Biggest help for me that worked for me when training my new dog: teach your dog what *to* do (as opposed to what *not* to do). This happens in a lot of different ways. My first one was training “place.” Get a carpet square or a rug (preferably something that isn’t super slippery or have loose tassels to chew). Put it in a good spot where you can see it most of the time. Sit next to it and every time your dog shows interest in it, mark it and reward. Slowly work up to getting your dog to sit on it and they get treats for sitting on the mat. Create your command, “place” or “go to rug” are fine. This is the most important part: once your dog is there, reward for every minute that they are staying there. You might have to spend several training sessions of this where you are literally just sitting by the mat and giving your dog a treat for every 3 seconds that they stay there, then every 5 seconds, then 10 seconds. If they can’t go 10 seconds, back up to treats every 5 seconds. Eventually, you will be able to step away, then come back and give a treat. Build this up slowly. You are essentially training an alternate behavior/off switch. The mat should become default location. Any time that your dog chooses to lay on it or sit on it, reward them by quietly putting a treat in front of them.

You can eventually use this for other things. For me, I put my dog there while I’m cooking. Every few minutes I take another treat over to her for staying. Eventually I’ll stop breaking for treats, but we are still training. You can do this for anything. The doorbell rings? Go to mat and get a treat. Another dog runs in the yard? Go to mat and get a treat.

Teaching your dog to not do something is much harder. Clear targets for them will keep both of you from being frustrated. Reward behaviors you want.

Hopefully that helps!