When Peyton Paterson first brought home “Dash,” a 10-pound Silky Terrier, her family didn’t know much about the breed. They thought they were adding a small companion dog to a household full of Doberman Pinschers.
They didn’t know that the little terrier would grow into both a lifesaving cardiac alert dog for Peyton, who lives with a rare, terminal mitochondrial disease, and a MACH-titled agility dog heading to the 20th AKC Agility Invitational at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida, on December 13 and 14.
This year, 10-year-old Dash will step to the line among hundreds of the country’s top canine athletes. For Peyton and her mom, handler Susan Paterson of Plainfield, Illinois, every run in Orlando is about far more than times and placements. It represents years of teamwork, resilience, and a small dog who refuses to be defined by his size.
From Companion Dog to Cardiac Alert Partner
Dash came into the Paterson home as “just” a companion. Peyton, who had already faced heart issues and surgeries as a teenager, lived with unexplained symptoms for years before finally being diagnosed with a complex form of mitochondrial disease. This rare genetic condition deprives the body of energy needed for vital organ function.
In those early days, no one set out to train Dash as a medical alert dog. He figured it out himself. At first, Susan noticed that Dash would suddenly get up and go to Peyton, tapping her with his paw. Sometimes she was sitting, sometimes lying down, sometimes asleep. Over time, a pattern emerged: every time he tapped, it was to alert them that Peyton’s heart rate had dropped dangerously low.
“I would love to take credit for training that,” Susan says, “but I can’t. He just understood something was wrong and started telling us.” Once they realized what he was doing, the family began rewarding the behavior, and Dash’s natural instinct turned into a reliable cardiac alert.
Peyton wears a watch that alarms when her heart rate dips, but she can sometimes sleep through it. Dash doesn’t. If she doesn’t respond, he’ll find an adult or caregiver, paw at them, and lead them back to her. In Susan’s words, Dash has “saved her life many times.”
His duties don’t stop there. When Peyton has a seizure, Dash lies across her. When she’s especially unwell and takes long showers to manage pain, he leans his front paws on the tub and rests his chin on the edge, watching her until she is safely out. At night, he often lies awake on her bed, quietly watching her sleep.
“These are behaviors that are hard to teach,” Susan says. “He feels it. He knows her in a way that no one else does.”
Adding Agility to Dash’s Resume
Before Dash, Susan was already deeply involved in dog sports, competing with her Dobermans. At home, she built a small training space in the basement with jumps and weave poles. Each dog took turns working with her, lining up by the basement door.
Dash noticed.
“He would sit there with the big dogs, waiting his turn,” Susan recalls. “Peyton finally said, ‘Why aren’t you including him? He should get a chance, too.'”
At first, Dash just joined the fun, so he wouldn’t be left out. But once Susan started working him over jumps and through the weaves, it became clear that he had real aptitude. He’s small, but sturdy and athletic — what Susan calls “a very hearty little dog.”
He also picked up some quirks, including one that still makes Susan laugh: “Dash can only weave with me on one side. I worked that same side for years in the basement. Now he’s 10, and my trainer says, ‘Don’t try to fix it now.'”
“The first few months in AKC, I thought, ‘I don’t know if this is going to work,'” she says. “He didn’t look unhappy, but I wasn’t sure he loved it.”
Then, week after week, weekend after weekend, something shifted.
Finding Their Stride in the Ring
About six months into their AKC trialing schedule, Dash and Susan started to feel like a team. She would review trial photos and see Dash flying over jumps with what she calls a “smiling face.” His runs might not be the fastest in the ring, but they were joyful and steady.
“I started to realize that he absolutely loved it,” Susan says. “He may not look like the fastest dog out there, but he gives me everything he has.”
That reliability shows on the scoresheet. Dash is not a blisteringly fast dog, but he’s very consistent. He has earned plenty of double Qs, even if piling up points has taken longer. Earlier this year, he celebrated a major milestone by earning his first MACH title, and he’s already more than halfway to his second.
For Susan, those achievements belong to both of them — but she never forgets that she is borrowing Peyton’s dog.
“I told her, ‘If he makes Invitationals, I’ll retire him from most of his extra activities, and he can just be with you,'” Susan says. “She wants him with her when she’s really sick, and that always comes first.”
Their goal for Orlando this year is simple: Dash and Susan aren’t chasing a podium so much as they’re chasing an experience.
“We’re realistic,” she says. “He’s 10 years old. We’re going because he earned the right to be there, and because it means so much to Peyton.”
Two Roles, Two Bonds
Dash has two jobs and, in many ways, two different lives. With Peyton, he is a full-time service dog and constant companion. He walks off-leash for her in perfect heel position. He focuses on her, waits for direction, and rarely leaves her side unless she tells him it’s alright.
When he’s with Susan downstairs, life looks a little different. Peyton jokingly calls it “Gen Pop” — general population — because Dash has to be just “one of the dogs” when he’s with the rest of the pack.
“With me, he’s still very responsive and very well-trained,” Susan says, “but he’s more of a regular dog. He’ll jump up and nip at my fingers when he’s excited. If I took him off-leash, he’d probably wander a bit. He wouldn’t dare do that with her.”
The moment they return home from a trial, Dash sprints upstairs to check on Peyton. If he has been away overnight, he races back into her room as soon as he can, as if to make sure she’s alright.
“He loves both of us,” Susan says, “but it’s in different ways. With me, he’s my teammate in the ring. With her, he’s her lifeline.”
A Bucket List Trip to Orlando
For Peyton, a trip to California to watch the AKC National Agility Championship has long been on her bucket list. When Dash started earning more titles, she added another goal: seeing him qualify for the AKC Agility Invitationals.
Because her health can change quickly, planning for major events is complicated. Peyton lives with complex IV mitochondrial disease, which can affect multiple organs and cause severe pain, lactic acid buildup, seizures, and fatigue. Some weeks, she can walk short distances and appear outwardly “fine.” Other weeks, simply getting out of bed is a struggle.
That uncertainty made Orlando a big question mark. Susan waited as long as she reasonably could before finalizing plans, wanting to be sure Peyton would be stable enough to travel. Right now, they’re cautiously optimistic.
For both of them, walking into the Orange County Convention Center with Dash, even just for one run, will feel like a culmination of years of effort, sacrifice, and the small moments that never make it to a results sheet.
As Dash and Susan head to Orlando for their first AKC Agility Invitational, they carry with them Peyton’s bucket list and a powerful reminder that teamwork can take many forms. In the ring, Dash is steady and reliable. At home, he is vigilant and devoted.
In both places, he’s earned every bit of the spotlight coming his way.
The AKC National Championship, presented by Royal Canin, has crowned its 2025 Best in Show! Learn more about conformation and follow your favorite breeds at dog shows throughout the year.