[Britster]

But, I wanted to address the issue of anxious and anxiety too. It's a tough thing to deal with with dogs.

Jackson was always pretty shy. I wouldn't say "fearful" but very shy. He's gotten sooo much better. He is almost 3 years old now and since I got him, I have been exposing him to all new sights, sounds and smells.

He used to NEVER go up to random people. It just never crossed his mind and if someone reached down to pet him, he'd often shy away. I started always keeping treats in my pockets and making every moment a training session. We'd go into our local pet store and he used to never let the employees pet him, now he even will go up to them and smell them without them asking. I'd also take him to my little cousins baseball games where there were lots of children who wanted to pet him. I had kids give him treats, etc. After about 5 games, he became very comfortable. We started slow though -- I didn't let kids just bombard him. First, I started treating him just for seeing all the kids and being calm, etc. I've been so very proud of him lately. He has wonderful manners and enjoys a good petting from a stranger now so long as you are calm and don't rush up to him. He really loves children (he has always loved my young siblings) but now it's turned to all children. He's really just a "sweet" dog. I think, had no one ever worked with him or exposed him to new things, he may be a basket case of a dog.

Also, clicker training really boosted his confidence. He LOVES to perform his tricks for strangers and kids, etc. It really helps him out when he knows how to do something and feels confident doing it and then gets treats in return for it. He now enjoys being in a circle full of kids and doing tricks (with my direction), etc. Agility classes were also a huge help. I noticed a big difference after taking the class.

I wouldn't say he was ever OVERLY anxious or fearful of anything. So this advice is coming from someone who has not dealt with an extremely fearful dog before, but a shy one.