nothing wrong with knowing yourself and selecting an appropriate dog, in terms of energy levels. Everybody’s better off that way, including the dog.
Personally, I’m so lazy that even my pale yellow lab would have been too much to handle if my relatives hadn’t helped. He was a wonderful little weirdo ❤ RIP
Our black girl is 50/50... best of both worlds! I noticed she was already quieting down by 6 months... but her "quiet" is not the same as our previous yellow bench-bred girl. We have a huge yard with grass, trees, boulders, downed logs, and horses outside the fence. I'm a jogger/hiker, love training, and accept we will do a lot of tossing the ball. She crates on command, we keep a small pen around the open crate l, and she knows it means "chill". She only does reasonable alert barks, otherwise very quiet. I don't have to free-run or jog her everyday now, at 1 year. Some evenings when I'm tired, I do the ball toss down the hallway and she's fine. We won the lottery. ❤️
We had English red fox pure bred for 12 short years. Most chill, loveable and fun baby. Easy to train, loved tracking as much as playing at the off leash park. My shadow and after 3 years still miss him everyday. 😢❤️
Hey Stonnie,
Big fan of your channel and philosophy on dog training. I’m a retired 67 year old Michigan man. I have a 21/2 year old red fox lab. I’ve tried to emulate your training methods in my back yard. I have had many labs in my lifetime. Sully is very energetic and loves to fetch. I work with him 3 times a day trying to tire him out. Being retired I have the most time I’ve ever had working with a dog. This summer I successfully had him ride in the kayak with me. If I don’t wear him out he is the first ever dog to be self motivaded to just take off and run around my house and yard for almost a1/2 hour. His energy level is amazing. All my other dogs were English style. I’m so glad I waited for retirement before I got the red fox lab. I wouldn’t have as much success with him if I had not watched your videos. I love your motto. A tired dog is a good dog. He”s not perfect and he gets so excited when anybody comes over.Maybe I’ll check your online course out. I think your channel is right on for training dogs. Thank you. There are a couple of breeders for red fox labs in Michigan. Ours was in Ithaca, Michigan. And there’s one further north. In our extended family we have 3 red fox labs.
I love them all...but that chocolate's face is literally ADORABLE!
We lost our almost 13 year old yellow lab 6 weeks ago. My heart is broken and we decided to not get another one at this point. He was amazing and hope one day to fall in love again with another big head yellow lab. Just afraid we might not have the same experience with them being as awesome as our love we lost. Hoping one day to mend my broken heart.
Sorry for your loss.
I lost mine 13 years ago, he was almost 8 years old.
The pain never disappears but it does get easier to live with.
Good luck!
I had a black lab. She was a lot of fun. She was the only dog we could trust to take horseback riding with. Unfortunately she die at age 6. I have a lot of fond memories of her. She was a rescue too.
sorry for your loss
Have had all colors(except "silver"). Upon occasion, even have a litter. I tell people, "chocolate literally are missing a chromosome", but they still want what they want.
Hate to compare it to a car but if you want red or white your not gonna settle for black. So I gave up that fight(my preference is black) yrs ago.
I will say, in training any black I have had trains quicker (if you can keep up) and remembers easier. I have a black one now that can work out in the community for hours every day.
My imported, yellow bench male nope-he''s done after about 40mins.(All certified through chic so there's no excuse other then stamenia).
The stamenia has literally been bred out of 75% of the bench labs.
I have a chocolate I'm working with now but it's a rare one..super loving and wants to please. Most chocolates love, but you have to come to them..this ones unique and it amazes me each week what its capable of
I gotta say go with black. Something about the way the sun hits on those dark eyes&coat!
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So sad to hear Stonnie may be retiring.. but grateful for every ounce of wisdom he's shared with our family and our extended pup pack over the yrs. I share your videos almost every week.🎉
I have three labs. Yellow, brown and black. They have the same mother and father. Each came from a different litter. I had no idea color went with personally. I can confirm everything you've said! Amazing!! We love our pups!
Thanks for posting!
