She urges owners to seek assistance at the first sign of unusual or threatening behavior. After addressing any physical causes, the therapist designs a program to modify the problem behavior and to teach owners and their dogs the cues and rules that will make living together more bearable. The program may include counterconditioning and desensitization to stimuli that frighten or arouse the dog. Occasionally trainers are recommended, but the goal is to teach the owner to teach the dog through consistency and rewards. Compliance with the program is not automatic.
People are slow to alter their habits and harder to train than dogs.
Indeed, some family members actively resist the program. Overall recalls an older couple who sought treatment for their German shepherd, a fear biter who guarded their store. During the consultation the woman became frightened that the dog would lose its aggressiveness and cease to protect her, and she refused to proceed. To break through the established responses of dogs with severe problems, many behaviorists employ medication, especially from among the drugs developed during the past decade for treating depression and anxiety in human beings. Behaviorists estimate that they help the dogs' owners in 50 to 60 percent of cases of extreme phobia or severe separation anxiety, and in 75 to 90 percent of cases of aggression.