Establishing New Patterns
Two basic things are required to stop unwanted behavior and get your dog to develop a new pattern of behavior. First, you must have a set plan to accomplish your goal. Second, you must prevent the dog from practicing the old behavior while you are retraining her. Setting up a new pattern of behavior isn't easy for dogs. Just like humans, once they get into a habit, they tend to do things the same way again and again if we let them.
Repetition
The important thing to remember when changing a pattern is that you need to practice the new pattern over and over and reward the dog repeatedly for the new behavior until she adopts it as her own. In the meantime, if you want to get where you are going faster, you need to stop allowing the dog to reinforce herself for the wrong behavior by preventing it from happening. Stepping on the leash to prevent jumping will not, by itself, teach your dog to sit, but it will reduce her options and make sitting more likely, because that is the only behavior getting rewarded.
An Ounce of Prevention
The more time you spend with dogs, the more you will find that a large part of training is really management. Gates, crates, and pens can be your best friends when raising and training a dog. Although they don't teach the dog not to chew the couch or pee on the carpet, they prevent inappropriate behaviors from becoming bad habits.
Managing a dog's environment helps him to be right by limiting his choices. It isn't the solution to all of your behavior problems, but it is an integral part of it.
As you figure out a plan for what you want your dog to do, it's important to write it out and keep track of it. Make sure any treats, clicker, or other equipment are conveniently located in your house or yard, allowing you to reward your dog whenever the opportunity arises. If the alternate behavior is complicated, break it down into steps and practice with your dog frequently.
For example, a fence is a management tool for dogs that enjoy playing in their yards and owners who want to keep them there. A baby gate in the kitchen limits the dog's freedom so that he can't get into trouble in the rest of the house.
When you don't have time to teach your dog to sit for a guest, putting your dog behind a gate would be a better way to manage his jumping problem than letting him dive onto a visitor or run out the front door.