We have had three labs in our family:
#1: Sandy Koufax, Sandy was female-yellow with slight pigment. Right in the middle of the color line. She wasn’t white and she wasn’t reddish at all-just plain yellow. Pedigreed (never got the papers, because we didn’t really care). We live in South Texas, so there are a lot of field dogs, both black & yellow- bred for hunting. Sandy was energetic. She would play fetch till she dropped and was a great family dog. Unfortunately, she was such a good retriever, she retrieved a baseball that was pitched to my son. My son didn’t see her, & she receive the bat on her head at about age 4. She was our middle child, and so she didn’t get the attention she deserved. She was always into things, chewing cable lines, digging giant holes, one under an underground sprinkler pipe & rested her chin on the pipe (looked quite fetching-haha-pun), digging up shrubs, etc. etc. We moved when she was about three, and I started walking her every day, 2-3 miles. She got lots of good smells, and boom, she calmed down. Walks or maturity, who knows?She was never trained well enough to be in the house, so when we had a hurricane, we had to board her, because even the garage was not good for her style of living. She loved being outside, she tolerated the heat. She had a body of water she could use to cool off. She died at age 13.
#2: is Babe Ruth. Babe (female) is Chocolate. She looks English, but has a lot of drive, and also would fetch until she drop. I was quite sick shortly after she arrived and hired a trainer to help me. so I’m still training her at age 12. She gets some of Maggies lessons. She barks at everything, and is slow to respond to my requests, but trained enough yo be one of the family. She is in the house most of the time, because I know better how to have that happen. Although, she acts more like a field dog, she had two champion hunters in her pedigree. She’s a sweetheart! She’s healthy as a horse, and I think she’ll be with us for a while. Number three:
#3 Maggie del Mago: Maggie is also named a baseball player (Chicago, cubs player, Javier Báez, del Mago-the magician), is an interesting girl. She is looks like a field dog, and acts like one too. She’s much darker than Sandy. Her shade of yellow has a lot of rust in it. She has a rid of rust that runs right down her back. At first I thought she must not be really be pedigreed. Come on in She runs and runs and runs, she swims and swims and swims, we boarded her when she was about 1 1/2 years old. The boarding owner had a pool for the dogs about halfway through our trip. He asked me to order more food. I had put in enough food for a month and a half. She was swimming all of the time he would send videos of her swimming While the dogs other dogs were roaming around, sniffing each other lying around. She and babe are very close. She is 3 1/2 years old now when she got home from the border., She was skinny as a rail. Her ribs were sticking out. I took her to the vets, everything was OK but she was a bit anemic. After she got back into her routine at home, she was fine, but she still swims and swims and swims, runs and runs and runs, she is very attentive to me once again, my health problems ferret flared up, and she is so attentive I think she would’ve made a great service dog after looking at your video today, I think your assessment of the usual characteristics is spot on. Ha ha no spots on my abs. She is darker than Sandy was, and a bit more focused on, her boss, me. Then Sandy Wes. Babe has always been her own self. She acts more like a field dog, but looks like an English. She has a ton of hair, a bit curly, but very active. I do think she gets more tired quickly like in English, but she was bred to hunt. Unfortunately our dogs don’t hunt and they are lazy home dogs we love them. Thank you for your work I discovered to you while I was training Maggie. Maggie gets her middle name Nomado, because she is so smart. She can open most of the doors in our house, even one that has a regular door knob if it’s not All the way closed, she can flip hooks off of screen doors. We have to buy those that have a special spring to close it so it won’t flip open easily. She is very smart not to say that baby isn’t smart. She brings me her bowl and Maggie‘s bowl after they eat, so I can wash them, all of my lives or a great family dogs or are. All very smart. It would be hard to bring a different breed in the house once you’ve had a Labrador retriever.
My first lab was a fox red and a incredible hunter. Since him, I’ve had 2 chocolate 2 white. Loved them all!
No way you can retire! Maybe downsize a bit, but your videos are a great inspiration. I’ve had black, white, chocolate and currently a perfect yellow labs. They were all perfect at the time, though my black had more the personality of a yellow. He just didn’t love being a dog. The white was a total prima donna and ended up crazy as a loon. The chocolate was the sweetest and most faithful dog ever. My current yellow is a rescue neighborhood bad boy who is classic. He gets along great with the wpg who is only 2. I enjoy your videos immensely! Please continue.
I rescued a red fox lab from a kill shelter down south; fell in love-the most stunning boy; smart, very strong prey instinct, hi energy-- loved other dogs; loved running on the sandbars; amazing retriever & jumper. Walked him 6- 7 times a day-- took him everywhere. Still dream about him. 98 lbs @ just 2 yrs--a lot of dog & an athlete. Next time around- think a chocolate may be my speed . Love your videos-- thanks. Laura
First time viewer.
