Dog barking is a natural behavior of expressing their mood, excitement and to get your attention to their needs. Along with their vocalization, tail movements and facial aspects they convey different meaning depending on the situation.

Here are some instances where they convey different meaning. High-pitched short tonal bark with swift tail wags when he is in a playful mood. Low gruff bark gradually increasing to howling when somebody is at the door or near the house. Loud bark with raised hackles when he sees another dog or cat. High pitched incessant bark when he is lonely or distressed and so on.

Once you know what triggers the barking then putting a fix is an easy task. Reasons for barking fall into two main categories - Basic behavior problem and situations and circumstances contributing to the barking. Barking on instinct is natural and should not be restrained.

Let's see how to stop your dog's relentless barking which sometimes has no apparent cause:

* Teaching your dog what is an acceptable behavior and what is not should be the first in your dog behavior training. Barking constantly in an attempt to get your attention and forcing you to submit to his needs is not good. Just to stop him from barking if you give a treat or play then you are encouraging him to bark even more in the future. Just walk away from him and don't even look at him. He may be confused and bark harder at first but by consistently reinforcing this you will have better control over this behavior.

* Divert his attention whenever he barks. Use "quiet" or "enough" or whatever word you want to use to divert him when he barks. Use the same word all the time not to confuse him. When he obeys to your command and stop barking, reward him with a treat and praise him immediately. He starts to associate treat and praise with the command you use and learn to be quiet.

* When your dog feels dominant he will simply ignore any of your commands. He needs to be taught at earlier stage before he becomes teen the hierarchy of the household. He has to learn that he is below every member in the household. Dogs behave well under a leadership and form a good relationship based on trust and regard.

* Constant barking due to boredom or lack of socialization: They become anxious or stressed without social interaction and resort to meaningless barking to let out their stress. Spend time and engage your dog with playful activities, which are interactive like fetching the ball or taking for a long walk.

* Separation anxiety can drive your dog to bark constantly. When left alone, they bark in an effort to get out of that situation. Exercise him enough before you leave so that he is tired and sleep when you are away and also provide enough chewy toys and items to engage him till you return.

Shock collars to curb dog barking is inhumane and is strongly discouraged. Positive reinforcement is an effective approach for all behavior issues.