January 2008


Sheriff Kenny, originally uploaded by dog.happy.art.

Thanks to Sweet Cottage Dreams, the Scottish Terrier and Dog News is bringing you a somewhat-exclusive about a hot new dog grooming product little known to urban dog lovers — it’s Cowboy Magic.

Horses and humans have been using it since 1995 when the Anaheim, California-based company was founded, and, apparently, dog groomers recognized its magic powers not long after. “Professional dog groomers and show dog owners discovered COWBOY MAGIC® DETANGLER & SHINE more than a decade ago,” Cowboy Magic president and founder Jim Cummings told EquestrianMag.com. “We have never advertised or targeted our marketing efforts in that direction until now.”

EquestrianMag.com also reported:

The product’s popularity spread not as the result of aggressive marketing and but rather by word-of-mouth. As word quickly spread through the dog world, Cummings realized that a whole new market was opening up for all his products—and he is positioning his company to reach that market.

To promote COWBOY MAGIC® DETANGLERTM & SHINE, Cummings coined a tag line for professional dog groomers: “Dog Grooming’s Best Kept Secret!”

The COWBOY MAGIC® DETANGLERTM & SHINE, the first COWBOY MAGIC® grooming product created by the COWBOY MAGIC company, can now be found in use in professional grooming shops around the country. The detangler and conditioning product works on a dog’s hair just as well as it does on a horse’s mane and tail to remove mats and detangle even the most stubborn knots. Matted hair combs smooth again, without breakage and with no greasy residue left behind. Hair is soft, shiny and silky. Furthermore, the alcohol-free formula contains silk proteins to soften and condition the coat and skin. Like their horse owner counterparts, professional dog groomers have become loyal customers who swear they won’t use anything else on their clients’ beloved canine companions.

The Scottish Terrier and Dog News has learned through its research that among the most dedicated users of Cowboy Magic are old English Sheep Dog owners and if anyone knows a thing or two about detangling it would be them.

old English sheep dog being groomeShe Smiles Even When She Is Being Groomed by Pet Menagerie at Flickr

What’s more, Sweet Cottage Dreams wouldn’t have tipped us off to this product if she didn’t like it, and just look at the great shape her dog’s coat is in. Just hope it’s available in Canada.

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Scottish Terrier grooming diagram

Scottish Terrier grooming diagram

D0-It-Yourself Scottish Terrier groomer Lallee of Lallee’s Cottage writes:

I am flattered that you would ask me about how to groom a Scottie. (Do I hear breeders guffawing out there?) I still think of myself as an amateur.

I’m glad to share what info I can on the process of grooming. My learning began with a few helps. First, Oliver was my first Scottie, now 9 years old. Living in a small town, I was unsuccessful finding a groomer who knew how to groom a Scottie properly. I was a member of an ST list on AOL, with many members transferring later to Ed’s ScottyLovers on Yahoo. I learned and continue to learn a wealth of information on ScottieLovers. Also, I met a breeder in a nearby town who encouraged me to learn to groom myself. She generously offered for me to bring Oliver over for her to groom and teach me.

I would say my ‘education’ was threefold:

  1. ScottyLovers discussions from helpful breeders and groomers on tools and techniques.
  2. This online tutorial which I printed out at the time:
  3. The hands on tutorial from the breeder.

As with everything, it was an ongoing learning experience. I never looked back because even my first efforts were far better than what I had been paying for. Hair grows back, so other than maybe some brief embarrassment of owner and dog, what is to lose?

My first investment was good clippers. My Oster Golden A5 still works like the day I bought it. You would want a clipper that the blades can be interchangeable. One area of grooming I was always nervous about was using the clippers on the ear edges. I was so frightened of cutting them, and saw that one groomer already had nipped Oliver’s! I discovered (on ScottyLovers) that there was a small trimmer for this purpose that cannot cut the ears, and also works so well between the toes. It was one of the best investments I’ve ever made! Later additions in grooming tools I made were a grooming table, better scissors, and thinning shears. There may be other models of clippers that would be recommended. Mine are 9 years old.

Different size blades determine the length of trimmed hair. I like using a 5F blade on Baggins who has a beautiful thick coat. It doesn’t trim too close. I use an 8-1/2 on Oliver’s back which cuts shorter. He has a thin coat and the 5F just doesn’t trim on his coat.

I joined the Tampa Bay Scottish Terrier Club and they had a grooming seminar not long after I started doing my own grooming. While they were showing how to strip, etc., for showing, I still learned some great techniques for finer finishing.

I find breeders to be generously helpful. If there is one nearby, I would make contact and ask for help. Also, join a breed club if there is one nearby. Last but equally informative and helpful is the Internet, of course. Scottish Terrier Club of America is helpful relating to all things Scottie and a good source for finding local breeders:

Please let me know if I can offer anymore info. I hope this makes sense. Your blog is delightful and I enjoy catching up all the news and interest you gather!
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You heard it folks. Ask Lallee your grooming questions.

The Scottish Terrier and Dog News will kick things off with a query from Elizabeth of Houston, Texas, owner of 13-month-old Oliver. “I need an opinion on whether or not I should cut his hair,” she writes. “I like the teddy bear look and have tried a short Scottie cut on him during the summer months (we live in Houston) and he looked odd.”

That’s shaggy Oliver above on the left (click to enlarge) and Oliver with what we dubbed the Scottie Brazilian below. Elizabeth thinks he appears miserable and we have to agree he looks far less confident than above.