OMG, wish I could teletransport from Ohio right into your video enjoying life with oodles of loveable labs! My Chocolate Star now 6 yo. Previous BlackJack was rescue.
Labs bring love and happiness!
Thank you for your video!
As soon as you said the Fox Red is more athletic the White Lab falls flat on its face.... Poetic
Ive had 4 labs in my life. 1 black field bred, one bench mixed with Rottweiler, one bench yellow, one bench yellow mixed with hound. I can validate everything Stonnie has said about the black and yellow. I would add that in my experience the black labs are more confident and dominate. Not in an aggressive way, but they very quickly are able to get other dogs in line and establish themselves as the ‘top’ dog. The yellows are more docile and willing to not be the top dog which makes blacks and yellows a good mix if you have multiple labs. But like
All labs they all loved to eat, liked everyone and everything. The field bred dogs LIVE to fetch. As in that is all they want to do. They like food, but a throwing item can hold their attention like nothing else.
I also wanted to add that my field bred labs has spent time with Stonnie and I have spent time with Stonnie and have yet to have Jim tell me something that I found to be wrong. He is a true master of his craft.
We had a white lab x golden retriever and this video is just reminding me of what a goofball he was. He was here for a good time, but also a long time, nearly 13 years 💖
My yellow field lab was the only yellow in her litter. Her life's ambition is to become a chocolate. Anytime she gets wet she HAS to find mud or dirt to roll in.
That must be a yellow lab thing. We have 2 blacks that would never roll in the mud and friends whose 2 yellows you can’t keep out of!
@@cherylwoodwardmy black lab LOVED mud. He'd find mud or water to play in if it were the size of a penny and no one knew it existed. He'd find it and roll in it.
He was amazing and smart, perfect combo between show and field (maybe a tad too field, but he had 2 national field champs in his litter. And he definitely was a field lab, but had a little bit of a show lab look to him in his older years.)
Best dog ever. Everyone loved him (he tolerated everyone, but wasn't super-cuddly.) Not really food driven, completely ball/fetch driven. Unless chicken was involved. Then it would be a hard decision for him, but I think he'd pick fetch. I used that to my training advantage, of course.) But a tad bit too energetic for me. Still best dog ever. It's been about 5.5 years since I lost him and I still think about him *every day*. I'm now starting to think I've healed enough and maybe rested almost enough to get back in the lab game. But I'm so worried I won't find another in the same ballpark as great as my old boy. Sadly he had really aggressive osteosarcoma and I had to put him down at 9.5, but his brain was still so amazing, it was the hardest decision of my life.
We have two fox red Labradors. They are 1/2 siblings. We chose Labradors because we loved the colour, of course their papers say yellow as it should. My service dog is a darker red and he’s gorgeous. Our girl is a bit lighter. We are lucky to have our pups. We did a lot of training. Our girl is higher energy and one her younger. He’s 2 1/2 and she’s 1 1/2. My husband and I have grown up with all different breed. We researched for a long time and two years picking a kennel. Labs are gorgeous and loyal. People do stop us often to love them up nd ask questions. I have watched you since the beginning and you been a huge help! Thank you for all you do.
*year* younger
My yellow lab (recently passed at 15 years of age) was high energy. I could take him out and exercise, work him, and he’d still get into trouble! And this was a mismatch for me. But we worked it best we could and he lived a long, very happy life. He was always a very happy boy who loved everyone and everything. I miss him terribly.
My female yellow lab only lived 7 or 8 years due to cancer so yours lived quite long
@@andrewsimms2731 I’m so sorry. Labs are so full of love.
Hey there - As usual, you nailed the important points that people really need to understand about Labs. In my experience, field dogs (aka - American Labs) are high energy with a narrower nose, and, usually, short coated. Whereas, show dogs (aka - English Labs) are more laid back, stockier, and feature a broader head or nose profile. Over the 30+ years with labs, we have had pure bred and mixed labs, English and American. We currently have 2 English labs and they are both registered as "yellow", but actually are red and white. We purchased from a breeder that specialized in therapy dogs and kept her bloodlines strictly English, although these dogs do not fit the "standard" color/temperament described, they do have the English lab look. We are older and when we were seeking dogs, we knew we did not want a high energy dog that demanded full time action/entertainment. These guys fit perfect into our routine and lifestyle. People need to be realistic about what they really want from a dog companion and not try to match a dog's look to what they think "looks" like what they want. Dogs are not a fashion accessory. You can find the right dog for you by focusing first on temperament and then you can chose a color out of the available litter. If you love them, they will be a great dog for you. My 2-cents.
