How do I get my dog to overcome her fear and shyness?

She is a 6 month old German Shorthair Pointer. I got her at 16 weeks and she has always been easily frieghtened by everyday noises. I am currently taking her to puppy basic obedience training, so she gets socialised weekly. She likes people and some dogs somewhat, but frequently tries to hide from both. Sometimes she even tries to hide from me. What is the best way to get her to come out of her shell? And is this something she will likely grow out of?

Try taking her to the dog park with alot of other dogs. Do not push her to socialize just take her there at first keep her on a lead and it might take awhile but she will eventually become curious about the other dogs and people to where she will want to play. The longer she is around other dogs the better she will adapt.

She might grow out of it with a lot of socializing. But this temperament can be genetic, not just from lack of proper socializing. What were the temperaments of her parents like? If her parents, especially her mother, were the way she is, it's genetic and you'll only be able to help her up to a point.Talk to your dog's breeder - a good breeder is always your best resource. Ask about the temperaments of his dogs. Get advice on the best way to socialize this puppy. She's well past the age by which puppies NEED to be socialized (16 weeks), but keep on working with her. Take her to as many different places as you can - the more you get her out, the better.

She was with her pack to long in my opinion. 16 weeks is well past the stages where early socialization are so important. I would do confidence building exercises with her. Take her to the park when there are few kids present and play on and around the wooden jungle gyms. Do the rolling bridge, walk under around through whatever you can. Give her treats often when she exhibits confidence and be sure to time your treats well.. Only for good behavior not for coaxing or begging her to do what you want. That only seems to a dog that they are being rewarded for their behavior. Anyway, the wooden gyms build confidence and walk through the woods and over limbs and through small puddles. Stand near the entrance of WalMart or Home Depot and have people that approach give her a treat. She will hopefully learn that life happens and its all good. Take her when she is hungry! Take something she loves like hot dogs or cheese chunks! I hope you can bring her out of her funk.. You need to know though that temperaments can be inherited and she may always stay like this. While she is young though is the time for you to do as much as possible. Be sure to hand her off to strangers now and then for them to walk her short distances and then back to you. Anything you can think of will be good.

I think the first order is to have her checked by your vet. You say she is easily frieghtened by everyday noises, is there something going on with her hearing? Once she has a full evaluation and clean bill of health from your vet I would look to understand her past as others have suggested. Knowing this won't fix the problem but will give you a base of understanding to work from. Now I would look at how you are handling yourself around her. By that I mean, because you know she is this skittish, do you feed into that emotion by being super sensitive to her reactions. Sometimes we humans want to protect and nurture at times when we should ignore and downplay the behaviour. I rescued a 9 month aussie who had very little exposure to the outside world. He is now two and still sometimes takes off running depending on my actions. I don't know his full background but know he is very skittish around men. I ignore the behaviour and continue what I was doing whether it be putting dinner on the stove or picking up items from my night stand. If I tried to go to him and cuddle him and stroke him it would actually do the opposite of what I want. He would become even more scared. Why? Because I am now reaffirming that which he was scared of truly was scary, why else would Mom make such a big deal about it?You also don't want to overface your young dog. Figure out what her comfort zone is with other people/dogs and the like. Don't force her to endure a pat or a scary noise. Look, I am afraid of heights. By sitting me on a scaffolding 20 feet in the air is not going to make me less scared. With people I instruct them to never look directly at my dog. Direct eye contact can be interpreted as a threat to dogs. I don't force him to go up to the person. If possible, have the person croutch down in as non threatening a manner as possible. I also instruct them to take off any hats/glasses as these can make a human look inhuman. I do have lots of treats and continually feed him. If he takes a step towards the person I praise just as if I had asked him to sit for the first time. My whole demeanor is "Its no big deal". You have a long road ahead of you my dear, and it may never completely go away, but handled properly she will gain confidence. Keep up with obedience training and after she has her basics think about doing some Agility with her. I have seen many dogs come out of their shell and gain confidence just by learning to go over the equipment.Good luck and keep working with her. Remember "It's no big deal".

Hmmm... When you got her at 16 weeks of age.. Where was she? Was she getting socialized at the breeders place?? Was she spending ALOT of time with the other littermates?? There is a reason mom weans them and then starts to tell them off when they get bugging too much.. The puppies can start to depend on one another far too much.. If there is one there that is a little shy, and they are left with the litter too long, or even with mom too long, it allows them to stay shy.. Getting into their new homes and out into the world helps out most after a certain point. It's important that they don't stay with the litter too long, just as much as it's important that they stay with the litter long enough.. I suspect that she hasn't been socialized early enough and was allowed to remain shy.. You can work with her.. she might come around as she gets older, and gets more confidence.. I have met several spooky GSPs.. It might be her breedingAs your breed standard saysTemperamentThe Shorthair is friendly, intelligent, and willing to please. The first impression is that of a keen enthusiasm for work without indication of nervous or flightly character.Do things to help her become confident, set her up with things you know she does well so that you can praise her.. Don't sucky her up but treat her like she is special, when she does the right thing, praise her A LOT.. Sometimes with age, they come into their own and become more confident.