People naturally explain behavior in human terms. "You know you're not supposed to do that." Dogs don't learn from the explanation itself. They learn from patterns and consequences.
The immediate outcome matters
If sitting causes the leash to appear and the walk to begin, sitting gains value. If barking causes a visitor to move away, barking may become stronger.
The dog is learning from what changes after their action.
Timing matters again
The closer the consequence is to the behavior, the easier the connection is to learn. Delayed feedback is harder to understand, which is one reason precise markers are so useful.
Focus on what you can reinforce
Instead of spending most of your energy trying to communicate that an unwanted behavior was wrong, look for the behavior you can reinforce instead.
A dog who can't jump on guests may be taught to keep four paws on the floor. A dog who grabs your hands during play can learn to grab a toy instead.
Training becomes clearer when the dog has a specific behavior that works better than the old one.