In the UK there are working dogs and show dogs. The working labs are a slighter build and seem to be more active than the show labs- which are stockier. Never seen a working line choc lab. They are all fairly well built.
It never seizes to amaze me, I always learn something new watching your Vlogs! Thank you for being such a Champion for K9's. It's Trainers, especially you, that provide the Information and hands on videos that make us better , more thoughtful, compassioned caretakers of these incredible Souls.
I am a psycopedagog, I never new there were psycopedagogs for dogs. Everytime you say puppy, you can change it for child. You are great and so interesting. I bet you are a great dad
Currently enjoying our 3rd Lab. My first was a “blackie” when I was in my 20’s. He was as you describe as a “field lab” - very high energy, lived for retrieving etc. I selected an “English style chocolate” 35 years later as I read exactly what you stated, not as much energy or recharge rate. Got a 2nd chocolate 5 years later (unfortunately my initial chocolate died of cancer at 8). Both chocolates were English style - energy wise - especially now that I am 68, very easy dogs to live with. And yes my 2nd chocolate has those “yellow” evil eyes, lol.
I have an American black lab. She was one of 10 puppies in her liter. 9/10 were all black, 1 was completely white. Her mom was a brown lab and her dad was black lab. Both were award winning hunting dogs and AKC certified. Our dog has SO much energy. She is very well behaved because we have done a ton of training AND we have to get energy all through out the day. We live in Colorado so we do adventures regularly, play fetch multiple times a day and go for a long walk every day.
Stonie, first off, I love your videos. Informative and enjoyable both! I've had a yellow, black and chocolate labs and they are all different in personality. My yellow is a Dudley and he is by far the smartest of the three labs I've had and he wants to play 24/7. My chocolate female is laid back. She'll chase a ball maybe twice and then she goes on her own way but she's a lover. My black lab was the most aggressive lab I've ever had. Very protective of my kids and very stubborn. Those are just some of my observations of raising labs for the last 40 years. Thanks again and good luck in retirement
We’ve got a female black field lab. Sweetest thing ever. My wife and I are both very active. Hiking, mountain biking, field running, XC skiing. It’s great to have a pup that wants to do it all. But we could give her more and she’d never, ever stop.
Great quote, “All dogs want to be labs, and all labs want to be black.” 😂
We have had three Chocolate Labs. All three were/are English types. Our first Lab - a male - was high energy and loved to retrieve. He had a high motor and loved to swim and dock dive. He was sweet and eager to please. He was a velcro dog. He was a perfect fit for us. Our second was a female from a champion bloodline. She didn't care much for retrieving and was very easygoing. She was mildly fearful and barked at all who passed by the house. She was lovely. She never met a stranger she didn't want to be friends with. She didn't like to swim or leave her feet unless I was in the water with her. Once in the water with me, she turned into a Lab!! Our current boy, and most dynamic of them all, and a great nephew of our female Lab, is built big, he has a bold confident personality, is friendly, will retrieve for awhile and then signals what else you got for me to do? He loves to show affection and be your best buddy. I tried agility with him, and did great for three weeks, and then one week said in his way, I am bored where is there a lake for swimming. He climbed the high a-frame without fear, strolled on the balance beam, did the teeter-totter and shot through the tunnel like a champ. The trainers were impressed with his fearlessness and confidence. One day, he let me know with his sudden abrupt sense of boredom he was more suited for water than land activities. We had fun, but, he loves the water more than any dog I know. He is also demanding of my attention, and will be strong willed, but a session of play in the yard satisfies his need for attention. He likes to go on adventures with me. He is absolutely good natured with people and other dogs. We are a perfect fit. You couldn't ask for a nicer dog. Thanks for your videos, Stonnie. Keep up the great work.
