Desensitization and Counterconditioning: When and How?

Desensitization and counterconditioning are behavioral techniques widely used in veterinary behavioral medicine to treat anxieties, fears, and phobias. With desensitization, the patient is taught to relax as it is exposed to anxiety-provoked stimuli in a gradual fashion. The controlled exposures start with the patient relaxing in the presence of a muted stimulus (ie, a stimulus that does not trigger a fearful response). Over time, the patient will be introduced gradually to a more intense stimulus with the hope that eventually it will remain relaxed at all levels of exposure.