Roll over Pudsey – there’s a new dancing dog in town. Gayle Ritchie meets Hannah Paterson and her border collie Rumour
Jumping into buckets, sitting pretty, spinning and playing peek-a-boo while funky tunes belt out through the speakers.
This is heelwork to music, otherwise known as dog dancing, and border collie Rumour is an absolute pro.
The handsome two-year-old and his handler Hannah Paterson from Montrose were chosen to represent Team Scotland in a European dog dancing championship in Austria in September.
It would’ve been the first time a Scottish team had competed at the annual competition…but three of the dogs became ill and forced the team to pull out.
However, Hannah is hopeful she and Rumour will make it through to the 2017 championship – and watching the duo in action, there’s every reason to believe they will.
Hannah’s love of the sport began with her rescue dog, Jack, who sadly passed away last year.
“I’d retired him from agility as he was becoming arthritic,” she says. “Dog dancing is much more gentle for an older dog and he loved working so it was a case of finding something else for him to do.”
Hannah, who is a full-time dog walker, says dancing and agility are fantastic mental stimulation: “My dogs get bored easily and need to be entertained. They need a job to challenge their brains.”
A lover of all dogs but a massive fan of collies, Hannah bought Rumour as a puppy and started training him from day one. But she always put his health and wellbeing first.
“Safety is a big thing for heelwork to music,” she says.
“There are a number of banned moves that can cause injury and physical strain and I’d never make Rumour do anything he didn’t want to. What we do is very safe – jumping through hoops, sitting pretty, acting shy, spinning, rolling, trotting by my side and putting all four legs into a bucket.”
Dog dancing combines obedience training, tricks and dance that allows for creative interaction between dogs and their owners.
Hannah, who is self-taught, read books, watched DVDs and videos online to inspire her and recommends anyone wanting to follow in her footsteps do the same thing.
“There are loads of resources out there,” she says. “I started training Rumour for heelwork about six months again, but really, we’ve been doing it since the day he came home.
“Border collies are built to work, so they’re a great breed to dance with, but all kinds of breeds can do it – golden retrievers, poodles. bearded collies, terriers, spaniels and bichon frise.”
Hannah says even labradors can do it, although I sincerely doubt my black lab Toby would be keen.
Modern day training is all about “positive reinforcement” and not forcing dogs into doing things.
“I don’t bully dogs – they’re my team mates,” says Hannah. “I’d rather have a dog that wanted to work for me than one that was made to. If you make the work enjoyable, why wouldn’t they want to do it? Certainly there’s nothing Rumour would rather do. He’s such a willing dog.”
Since teenager Ashleigh Butler and her cross-breed dog Pudsey were catapulted to fame in 2012 after being the first canine act to win Britain’s Got Talent, many others have been inspired to follow in their footsteps.
According to the Kennel Club, since their first audition hit TV screens, interest in heelwork to music has increased by 20%.
Until this year, top teams have been part of a Great Britain Heelwork to Music team, but 2016 would have been the first time Scotland went it alone at the Euros.
“It was a shame to miss out but fingers crossed we’ll make it along next year,” says Hannah. “It will give us an ever better chance to brush up on our routine.”