❤ that the white puppy wants to be involved even when it is not her turn
Honestly, she's an amazing dog and lab. I was watching her the whole time and she's gorgeous and so lab. I'm not sure why he's saying she's low-key (I mean, maybe maybe in comparison to the others, but the first chocolate was by far the least interested in doing stuff. The yellow/white lab was one of the best I've ever seen. And I have a strong black lab preference and former mommy to a black lab. My black lab and silver lab nephews were also amazing. I'm totally biased towards black labs.)
Great video. We've had all three colors of the male field labs. 1 chocolate, 2 yellow, 2 black. Chocolate was high strung but could go all day, none stop (beautiful animal). Yellow's always wanted to fetch and play, the black labs were like cats... independent. which is better or worse. Can't say. I wouldn't trade my time with any of them. They each had/have their personalities. Its a commitment to take a dog to raise, so you need to be thoughtful and honest with yourself and your abilities. Finding a great trainer like stonnie to train the human (most important) and the dog is time and money well spent.
I had a red fox lab with a block head over a decade ago.
Couldnt tell you the breeder though got him through a friend. He was beautiful. Super docile. I had to take him to training before I realize he wasnt mentally impaired. 🤦🏻♀️
20 years ago we had a yellow lab, the English style. She was not interested in any fetch style games. We would throw the ball, and she would just look at you as if to say, “you threw it, you go get it” As she got in her senior years we decided we wanted a more play oriented dog. We found a great Border Collie Lab mix to join our lab in our family. He was much more play oriented, but on the other end of the spectrum, he was not a snuggler, and preferred to have more of his own space, which is more characteristic of B. Collies, I have been told. He is only recently no longer with us, and hoping next year will be the right time to look at another dog without the painful issues of loss.
Thank you for your great videos. They are helping me quite a bit.
I have a 3 yo female chocolate field type with crazy eyes. If she can see a ball, she's in overdrive. I generally take her out 2x a day to throw for her. She has insane amounts of energy and endurance, and a very fast recovery. She's a lot for me to manage, but mostly because she's not friendly with other people and she cannot be trusted off-leash with any dog other than the pittie we already had when we got her. We've been training constantly, Once we got through advanced obedience, we started scent work - which she loves best when I'll throw a ball for her as her reward. I've had lab mixes in the past, but she's my first purebred.
I used to volunteer firing the gun at the hunting dog trials in Prado Basin, Calif and it was always the black labs and duck tollers that took the top two spots. There might be a yellow (white?) lab in the top 3 and the golden retrievers usually didn't even make the master hunter cert. The golden people brought the show dogs. The lab people were a mix of working and show. The duck toller people were all business, all the time, and that business was bringing ducks back.
We've had a chocolate 'show' lab, (a big guy - 80lbs+ / who was just the friendliest fella and absolutely doted on our daughter from the day we brought her back from the hospital).
2nd was a black lab from a working bloodline/ background, quite light at (58lbs). Absolute angel. Never ever did anything michevious, maybe chewed a few handkerchiefs of mine in 10 year but that was it. And was so protective / guarded our then teenage daughter when she had some medical emergencies out in the fields / countryside. Physically was tireless. Uber friendly too and just wanted to be best friends with every other dog he'd meet.
We've now got a 6 month old fox red lab. Working (field trials) bloodline. He's absolutely relentless and not tiring either Physically or mentally ! The 5% devil dog comes out if he's bored. And he's a Ginger Ninja. So agile and nimble, and will get into trouble in the house with anything he thinks may be interesting. Sneaks up silently and can be in 3 places at once ! And sooooo smart. - He's great to take out walking in countryside, always listening, checking in, great recall, sit etc even at good distances etc. Not fazed by anything. I try to get the mini adventures in as much as I can - different woods, trails, streams to go go paddle in etc. Absolutely as you say he's going to take some real exercising when he's bigger (which suits me fine - we got him for long walks into the countryside and in the hills - and I'll be early-retired when he's in his prime. But my oh my he's got even more 'go' and tirelessness than we'd expected, even when we thought we knew what we were getting with a field trial line.
The one big thing we need to work on is that he's VERY 'imprinted' on me and doesn't want to be anywhere except where I am - even if I'm just off to the bathroom or to the kitchen making a coffee.
