Teaching your dog basic commands to keep them safe (and you sane) is one thing. However, there are also pet owners who leave people awestruck with what they’ve trained their canines to do.
Yvonne Belin from Switzerland is someone who has an incredible gift when it comes to dog training. She entered the FCI Dog Dance World Championships alongside her Border Collie, Alice – and together, they blew everyone away. Fortunately, their award-winning performance was uploaded to the internet and it’s since been watched more than 2.7 million times on YouTube.
The event was held in Moscow, Russia and featured two main categories that contestants participated in – “Heelwork to Music” and “Freestyle.”
Yvonne and Alice’s performance below was part of the freestyle category, which involves a lot of creativity. With freestyle, the handler and dog’s routine demonstrates originality through intricate moves that are paired up with music. In addition, artistry, teamwork, and athleticism are also displayed in the style.
After getting settled on the dance floor both Yvonne and Alice begin with a bow. Whether the crowd knew it or not, they were in for a real treat.
The duo’s act is set to Queen’s, “Don’t Stop Me Now.” As you might remember, the tune starts out slow before reaching a point that it explodes with energy. Yvonne and Alice also start out slow, performing twirls and moving gracefully across the floor.
Once the song hits its epic transition, the pair’s routine goes to another level and they become unstoppable.
Alice incredibly walks backwards, leaps, spins, and follows her owner’s moves – which all seem to go along with the music. It’s evident that a great deal of practice must have been put in for her to become so skilled.
Together they’re a magnificent duo.
While Alice is perhaps the star of the performance, Yvonne beautifully leads their act and is stunning with her showmanship as well. Their dance is entertaining to watch and it’s leaving many people amazed. One viewer hilariously commented:
“And I’m proud when my dog sits and stays!”
Another wrote:
“I just think this was adorable! ❤️❤️❤️ So much respect, intelligence, and dedication! ADORABLE!”
According to the AKC, Border Collies are an energetic, athletic, and intelligent breed. These traits certainly shine through in Alice!
At one point near the end of the routine, Yvonne takes off her jacket and they both bow to the audience. However, they’re not done yet…
The music suddenly comes back on and the pair put on a mini grand-finale.
Yvonne and Alice impressed the judges so much, they ended up taking home the first-place prize in the Freestyle category of the competition. Bravo!
When it comes to the Heelwork to Music (HTM) category, it has differences from freestyle. According to the video description, the handler and dog stay at a close distance during the routine. They also:
“…move as one entity throughout the routine, displaying heelwork and creativity in the many positions and behaviors possible in HTM.”
Yvonne and Alice made numerous great achievements together as a dancing duo. Sadly though, Alice passed away from cancer. Yvonne now spreads awareness about canine cancer, particularly Hemangiosarcoma – and does so through her website Alice-Ribbon.
Watch Yvonne and Alice’s award-winning performance for yourself below! Aren’t they fantastic?
