Mattie is very scared of everyone except the people who live in the house, what can I do to help her

Try changing the enrgy around her. DOgs are very sensitive to energy. Imagine white light surrounding her, and reassure her telepathically (or verbally) that she is safe and no harm will come to her from your friends and family. Also, Bach Rescue Remedy is very good, and there are other flower essences on the market that are good for stressed dogs (they are very safe.) I also know of a good animal communicator if you're interested. Your doggie has an energetic pattern in her that's causing this, and often tackling the issue from a different viewpoint can work wonders. If you know someone who does Reiki, have her send your dog energy. It feels safe and animals are extremely receptive. Good luck!

I believe Therandav has come up with the best solution for your pet. The key is to get all members of the household to do the same thing; a pet becomes more confused if each of you are trying different methods at the same.
Heather F. also has a good point, though. I have used this method when visiting others with pets like Mattie. But, I do not reach for the pet; I sit on the floor and let him/her come to me when they feel comfortable. Then just put my hand on the floor, casually, and let the pet sniff it when he's ready. People have been amazed with the connection my siblings and I can make with their pets in a short amount of time. My daughter's friends during her high school years use to tell her I reminded them of a real-life Dr. Doolittle. But, anyway, you decide to go, remember it takes time and patiences. Good luck!

therandav has it right on. If you want to see some of that in action watch or go online to the Dog Whisperer or Animal Planets "It's me or the dog" The first is psychology and the other is training methods. Most dogs need a little of both.Don't worry about the reason she is like that. All dogs can over come past issues with the right help.

Tone of voice and volume of voice are often big players in how calm or not, our pets are. A violent, screaming program on tv counts as part of that.

Calm, quiet music also helps.

If you have a houseful of noisy, combative people (verbally counts as much as physically), your pet will naturally be stressed.

Just a few ideas for you to chew on and maybe get some help from!

God bless you and Mattie!

It sounds as if the problem may be her socialization skills. She needs LOTS of socialization. When she seems frightened what do you do? Do you pick her up and try to tell her it is ok? If you do, then unfortunatly, you are adding to her fear, not making it better. Here are some tips for you to start with. First, find her absolutly favorite food treat. Only use these treats when socializing. Don't give them to her anyother time! Put a container of these by the door with a couple snack size ziplocks. When someone comes in to visit have a ziplock with some of these treats ready for the visitor. Have the visitor pretend like your pup doesn't exist. Completely ignore her! This means no talking to her, no touching her, and no eye contact with her. If she comes to you to hide give her a pat, say nothing, and then go back to ignoring her. Don't let her sit in your lap. She can sit on the floor or next to you but not on you or behind you. And again, no petting. If she happens to walk by your visitor, have the visitor toss a treat in her direction gently. Don't look to see if she took the treat. Just keep ignoring the dog. If she is hiding by your feet have your visitor toss a treat gently in her direction every few minutes. But keep ignoring her. She might walk up to someone, don't let the visitor pet her. Have the visitor just hand her a treat and keep ignoring her. Never let anyone give a treat if she is barking. After about 2-4 weeks of this if she seems alot more calm with visitors she might allow them to pet her. DO NOT FORCE THIS!! If she meets a new visitor with tail wagging only then should the visitor try to pet her or you pet her. Give her a treat at the same time. If she shys from the hand then just have the visitor toss a treat and do nothing else. This will take a couple weeks or longer, but eventually she will see visitors as friends with great treats and nothing to be afraid of. If you have some willing people that can come over every day or so, you can set up little training sessions more often. Over time you will see her become a little more comfortable. Now, you need to get her out. Take her with you as many places as possible. Pet stores are great for this in the middle of the week during the day. Enough people around for socializing but not a huge mob like on weekends. Take a baggy of those favorite treats with you. Walk around the store. Walk past as many people as possible. If she starts to pull away on the leash because you are near someone, do not talk to her or coddle her. Just stop. Talk to the person. Tell them the issue and that you are there for a training session. See if they would be willing to toss a treat in her direction. No petting from anyone at first. Just do the same thing in the stores as you did at home. The same rules apply. All you are doing is broadening her social skills to the outside world. I know this sounds weird to talk to a total stranger and ask them to help. That is the great thing about pet lovers and pet stores. Most the time, anyone in a pet store is more than willing to help. The outside world is a very scary place to our pets when they haven't seen too much of it. If she is so terrified of strangers that this does not work, you need to contact a trainer in your area to come out and help you. A dog that afraid of people could bite some unknowing person out of fear alone. If you don't understand this or have other issues drop me a message and I will be more than willing to help you anyway I can. If I can't answer your questions I can find someone who will. Good luck and let me know how it is going.