Deb with Cait and Nell

“I want a dog” was probably Deb’s first sentence. Deb’s love of dogs goes all the way back before elementary school with her first dog Cindy, a cocker mix. Always interested in how dogs learn, she competed with her brother to see whose dog could learn the most tricks and then over the years progressed to titling her Springer Spaniels and Border Collies in AKC competitive obedience, tracking, agility, flyball, AKC Hunt Tests for the spaniels, competing with her border collies in ISDS-styled sheepdog trials, and dabbling in rally and scentwork.

Over the years, Deb was very involved with the local kennel club and at a local dog training business taught a variety of classes from puppy kindergarten to manners, to off leash control, to agility, to Feisty Fido, a class for reactive dogs.

After resisting invitations from her good friend Mary Kutulakis for years, Deb finally jumped into canine musical freestyle with her then retired injury-prone seven-year-old working border collie Cait. Cait was a registered therapy dog who loved freestyle, earned a few titles, but mostly enjoyed dancing and entertaining at retirement homes and schools.

Deb now lives with her border collies Nell (her main working sheepdog) and Trella (her second freestyle partner) and is the leader of the dog dancing troupe The Steppin’ Woofs, a group of dog and music lovers that Mary started over 20 years ago.

You can catch Deb dancing the jig at Redfern’s canine musical freestyle class.

Trella and Nell channeling the Rockettes