Our 3 year old "American" body type black male came from a line of bird hunting dogs that we almost accidentally stumbled upon him from a breeder during covid. He is very athletic, high energy and always ready to charge ahead. He's tall and lean and not stocky like some labs. As a puppy he was a bit of a challenge because of his energy and the fact that we asked him to live in a suburban house (with large yard) with a family with a bunch of kids. Now that he's a bit older he is a big goofball with energy on-demand but he's really just a big 80lb snuggle bug - and he's attached at the hip to my wife and I swear he's the love of her life! He has to be in contact with her at all times if possible and he is incredibly protective of her especially. An amazing and loving family dog that's ready to go on big adventures at any time! No surprise labs are such amazing family dogs.
I totally agree about the fox reds activity level relating to behavior. You did a great job with Bo a few years ago. She was a mess when we brought her to you. We had actually noticed some regression in the past few months because our routine has changed since I haven’t been home to work with her the way I should. My dad is having some health issues so I had to make adjustments to give her what she needs. They are very sensitive.
My black lab is a rescue and the best dog I've ever had! I can take him anywhere and he is just Cool Hand Luke.
I enjoy your channel very much which has helped me a lot and you have described my 3 year old fox red labrador girl to a T. She is lively, recovers quickly, loves retrieving, loves to run fast and do agility, loves people and other dogs, has a high prey drive and thinks she is a visla. I did make a mistake because I am much too old for her but I take her to dog club every week where I took her to all her puppy training, get help with the walking, and make sure she does get enough exercise. Her brother is the opposite, a yellow male show type dog, plodding and solid. I wish I could have taken advantage of your training courses for her but being UK based I had to buckle down and do it here. So I am lucky that I got her through her first 3 years without too much difficulty although it was hard at times. Best of all she is a great companion and keeps me fit!
My last lab, RIP at 14 recently, was dark yellow and man you nailed the energy level. Fetch 5,6,7 times a day until he dropped, 20 minutes later…. Luckily I had acreage. Now at 65, looking for another with maybe a lower rpm :) great timely video
I’m a. Dog groomer and retired vet assistant and my grand dog is a black lab. She is the field type ❤
English labs are exactly like you describe I only see the yellow or very light English the chocolate labs I deal with are much more active and hard to keep in a crate after a groom they are trying to tear the crate up or are more hyper on the groom table and a little aggressive sometimes which I hardly see in the black and yellow. The blues almost alway have alopecia but always pretty laid back
Love watching your channel
I don't know what I would do without my black Lab "Max." He has a white patch on his chest and white on his snout, almost like a mustache/beard. He is super calm and friendly to everyone and everything.
Maybe it’s semantics, but I think people are confusing “field bred” with backyard bred. Your lab is field bred if it came from a breeder who breeds labs that are actually used in the field and have working titles to prove it. If your lab didn’t come from one of those breeders but it looks taller, lanky, and not like a show bred lab (English) it doesn’t make it field, it just makes it a lab that wasn’t bred to any written standard (aka, bred by a backyard breeder). Doesn’t mean that lab can’t become a great working lab in the field, it just means it came from not the best pedigree. All silver labs will fall under this, because no breeder that wants a good field lab will care about color (and you have to breed FOR silver to GET silver), and silver is not a showable color, so show breeders don’t breed for it. Breeders that advertise color as the selling point and not health, longevity, temperament, breed characteristics, and structure, are doing it for $$ and not for the betterment of the breed. With all the info out there I shouldn’t have to mention a reputable breeder will also do genetic health testing and have a contact requiring the owner to give a dog back to the breeder during it’s lifetime if they can no longer care for it, so none of their dogs will end up in rescues. I know I went off on a tangent, but I couldn’t help but laugh as I read the comments of people saying they had “field bred silver labs” or field bred lab they got from a rescue 😂
Really helpful info. Thanks!
I have had two chocolate labs so far. They were great with my kids from birth until they passed on. Super chill, super laid back. Just a great dog if or if you don't have kids.
Thanks for a great video! I learned a lot that will help me and my wife pick the right dog for us and the way we live.
Our first yellow English was the perfect dog, as you describe, when our daughter was 0-6. We're now on our second, and specifically picked her from the litter because she seemed the calmest, and easiest going. Boy did she unexpectedly turn out to be more like an American field lab! At 3 yo she's calming down. She's a great frisbee dog, hiking companion, swimmer and walker, all of which she needs on a regular basis. Our Cavalier lap dog, Poppy, offsets Daisy's enthusiasm well.
