269 – Authors: Clean Paws Are Very Important For a Scottie, You Know
Clean Paws Are Very Important For a Scottie, You Know
DWAA Award Winners Rod Ott, Pilar Kuhn, Larry Linder and Lisa Peterson at the awards banquet.
Pilar Kuhn and Rod Ott, authors of the award-winning children’s book “Clean Paws are Very Important for a Scottie, You Know” joined host Laura Reeves live at Westminster Kennel Club.
Scottie registrations are down, Kuhn said. The breed has witnessed an astonishing 70 percent decrease in overall number of registrations in the last 15 to 20 years.
Ott believes the “Adopt don’t shop” mentality has impacted registrations. He also notes that breeders have aged out and the overwhelming number of activities available makes it harder to get young people involved.
Kuhn and Ott share with Laura the five-year long story of developing the book idea, acquiring the illustrations, battling cancer, and the life-saving focus the project provided.
The hardback book brings children’s attention to purebred dogs, teaches life lessons and features charming illustrations of Scottish Terriers.
“With every purchase of our book, we will be donating a portion of the profits to help fund research for childhood cancer and to the Scottish Terrier Club of America Health Trust Fund,” Kuhn said. “Why? Our lives were changed several years ago when we sold a Bouvier in 2014 to a young girl Noah Nechemia who was going through recovery from medulloblastoma. She is now 4 years a Survivor. Childhood cancer receives less than 4 percent of all funding toward research and we are not OK with this. We are donating a portion of the profits from the sales of our books to the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas that did so much for Layla Stamp and her family and because of our dedication to preserving the Scottish Terrier, we want to help support research on health problems affecting Scottish Terriers.”
Bravo Scotties Chicory and Dee Dee will be going through the Pet Partners International Therapy Dog program to become certified Therapy Dogs and will later accompany the authors not only to hospitals to visit children, but also to elementary schools around the country. In the schools, Kuhn will read the book to children and help educate them on the Scottish Terrier and give kids a chance to meet a real, live Scottie.