Calling All Scaredy-Cats & Dogs! A Guide to Desensitization and Counterconditioning

Meet Roscoe! Roscoe is my imaginary Bernese Mountain Dog (I -author Alex - don’t have enough space for a real one), and for 100 lbs of dog, he’s an awfully big scaredy cat! Roscoe hates nail trims- any time he sees a clipper come near him, he’s suddenly howling and hollering and hiding under the couch. I don’t want to take Roscoe to the vet every time he needs a simple trim, and I don’t think my poor buddy enjoys being so scared all the time, either. So what can I do to help him?

Desensitization and counter conditioning are two behavioral techniques that can help even the most reactive pets face their fears in a safe, controlled, productive environment. Today we’re going to learn more about these principles, and use them to come up with a plan to help my friend Roscoe courageously conquer his phobia of nail trims!

​(Of course, unlike your pets, Roscoe isn’t real. That’s why the method we talk about here can be applied universally, to help your own pet face whatever fears they may have. As we go along, think about how you can adapt Roscoe’s plan for your own use!)

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Step 1: Identifying Stimuli
First things first, it’s important to identify exactly what causes Roscoe to react; this is called a stimulus or a trigger.

A lot of scary situations consist of multiple stimuli blurred together. Instead of listing “nail trims” as Roscoe’s stimulus, let’s try to get more specific- Does the sight of the nail clippers frighten Roscoe? What about their clicky-clacky sound? Is Roscoe always afraid of the nail clippers, or only when a person is actively holding them? 

Try to get specific, and pay close attention to which stimuli produce the strongest responses, as we’ll need this info in our next step!

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Step 2: Ordering Stimuli
Through our work in Step 1, we’ve discovered that Roscoe doesn’t react to all stimuli equally! He starts to get nervous if a person approaches him while holding the nail clippers, but if they’re left on the table in the same room as him he’ll simply ignore them. However, we also discovered that Roscoe hates the clicking sound of the clippers, and will jump from zero to one-hundred as soon as he hears it. Ranking Roscoe’s stimuli from least to most likely to produce a reaction, we would say:

1. Sight of nail clippers
2. Sight of person with nail clippers
3. Sound of nail clippers

Step 3: Desensitization
Desensitization refers to the process of carefully and gradually exposing a pet to a stimulus that produces an unwanted response, until your pet no longer produces this response in the presence of the stimuli. In Step 2 we identified the different stimuli that produce a reaction in Roscoe, such as the sight and sound of our nail clippers. Now it’s time for Roscoe to start facing them!

To be most effective, desensitization should start with a low intensity of the most well-tolerated stimulus, then gradually work upward.

In our example, “Sight of nail clippers” is our starting stimulus, and we know Roscoe already tolerates this well! Roscoe is used to seeing the nail clippers from a distance (for instance, left on a living room table fifteen feet from his favorite napping spot), so we can increase the intensity of this stimulus by leaving the nail clippers on an end table ten feet away, or on the opposite side of the couch five feet away. We should avoid picking the nail clippers up and carrying them towards Roscoe, as this overlaps with our second stimulus; in order to control the intensity of Stimulus 1 only, the nail clippers should be moved to a new location when Roscoe is not present to see.

Once Roscoe can see and be close to the nail clippers without exhibiting fear, discomfort, or anxiety, we can move onto our next stimulus! We’ll repeat the process from the top, beginning our next stimulus at a low intensity and working upward again.

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Step 4: Counterconditioning
Sometimes, desensitization alone isn’t enough. In these situations, we can rely on a second tool called counterconditioning: the process of pairing a negative stimulus with a positive stimulus (like getting a treat or playing with a favorite toy), to gradually form an association between something scary and something pleasurable.

Roscoe is very food-motivated, so we’ll use treats as our reward. We want a very high-value treat to offset the negative stimulus, and since we’ll be giving these treats frequently, they should be small enough to leave Roscoe wanting more. We’ll use very small cubes of cheddar cheese.

It’s important that whatever negative stimulus Roscoe is experiencing is still mild enough that a cube of cheese can outweigh it; if I run at Roscoe with cheddar in one hand and clippers in the other, he’ll be too freaked out to enjoy his supposed reward. Instead, we’ll start when Roscoe is simply in the same room as the nail clippers, at a distance where he’s exhibiting little to no reaction. From here we can gradually increase the intensity of the stimulus the same way we did in Step 3.

​The goal of counterconditioning is that, when exposed to a stimulus (nail clippers), Roscoe’s existing response (fear) will eventually change to a new response (excitement over treat). We can observe this in Roscoe’s reactions; not only will Roscoe gradually stop showing a fear response, but eventually he’ll even look towards us expectantly whenever he sees the nail clippers. This indicates that the old association (nail clippers > fear) has been replaced with a new association (nail clippers > excitement over treat), and Roscoe is ready to move up to the next intensity or stimulus!

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Step 5: Relax and Repeat!
Behavioral modification is a slow and steady process. Depending on the severity of your pet’s emotional response, and the length of time that response has existed, a desensitization and counterconditioning plan can take anywhere from a few hours to a few months.

It can be tempting to rush the process, but don’t give in! Forcing a pet to continue a session when they are already uncomfortable can set your progress backwards, leaving your pet more sensitive to a stimulus than they originally were. If your pet begins showing signs of stress or discomfort, give them a break or end your session early, and always try to end a session on a positive note. Desensitization and counterconditioning sessions are most effective if done daily, so you’ll have another chance soon!

It’s also worth acknowledging that desensitization and counterconditioning routines are just one tool in the larger behavioral puzzle. Your pet might additionally benefit from professional training, consultations with a behaviorist, or behavioral medications. These steps are a normal part of many pets’ care routines, and aren’t an indication that your pet is “poorly-trained,” or that the above methods weren’t used properly. If your pet experiences negative emotional reactions that you think might benefit from a professional eye, give us a call! We’ll be happy to help you put a plan in motion.

Now if you’ll excuse me, Roscoe has some nails that need trimming. Where’d I leave the cheese?

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