When Stephen Hepworth is not behind his desk dispensing wisdom about finance, he is using his calculating mind out on the fells. The Skipton Building Society investment adviser takes to the moors with his four-year-old border collie bitch, Carrie.

It's a partnership which is making waves in the world of sheepdog handling, because within the last three years, he and Carrie have twice made it into the top 150 in the country.

And this weekend in Bacup, the partnership will be competing in one of the most prestigious handling competition in the North - an event they have won before.

Even though sheepdog handling is not exclusively for shepherds and farmers, Stephen, a member of the Silsden-based Yorkshire Sheepdog Society, is a relatively rare breed.

He likes to keep Carrie in the house not outside in a kennel. And as he admits, she is mollycoddled.

"I spoil her a bit. It horrifies farmers, but I bought her a quilt with some of her prize money which she sleeps on.

"Farmers laugh at me and take the mickey. They comment about how clean she looks and joke about how dirty she will be when she comes back." But Stephen takes it in good part and people soon realise they are dealing with a man and a dog who love to compete.

His ultimate ambition is to represent England in the International Sheep Dog Trials between teams of 15 dogs and their handlers from England, Scotland Ireland and Wales.

"We need to built up enough points to get into the top 150 in the country.

"Those 150 take part in three days of trials and the top 15 dogs are selected for the team. That is my ambition."

They have been there twice already, but never yet won selection to the national team.

As a hobby-handler, as opposed to a working shepherd, he knows it's a tough challenge, but so far he has been generally welcomed into the fold.

And he owes much to the members of the Yorkshire Sheepdog Society, which has 100 members, including a number who, like him, run dogs for a hobby.

Stephen ,47, of Denholme, said: "There are a lot of cantankerous people in the dog world, but in my experience in Yorkshire, without their help I could never have got where I have.

"It's a minefield out there and members of the group and people like Herbert Reddihough, of Cullingworth, and Douglas Fisher, of Denholme, who have been working dogs for years, have been my guides.

"I didn't have a clue. I'd never been near a sheep before - the nearest I'd been was my Sunday dinner.

"When I first started I used an instruction book. I had it in one hand and a whistle in the other. It wasn't until the society took me under its wing that I started to make progress.

"Not only do you have to know how to handle the dog, but you must understand sheep, which I am still learning.

"But I have the advantage of having a good dog. I'm very lucky. Some people can go 30 years and not get a dog like Carrie."

Stephen, who has three daughters, none of them interested in sheepdog trials, is out most nights with Carrie on some land he has acquired and also helping a local farmer.

"It's a lot of hard work and dedication. You have to sacrifice a lot of time to it, but I enjoy it very much."

Carrie has already had five pups, two of which are with him and being trained up. The other three are working dogs, two in Wales, which are also showing potential in competition.

Herbert Reddihough, who farms at Lower Heights, near Cullingworth, said he welcomed non-farmers like Stephen into sheepdog trialing.

"Some people call them Saturday afternoon runners, but without people like Stephen there wouldn't be as many people competing or to help organise and set up the events," he said.

Not everyone in the Yorkshire society is as competitive as Stephen.

Like housewife turned dog handler, Alison Salisbury, of Riddlesden, who with her husband, Keith, a retired engineer, runs dogs. The couple have a smallholding where they keep a flock of 50 sheep. Alison competes with her dog, five-year-old Beechwood Bob, in nursery trials throughout the winter and gives demonstrations at shows during the summer.

Her interested in sheep dogs was sparked after her three children, who had kept horses, left home.

"I didn't know what to do and I got a sheep dog as a pet and then decided to see if I could work it. I made a total mess of it. I didn't know where to start and I didn't know anything about sheep or what to do about the dog."

She eventually got help from local farmers and after trial and error developed the skills. Over the last ten years, Alison has been pleased to see more women getting involved

Two other women who have found success are Carol Mellin, of Moor Lodge Farm, Oakworth, and Elaine Hill, of Far Isle Farm, Oxenhope, who have also got their children involved.

Carol, 41, whose husband Albert, 62, is one of the best know handlers in the area, works her dogs with the large flock the couple run on their land.

She praised Stephen Hepworth particularly because of his dedication, his skill and intelligence.

Carol is keen to see more young people taking up handling and has already started her six-year-old son, Philip.

"He goes out in front of the crowd and he enthrals them because they've never seen someone as small as him handing the dog."

Elaine Hill, who rears and breeds dogs, competes at nursery trials between October and March and in the summer demonstrates at local shows accompanied by her six-year-old son, Sam, and husband, Chris.

Sam already has dog handling in his blood because his grandfather, Jack Chapman, was famous in the area for his skills.

Sam accompanies his parents to shows up-and-down the country where he rides a quad bike towing a trailer, the miniature of his father's trailer.

The scaled down vehicle contains ducklings which are later used by his mum as part of her dog handling show.

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