Sorry Baby didn't work out for the other folks but glad she's back with you Ben. I completely agree with what Jess posted. I'm quite the fan of Cesar Milan and that's very much what he'd do. He believes in being a strong pack leader, in not giving affection when a dog is stressed but rather helping them move past that fear.

A simple example with our new Lab, Bella, to illustrate. Bella has no fears other than one. She freezes and either will not move or tries to run away when she hears flags or awnings flapping strongly in the wind. When we walk her we go by several places like the post office where flags are and our own home has a decorative awning on the front porch. When she balks, we just keep moving her forward, or even around in a circle with her head high up and a strong, "heel Bella!". No mushy stuff, no big deal....just the message that nothing is wrong, we're not leading her to anything scary and off we go.

Robin told me that's what they do with her dog training for the assistance dogs. They don't allow them to fear anything, they lead them strongly to face a fear and see it as nothing. I also noticed Cesar often changes the walking speed so the dog becomes distracted from the feared thing but he keeps moving them by it until they learn to be less sensitive to it. That worked with Bella and she pretty much could care less about that sound now, she'll glance up to check what the sound of the flapping is but that's about it now.

I'd just get her out and about. Stop and talk to people, put her in a sit position at your side and just talk. Don't have them fuss over her, just let her get used to lots of people and other dogs by seeing you interact easily and calmly with them. Invite people over to your place. Make sure she is close by but don't have them make a huge fuss over her and excite her which can trigger fear responses. Some regular visitors that offer her a treat here or there will help her accept newcomers. Make sure you always are relaxed and in charge.

Here's Cesar's site. There are some good tips there and even a forum where you might find some more specific ideas for fearful dogs.

http://www.cesarmillaninc.com/

I think the biggest thing is to not pander to her fears, that just reinforces them. If she's afraid and you make a fuss over her at that moment, to a dog that means..."holy crap it MUST be bad because my leader is fussing over me".

Odd thing but I'd change her name hon. Calling her Baby may set up in your mind that she is a baby in need of coddling. Think about her beauty and her strength and pick a name that reflects that. A good strong female name. I think words have power and a powerful yet peaceful name may help you project that concept on to this dog. Just an idea.