'Photo Bombing Dog' Gives AMCOM Family National Spotlight

REDSTONE ARSENAL, Ala. -- The cat finally got one up on the dog.

Yet, in the process, the dog gave his owners a free trip to Los Angeles, the experience of being on live television, and a chance at the big win of $100,000.

Yes, the cat did win the competition with its "Brain Freeze Cat" video on the Oct. 25 edition of America's Funniest Videos. But the dog -- a five-year-old English bulldog named Tyson owned by the Aviation and Missile Command's Ward Stirling and his family -- got plenty of laughs for "marking" the cell phone placed strategically in his backyard to take video of 15-year-old Bentley Stirling's soccer kicks into a goal. The video is called "Photo Bombing Dog."

"Fortunately, Bentley had his cell phone in an OtterBox (a protective covering)," said Stirling of the incident, which occurred in March. "He was practicing shooting goals. He's not a striker, so he doesn't get a lot opportunity to shoot goals on the field. As a center mid, you are in the middle of the field and you are usually a passer.

"Bentley put his phone down in the grass and propped it up with some patio cushions so that he could video his shots. He was practicing, and Tyson was roaming around the yard. Out of nowhere, Tyson came up and peed on the phone."

All the action was caught on the video. Viewers can see Bentley right after he hits the record button and then runs over to the ball to take a shot at the goal. For about two minutes, the video shows Bentley juggling and shooting the ball. Viewers then see a dog's nose sniffing the phone and then a few drops of urine cascading down on the screen. Bentley is heard saying, "Tyson, no, no! Oh my God!" as he runs toward the phone and reaches to pick it up. The video is then shut off.

What viewers don't see is Bentley's dash for the house.

"He came running in here, saying "Mom! Mom! Tyson peed on my phone!" said Bentley's mother, Angela Stirling.

"It was kind of gross until we got it cleaned off," Bentley said. "It was nasty at first when I picked it up. But it didn't really bother me too much."

"The case saved the phone for sure," dad Ward said.

Soon, Bentley had a new phone case.

But, that's not where the story ends. Bentley decided to put the video on YouTube and it quickly got over 7,800 views. A video company in the United Kingdom offered Bentley $50 for the video.

"I told him 'Don't go for $50. Why don't you go for $10 grand or even $100,000 on AFV," Ward Stirling said.

With plenty of encouraging remarks from friends and family who found the video hilarious, Bentley and his dad submitted it in April to ABC's America's Funniest Videos, which airs locally on Sunday nights on WAAY-TV channel 31.

America's Funniest Videos receives about 3,000 videos each week for consideration. So, the Stirling family didn't think about it much after they sent the video into the competition.

But, after school one day in August, they got a phone call from AFV.

"I'd gotten home from soccer practice in a bad mood," said Bentley, who is a 10th grader at James Clemens High School, and a member of the school's soccer team as well as a member of a traveling team with the United Soccer Club.

"The phone rang and mom said, 'I wonder if it's AFV calling?'"

His mom knew something Bentley didn't know. AFV had actually called earlier in the day and left a message on the family's answering machine.

"The first call was that we made the show," Angela Stirling said. "A couple of days later they called to say we made the top three and that they wanted to fly the whole family out for the show."

"I was freaking out," Bentley said.

Bentley and his mom and dad were joined by big sister Nichole for the trip in September. They left Tyson at home to enjoy his backyard.

The all-expense-paid weekend in Los Angeles was great for the entire family. But Bentley got an added bonus when he realized that players from the Montreal Impact, a Major League soccer team, were staying at the same hotel as the Stirling family.

"They were there to play the Los Angeles Galaxy," Bentley said. "They were getting on a bus and I asked one of the coaches if they were really who I thought they were. I got to meet one of my favorite players, DiDier Drogba. He played in England before he went to Montreal. I got my picture taken with him."

The family spent their Saturday in Los Angeles at the AFV studio, where they were prepped for the show and then placed in the audience for show taping.

"We had to go to the makeup room. I really didn't need any makeup. But my dad did," Bentley said.

During the show taping, the Stirlings were placed in the back of the audience with the other two contestants -- one family from Pennsylvania with a video called "Brain Freeze Cat" about a cat who makes a weird face after eating ice cream too quickly and the other from Trussville, Ala., with a video called "Sleepy Date" about a woman who kept falling asleep because of cold medicine she had taken. When it was time for the final minutes of the show, they were all moved to the front row.

"The taping was from 10 in the morning until 3 in the afternoon. It was exhausting," Ward Stirling said. "The host -- Alfonso (Ribiero) -- was funny and danced around a lot."

On Saturday night, the family went to see the Montreal Impact tie the Los Angeles Galaxy 0-0. Then, it was home on Sunday, with a $2,000 third-place cash prize in their pocket.

The Stirling family had it tough for about a month, when they couldn't tell anyone whether they won or not. It was hard keeping the secret because all of Bentley's friends pestered him for the inside scoop. Once the show aired, the family was able to relax and enjoy their third-place finish, which does not make the eligible to compete for the season grand prize of $100,000.

But more valuable than the money was the experience of being on live television.

"Bentley's life goal was always to be famous," said big sister Nichole. "When he was little, he used to say, 'I'm going to be famous.' Maybe this is the beginning of him being famous one day."

Bentley, who will deposit his big win in his college fund, hopes to one day play professional soccer. He continues to practice in his backyard, but without his cell phone. So far this year, he has not only excelled at being a center mid player, but has also made four goals.

The whole experience with AFV was a once-in-a-lifetime kind of thing for the family, said mom Angela Stirling.

"Not many people get to experience that. I've never known anyone on AFV," she said.