dog started to fear to go outside

Question
I have a 2 year old male Jack Russell that we rescued from the spca. the dog was scared but finally got better and was going for walks with me. Then one day he seemed scare to walk so i waited till the next time and he went out fine, but it kept getting worse now he wont go out at all. if i take him out he just pulls at the leash to get back to the door. he will shiver and shake so bad i can hear his teeth chatter and he looks like he is going to shake his poor little body apart. i have Owen 3 dogs in my 47 years and never seen this in any of them. I show him  all the love i have and he always have play time with me when ever he want. i am really concerned with matter and don't know what to do to help him get over this fear. and it does not matter what time of day or night, or if there is noise or not. so i don't think it anything visible or sounds that is doing it. please if you can help or direct me to someone who can i and my dog would really appreciate it. thank you Ed

Answer
Ed -

First let me apologize for taking so long to respond.  I have been ill and nowhere near a computer.

The very firest thing I would recommend is to have your little guy checked out for vision problems, or to consider some medication just to take the edge off his anxiety.  I suspect if you could get just past the anxiety and have him be able to be successful in going out, he would settle down.

The next thing I would recommend is to practice taking him out when he is hungry.  Take tiny bits of a super high value treat - like cheese or bacon, and ask him to sit with you just outside the door.  Give him a tiny bit every 10-15 seconds until you can see that he has relaxed.  Then move him forward 3-4 feet, and do it again.  Be shameless about treating because you can always fade this out once he has rebuilt his confidence.  Also don't spare the touches or scratches that are his favorite during this time since it will help him relax as well.  

It can also help if you yawn a couple of times - Yawning is a signal to dogs that there is nothing to worry about.  Speak in a higher pitched happy voice, not an ohh-ahh kind of worried voice.

Don't hug and squeeze him, or feel too sorry for him because he will feel your emotions and assume you know something is wrong.... and then he will think there is something wrong.  Instead act with confidence that he can do this and that there's nothing to worry about, and that will help him believe there is nothing to fret over.

I'm pretty sure that after a few days of working on this, you can get him more relaxed outside.

I hope this makes sense.

-Beth