We have hot Summers. My Black Lab's hated the heat, and were constantly seeking shade, unless snow was on the ground. It has been Yellow Lab's ever since. Every single Lab was a great dog. I do prefer the English type. I like the look. I love the attitude. My current Australian Shepherd is a FREAK for retrieving. Me and the Lab watch her go.
That was my only real issue with the black labs - they overheat too quickly sometimes. My poor guy panted the full three years we lived in San Diego. I moved back north to give him the winters he loved and summers I enjoyed, but those winters were too hard and cold for me. I've moved NE since then, without my faithful companion (we started NW, and he passed before moving NE), and he'd probably enjoy it here sometimes, but the humidity in the summer would probably really get to him (it gets to me.) I'm still debating the "right time" to bring a lab back into my house. I miss my guy terribly, but life is a bit less retrieving-centric...
Our two are yellow because I figure they will be a bit cooler in the Florida heat, and also because when they run at someone they're not as scary as a black or chocolate Lab. We used to have a Chocolate that was 110 lbs and he was very intimidating though he was just a big baby. I had an Aussie too once- smart as a whip but if I threw a ball she would just look at me like, now what?
Summer is murder for my black lab.
My field black lab was tall and very muscular, all 95 lbs of her. She could be chill or excited - the tone of your voice told her what you wanted - high and excited meant she could be too. Low and even toned meant it was time to be calm, but still happy to see you. She was also very perceptive about whomever she could be a lap dog and who preferred she lay or sit beside you. She had great stamina, but when she was done, she was a 95 lb paperweight. She tried to keep up with her dalmatian friend in the rural area while the people were on horseback. Then she'd just plop down for 15 to 20 minutes. My brother would pick her up and drape her over the horse he rode to get back home, and she was totally chill. My dad didn't like to be licked, so she would just nose him instead. She was a wonderful dog all around and very obedient. We gave her plenty of exercise with long walks and playing fetch. We never had a rodent problem. Though she didn't mind birds just walking up to her when she was chilling.
I started my dog experience in my early 20ies with Beagles. Now exactly 40 years later we have our dogs #7 and #8. - a 14 year old chubby black lab (our second chubby black lab) and a 3 year old Lagotto-Cocker-Mix. Beside our labs we had first my old beagle and than two pugs. I miss all my later dogs. Our labs are/were the perfect fit for my family with 3 Kids and now with a 10 year old grandson living next door to us, Home Office, clients, family trips, daily adventures in the fields, wood and streams and lakes in our neighbourhood. I‘ll do it again. I’love the chubbies and their peaceful and calm attitude and the original colour.
We’ve had black labs and chocolate lab in the past. Currently we have a fox red lab. The chocolate was huge, a little lazy, but loved to swim. He would only retrieve consistently from water. The black was a lot lazy and at 75 pounds just wanted to be a lapdog. The fox red is the exact opposite. She’s extremely high energy. Loves to swim. We live on a lake and she’ll jump in just for the thrill of swimming. Her bloodline are big hunters and we knew she would be high energy. We retired before getting her so we have the time to exercise her as much as she needs. I can’t imagine having this fox red and still working a 9-5 job. She would be a problem if that were the case. We’ve never had any dog that was this energetic before so it was definitely a learning curve for us. She’s 1.5 years old now. Too many people don’t do the research and that’s why there are so many high energy dogs in shelters unfortunately
I have had two labs both black. My first was an english/show lab puppy I got when my kids were young. She came from a line of master hunters. She was very laid back and calm. She was incredibly smart. She was the perfect dog with my kids. I only had to tell her to do something once and she obeyed. It was traumatic for us when she passed. I waited till I retired to get another dog. I bought an American/field lab puppy. Oh my gosh what a difference between the two labs. Brynlie my American lab is the most energetic dog I have ever had. She is just how Stonnie describes the field labs. I got her at 61 years old. She is two now. She is ball obsessed true to the American field lab traits. Here is an example of how obsessed, she follows me around all day dropping her ball at my feet. If I don’t throw her ball when I stop she barks till I kick or throw her ball. Once I am in my bathroom and my shorts are pulled down she drops her ball in my underwear. The perfect place for her ball and one that I can’t possibly miss. She is so funny. Brynlie keeps me young, laughing and exercising. I am single and alone because of Brynlie I feel less isolated. I have made some very good friends on our journeys.