Desensitizing or Sensitizing

When we change a dogs association, we often discuss the "how to's" of desensitizing the dog to a stimuli (stranger, noise, moving cars, bikes, children ect.)  If your steps of desensitizing are not working you must consider the fact that you may actually be sensitizing your dog or increasing arousal and anxiety rather than decreasing them.

Sara playing "find it" at the park

Sara, a sweet beagle mix in my Outdoor Adventure Class is fearful of new environments and will often shake and not take treats.  Using a series of games and food she enjoys like "find it", we are helping desensitize her to new places.

Taking a dog that is fearful of cars and tying him to a street sign would most likely increase the dogs fear and arousal or sensitize him to the sight and sound of cars.  After this type of training, the dog would be more likely to bark at the simple sound of a car.

However, if you stay a distance from the street where the dog is not yet aroused and play his favorite game of tug, find it, or fetch, you may find that the dog seems unaware of the cars going by.  I have used play to desensitize many dogs to their fears. This type of desensitization helps the dog associate a happy, playful emotional state when near loud or fast moving cars.