{"id":264,"date":"2015-12-11T20:41:13","date_gmt":"2015-12-11T19:41:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/illis.se\/en\/?p=264"},"modified":"2025-10-19T16:58:00","modified_gmt":"2025-10-19T14:58:00","slug":"cc","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/illis.se\/en\/cc\/","title":{"rendered":"Four ways counterconditioning can go wrong"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Revised August 2025. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I collaborate with a vet who claims that many of the dogs that visit her facility are so eager to get inside the door that they pull their owners by the leash all the way from the parking lot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Her secret?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

*drumroll*<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Coun-ter-con-di-tio-ning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Six syllables. I know, most people tune out beyond four. But I still think you should learn this particular term. Why?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because it\u2019s one of the most important techniques in animal training<\/em> (arguably top five).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Counterconditioning may be the difference between your dog eagerly pulling to get to the vet\u2019s, or shaking like a leaf on the examination table.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Simply put, conditioning<\/em> means learning and counter<\/em> means opposite.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, re-learning<\/em> might be another way of putting it. That\u2019s just three syllables.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Practically speaking, it’s about changing someone’s learned associations.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

An example!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let’s say we have a dog, who’s started trembling and panting whenever she arrives to the vet’s office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She has probably learned to associate the vet’s office with aversive events.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Strange sounds and smells.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unfamiliar people looming.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Needles poking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A string of events that ends up with something painful – most animals will learn these predictors. This is one type of classical conditioning<\/em>, learning that certain events predict things the animal would rather avoid (just like Pavlov\u2019s dogs drooled when they learned that bells predicted things they really wanted).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some animals may start showing behaviours indicative of a fear response at the first stimulus in such a predictive chain, and some even resort to defensive aggression in their attempts to escape the situation – which could be very risky for all parties involved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Counterconditioning (CC) is about re-learning. Typically, rather than predicting pain, the animal learns that certain events predict outstanding free delicacies, delivered right under your nose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let’s go back to our example. Through counterconditioning, the dog now re-learns that:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Strange sounds and smells – but followed by fabulous treats.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unfamiliar people looming – and then you get something that smells just wonderful!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Needles poking – is that chicken liver? (or, if you\u2019re a cat: whaaaat \u2013 Tuna?!)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"counter<\/a>
Counterconditioning (CC) is learning new associations, so that the animal starts looking forward to the sounds, smells, people and procedures since they precede fabulous goodies.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Studies have shown that CC may reduce the risk of defensive aggression in just a few training sessions. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

For example, one dog\u2019s aggressive behaviours towards a stranger at the door (charging, lunging, barking, and biting) diminished from 88% of 30-second intervals before training to 3% after CC training.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How to perform counterconditioning<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

How do you do it, then?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In theory, it’s easy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n