Good luck, Amy. I don't have any ideas for you. I have a genetically timid dog. She did fine in her first series of puppy classes, however, after that was too stressful she would drool all over herself and only let myself and the trainer (same trainer from first set of classes) touch her. She hates going to PetsMart, but she is fine at the park where she can run free and play with the other dogs. We stayed with my Dad for five weeks after he had open heart surgery. Five weeks and she still will not let him touch her. However, we have found things she likes and can do. We took agility classes together, which Ginger loved, and as I said letting her go to the park and run free and play with the other pups makes her very happy.

One of the reasons I got Taz, was to give Ginger more confidence while walking around the neighborhood. She doesn't like walking in a lot of areas because dogs bark at her and scare her. But if we are with another dog she is happy to follow them. So one of the reasons I decided to adopt another dog was to help Ginger build confidence in walking around the neighborhood. It is now easier to walk her. We will see what happens when it is dark when I get home from work, but I have a feeling that it will still be somewhat easier now that she has Taz to show her that it is not that scary. If Skya is more attached to one of the other dogs, try taking her and that dog (Keva?) out together and letting that dog show her how to accept attention. You are right, treats don't work when a dog is stressed, but maybe another dog will.

Good luck and please let me know how you make out. I have had Ginger read by two pet communicators about her anxiety issues, and both have told me the same thing. She was born that way, it is not something I can train out of her, it isn't a learned behavior to a certain stimulus. So whether you do or do not have any luck getting Skya to be more accepting of strangers just let me say, you will still find many things you can do together that will bring joy to both her and you.