Koehler+Millan+common sense=happiness with your dog!

I found all along that getting a dog to be happy and good was very
much like getting my CHILD to be happy and good. The key was
effectively communicating that I loved him a LOT,and WANTED him to be
happy. That took spending a lot of time with the dog, and often just
bringing the dog along on trips (NEVER to be left in the car) and
share my activities would deepen the bond. It's hard to explain, but
if the dog once grasped that I loved him, he didn't NEED training to
come when called, or to stay in the yard. He WANTED to do those
things, WANTED to please me, and the subsequent training was all the
easier.
Some dogs DO want to please, the ones who have a deep bond with the
owner.
Cesar's book wasn't very helpful,except that I had a HUGE dog for
awhile who'd been cooped up in a tiny yard by his previous owner for a
couple of years (he was 3). Lots of exercise walking over the hills
near home on the end of a leash DID do him some good mentally, but it
didn't work out, my family hated his slobbering and shedding and he
liked lying down where people needed to walk through, and I was
working 12-hour days then. He was visibly miserable when I got home,
and pathetically glad to see me, so I found another home for him.
With a puppy, I'd emphasize developing that deep emotional bond, and
getting him housebroken, and put off assertive training until he was
at least 6 months old (maybe a bit younger with a giant breed).
The only other problem a younger puppy usually presents is chewing,
and the solution there is to temporarily rearrange your possessions so
that "chewables" are unavailable to him,and give him plenty of his own
chewable toys (check the Internet to find out which ones are SAFE).
Another puppy to play with is a great thing, if he's to be left alone
while you work,unless he's one of the few breeds that is happier
ALONE. Most of the more popular breeds are social.
Cindy Yost