Dog from the Philippines Totally Nails the ‘Tinikling’ Dance Better Than Most Humans

The clip in question, which was posted online by animal trainer June Lazarte, has already garnered over 1.2 million views (as of the time of writing) since it was first posted on Oct. 6.

In the video, the dog, Bullet the Chihuahua, can be seen jumping on and in-between the two bamboo sticks. Lazarte, as part of the dance, then slaps the two sticks onto the table and against each other as the pooch gleefully jumps to avoid getting caught.

 

Tinikling is a traditional folk dance in the Philippines that originated during the Spanish colonial era. It involves two people holding two long bamboo sticks as one or two other people dance on top and in-between them to the music played by a rondalla ensemble.

 

Bullet, the 1 year and 5 months old chihuahua, is one of the many animals that Lazarte has trained. Other animals he has trained include cats, chickens, pigs, birds, and even rats, according to himself while speaking to Coconuts Manila.

Lazarte was inspired to teach Bullet Tinikling after seeing countless videos online of dogs dancing the cha-cha and other dancing styles. Via Tinikling, not only would the pooch go viral, but he would also be doing his part to help spread a bit of Philippines’ culture to the world.

“I thought, why don’t I teach Filipino culture through this dog,” he told the publication.

Many netizens were amazed by Bullet’s skill in bamboo dancing. Here’s what some of them wrote:

Images screenshotted via Facebook / June Lazarte AnimalTrainor