Very timid and shy

by Susie H
(Phoenix, AZ)

We LOVE our little Maddie. We got her at 9 weeks old. Bouncy, happy & playful. One day we were with her in the backyard, she heard a neighbor dog bark and she ran to the back door to go in. She was about 13 wks at the time. From that moment on she has been timid fearful.

She is now 6 months old. I walk her every day. If she sees someone on our walk, from far away, she will watch them so closely. Then when we get fairly close she will either try to run the other way or completely stop. I try to take her on errands with me when possible. Not often though as I usually have to stop at the grocery store and they don't look kindly at her.

She is improving but she is still pretty timid. She will back up or even run if someone approaches her, which is often 'cause she is so cute. She shakes on our short errands. But we still go. She is still a very bouncy, happy puppy with the family. When people come over she will bark for a couple minutes and then just hang back, watching closely. She will eventually approach people, but when they reach their had out she backs away. She is NOT food motivated at all.

Anything we can do to alleviate her anxiety?