The Nugget Newspaper - News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon

We brought them home in a snowstorm. They were half wild. At 15 weeks, they were the last dogs for a Scottie breeding kennel to sell, of his 30 puppies bred in 2023. It was obvious that these two brindle boys were not popular with the... — Updated 3/26/2024 Full story

Bernie, our 12-year-old black Scottie, has walked the roads in our neighborhood for all but the first six months of his life. Many people have moved in and out of the neighborhood during those 12 years. Thus, many dogs have come and gone... — Updated 3/14/2023 Full story

New Year’s Day always makes me reflective. I was thinking how blessed I’ve been to have Scottie dogs to take care of for nearly 40 years. As I thought about all the things I’ve done for them a memory jumped into my head. Not long after... — Updated 12/13/2022 Full story

Fall is in the air. Nights are cool and crisp, and days offer golden sunshine. This is the best time of year to me and my Scotties. We aren’t fans of too much heat, and we’d rather not deal with 10-degree walks. This is perfect. It’s why w... — Updated 10/25/2022 Full story

Bernie, our black, 11-year-old Scottie, loves to sit on the rock step to our back door. It’s high up, so that he can survey the acres of land all around him that he loves. He’s at peace there. Watching him on a beautiful summer morning rem... — Updated 8/30/2022 Full story

If you watch my Scotties’ daily activities, or any dog for that matter, you will think their purpose in life is simply to eat, to play, and to sleep. Yet, if you pay closer attention, you find that dogs clearly have a deeper purpose to l... — Updated 7/19/2022 Full story

All dogs have personality, and most dog-people choose their breed based upon that breed’s general personality traits. Scotties are known for having strong traits. Stubborn, independent, opinionated, and devoted would pretty much cover t... — Updated 6/14/2022 Full story

I was thinking about my Scotties, wondering how they would see God. Trying to put myself in their place, I realized that they could very easily see me, their keeper, in the same light as most people view God. To my Scotties, I’m the s... — Updated 5/11/2022 Full story

Why are dogs man’s best friend? When they are operating at their highest conscious level, they demonstrate angelic qualities. Dogs don’t judge us. Dogs forgive us for our errors. Dogs often show us unconditional love. And dogs have giv... — Updated 3/22/2022 Full story

We had our Christmas season’s peace shattered by our youngest Scottie, Chewy, developing an explosive case of lymphatic tumors. Our little angel passed on to heaven two days after Christmas. I believe that nothing bad comes without b... — Updated 1/25/2022 Full story

I’ve been thinking a lot about misinformation. It seems everywhere you turn people have very different ideas about what is correct and what is not. How do we know what is right? My Scotties have been bitten or aggressively charged by t... — Updated 11/30/2021 Full story

I’ve lived with Scottish terriers for nearly 40 years, ever since marrying my husband, Claude. Dogs have always been in my life, but it was Claude’s love of the breed that introduced me to Scotties. All dogs are special and unique, and Sco... — Updated 10/26/2021 Full story

Yesterday was a clean-up day in the yard. The Scotties are like three-year-olds. They always want to help Mom in their yard. If I’m digging, they want to dig right next to me. If I’m raking, they want to help by playing with the rake. If... — Updated 6/15/2021 Full story

Sunshine is seeping through the slats in the bedroom window shades. Bernie, our oldest Scottie, says it’s time to get up. He shakes his head, and the other two Scotties join the program, telling me I’ve got to get up with them. It’s sprin... — Updated 4/27/2021 Full story

My three rescued Scotties love me. How do I know? I know because they wag their tails and sometimes even howl when I return to them. I know because they always want to be with me and their actions show that they enjoy being around me. I... — Updated 3/10/2021 Full story

We live with three Scotties. Each one approaches life with a completely different style. Bernie, who was a service dog for me after my first cancer event, is devoted but often doesn’t pay attention to my directions. Chewy, who is o... — Updated 2/2/2021 Full story

Of all the New Years during the past nearly three-quarters of a century I’ve lived, I don’t remember a year I’ve greeted with so much hope in my heart. We’ve said goodbye to a very difficult year and our hearts are filled with hope that 20... — Updated 1/12/2021 Full story

As soon as the Christmas stockings are hung by the fireplace, our Scotties know something special is coming. Several years ago I wrote and illustrated a mostly biographical children’s book, Bernie’s First Christmas. The story opens with Ber... — Updated 12/24/2020 Full story

People like to say that dogs “live in the moment.” Anyone who says that has never lived with a rescued Scottie. My Scotties are always anticipating the next something; which includes worrying about what is coming next. If I begin gro... — Updated 11/11/2020 Full story

One of the many wonderful things about Scottie dogs is their honesty. They express truth. If they are barking, there is something out there. Even if I can’t see it, I know there is something or someone outside. Just yesterday the Scotties st... — Updated 9/22/2020 Full story

If you ever saw the movie “Braveheart” you may remember how William Wallace yelled out “Freedom!” during the scene at the end when they executed him. Freedom is the Scotsman’s mantra. My Scotties, being like their name, become transformed wh... — Updated 9/2/2020 Full story

Scotties, though sometimes stubborn, are adaptable. They ultimately let me be in control of any given situation. They like a routine, as we all do. Scotties also want to know what to expect and what is expected of them—just like kids... — Updated 7/28/2020 Full story