Vasopressin is an ancient neuropeptide with key physiological roles, but it is also involved in behaviour, particularly fear and anxiety. We aimed to test if endogenously released vasopressin is involved in the expression and/or extinction of conditioned avoidance, a key symptom of fear and anxiety. Male Sprague Dawley rats were trained for 10 days in a platform mediated avoidance protocol in which rats learn to avoid a 2s foot shock (0.4mA) that co-terminates with a 30s tone (4 kHz, 75 dB) by stepping onto a plastic platform. On day 11, rats were administered the V1a receptor antagonist SRX246 (2.5mg/kg; n = 8; i.p.) or vehicle (n = 9; i.p.) 30 min prior to an extinction procedure consisting of 9 tone presentations without shock. On day 12, the rats were re-exposed to the tone alone to test for avoidance extinction. On day 11, there was a significant main effect (p<0.001) of SRX246, increasing the time rats spent on the platform during inter-tone periods. However, there was no significant effect of SRX246 treatment on avoidance, compared to vehicle, during the 30 second tones. On day 12, SRX246 treated animals spent significantly more time on the platform during the tones (p<0.001) and periods separating the tone (p<0.05) when compared to vehicle treated rats. These results suggest that endogenous interaction with the V1a receptor during PMA could act to promote risk taking in threatening contexts and could be involved in extinction learning. This challenges the traditional assumption surrounding vasopressin as an anxiogenic.