I find if you spend enough time with your dog alone and make them a part of your everyday life they learn through that. Our terrier is not trained in the slightest. No one has sat with her with treats and trained her to do tricks or anything but she knows a lot of things. She understands basic sentences. Just because shes such a part of our family that she has trained herself to understand what things mean. Im sure someone out there knows what im talking about. Ever tell your dog something and they listen or do it even though you never really "trained" them?
i know exactly what your talking about.. all my dogs in my past knew tricks because i took the time to train them.. but these two i have now..dobie and collie i did not think it was that important to know any thing else but the basic commands..of sit, heel and stay and most importantly come... everything else i needed them to know was through my words.. sentences .. talking to them.. they actually know more just from that and i really enjoy and appreciate this more then tricks....