The Scottie News’ recommends that next summer you opt for a Traditional Scottie haircut and not a Brazilian. While we too love the Teddy Bear look and favour it for getting through Canadian winters, all that black fur is just too hot for the summer. And we’re in Montreal not Houston! We think young Oliver would be proud to have a classic cut even if it might take him a day or two to get used to it. Since you’re in Texas, we’d also like you to weigh in on the merits of using Cowboy Magic for dog grooming. We’ll have a special report later today.
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Read more on Scottie dog haircuts and Scottish Terrier grooming.

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Scottish Terrier Golden Gate BridgeUntitled by Rafael Gaino

California girl or boy?

Here’s a great shot of a Dachshund in front of the Golden Gate Bridge that the Daily Doxie featured earlier this year.

We’ll be back with a special grooming report later today including extensive tips from Lallee and what Cowboy Magic can do for your dog.

In the mean time, see all our Scottish Terrier pictures by clicking on the photos label directly below.
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See more Scottish Terrier and Scottie Dog photos.

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This week for our Wednesday Global Scottish Terrier report, we are travelling to Mexico, home of Kika, perro (roll those R’s everybody) Mexicano. In the first video, we see Kika travelling in a car with her head out the window. The neglect of safety standards is nothing like in this video of two Dachshunds hanging out of a car, but it does remind the editor of the Scottie News of her days studying in Morelia, Mexico and some of the very dangerous bus rides she took back then. Too bad she can’t remember how to say “plus ça change plus c’est la même chose” in Spanish.

Next up we see brave Kika drinking from a Mexican fountain, something that the Scottish Terrier and Dog News warns both you and your dog never to do. NAFTA or no NAFTA, you should be very careful of all Mexican water and ice. We gringos do not have Kika’s constitution and immune system. Just say, “Una cerveza por favor.”

Update: The Scottish Terrier and Dog News dealt with the controversy that arose in the comments with a separate post: Ay Caramba! Kika the Scottie Has Two Mommies!

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IMG_4334, originally uploaded by Bethany B..

Wheaten Scottie and hairy-legged dude in matching tartan. Read our previous kilt coverage to see more skirted men and terriers.

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Further to our Oscar post last week, it has come to the attention of the Scottish Terrier and Dog News (via Monty on Movies)that Scottie owner Humphrey Bogart actually starred in a movie with a Scottie that many film afficionados suspect was one of his own.

Stand-In, a satirical look at the movie business featuring Bogart in a rare comic role, gets pretty good reviews. Writes Allessa-3 from Michigan on the Internet Movie Database, “(Bogie) has one of the funniest scenes. Thrown out of a bar because he’s drunk, he and his little Scottie dog stand outside it. Bogart wears a placard saying ‘this cafe is unfair to me,’ and the dog wears a placard saying the same thing. Shirley Temple is also satirized in this film. If you love old movies, you shouldn’t miss this one!”

In all fairness though, the Scottie News must also point out to you that this little-known film has its detractors including one Glenn Erickson at DVD Savant who faults it for “awkward miscasting, and a plot about a meaningless power struggle.” We’d be more inclined to trust his judgment, however, if he didn’t say that Bogart was “frequently carrying a foolish-looking dog.”

Bad taste in dogs often reveals bad taste in movies. Good taste in dogs means good taste in movie scripts as Bogie showed a few years later when he filmed Casablanca in 1942.

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Anyone know of a Scottish Terrier that can do a handstand?

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As we prepare for Superbowl Sunday, we’ll be bring you a week of kick-ass Scottish Terrier news.

1st and Goal by blackdog8200 on Flickr

See more Scottish Terrier and Scottie Dog photos.

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A Scottie dog photo essay

by AnnB on January 28, 2008 · 1 comment

in Photo collection

Over at Sweet Cottage Dreams, there are even more Scottie photos for you to check out. When I see the way SCD and Lallee take care of their houses and their Scottish Terriers, I’m filled with jealousy awe and you will be too. My Scottie, Bridget, is so grubby I can’t imagine letting her get near the European linen pillow sham we don’t have at the Scottish Terrier and Dog News world headquarters. (To tell the truth, we don’t even have a fashionable crate cover.)

But enough about me. Let’s pick the brains of the Scottie-owning, cottage-blogging gals since, it goes without saying, they do their own dog grooming and the Scottie News has recently had a request for DIY grooming tips for Scottish Terriers. Would either of you be able to recommend a good book or guide for our readers who are in the market? Many thanks in advance.

Update: Both Lallee and Becky of SCD provided advice that can be found in our Scottish Terrier Grooming section.

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IMG_2219_1, originally uploaded by redrumXIII.

Scottie Dog News has not yet been able to find any Hillary Clinton/Scottish Terrier ties so we’ve settled for a picture of a Hillary look-alike with a Scottish Terrier. Apologies if you think that was cheating and that she looks too cheerful for someone who just lost South Carolina.

Meanwhile, here is some canine-related news about the South Carolina Dems victor from the other Dog Lady — meaning the one who writes the syndicated newspaper column — who received an advice-seeking letter from Annie in Lincoln Park: “My husband thinks we should …name (our labradoodle puppy) ‘Bark Obama.’ My husband is a huge Barack Obama supporter,” she wrote. “So am I, but I feel this name is too much. You?”

The other Dog Lady replied: “Actually, Dog Lady thinks your husband is quite clever. ‘Bark Obama’ is an amusing homage.” The rest of the answer here.

See our previous election coverage by clicking on the label below.

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