Banjo's Bath, A Bike Ride and A Boat

It turns out that Banjo loves getting a bath. That's just one more hurdle that we've managed to accomplish.

At first she hid from me. But I sat down with her behind this chair, hid with her and talked gently to her. In no time, she was in her tub getting a bath.

So far, Banjo has had fresh breath every day just from eating healthy and from chewing on her bones. 

Even though her teeth look super white and shiny now, I know they won't always stay that way. Learning to brush as a puppy is very important. I was thrilled when she let me brush her teeth this morning, that's one more hurdle of oh so many more to go. She did hide again when she saw the toothbrush. But she finally relented and let me brush them as long as her chew stick stayed nearby. She's always with that chew stick hanging out of her mouth like a cigar. But you can still see those pearly whites.

Black Mouth Cur and Belgian Shepherd (Malinois) is most definitely her breed. She is very receptive to learning new commands like a shepherd. Yet, she never misses a single scent like that of a Black Mouth Cur. That tail though is a telltale (punny) sign of a Malinois.  
 

This evening our goal is to slowly introduce her to the hiking trail. We've been easing her  into to meeting new dogs and people due to her shelter background and not knowing exactly what she has been through. For our first few trips we'll be taking her in a bike trailer, to avoid stressing her out with other dogs.

Now that we have our girl Banjo, I feel more comfortable working in the back yard. She let's me know whenever a critter is approaching me. I'm not afraid to turn my back on the canal with her keeping guard. We've been laying out pavers to see if we like the size and color for the pergola patio. 

Before we can permanently lay them out, we need lots of dirt to back fill our yard. I dread all the shoveling and hauling that will be involved with this yard leveling project.

The time span of all that bathing and brushing will be short lived. As you can see Banjo is ready to dig in and help lay those pavers. That digging paw though.

We'll also be planning out anchors and bumpers along the seawall for a future boat or pontoon.