Chinese crested-pug cross crowned 'Britain's ugliest dog'

The winner of a competition to find "Britain's ugliest dog" has been announced.

Peggy, a Chinese crested-pug cross – or "chug" – from East Yorkshire, was revealed as the top dog in the contest after being nominated by her owner Holly Middleton.

Described as "bald, beautiful and tonguetastic" on her her own dedicated Instagram account, Peggy became something of a media darling after a series of appearances on television news programmes and ITV's This Morning.

She beat six other shortlisted dogs to the title.

Announcing Peggy's victory on their website, competition-runners Parrot Print said she had been the "runt of an accidental litter" and was last to be homed after her siblings.

But when Peggy was six months old, Holly and her family came to see her.

"We loved her the Instant we laid eyes on her with her big brown eyes, little tuft of white hair and her tongue lolling out to one side," said Holly.

"I just felt sorry for her, sat there with no hair and her tongue out."

Holly said that despite appearances, Peggy has no health issues, although due to her lack of hair she has to wear jumpers in the winter and be lathered with sun-cream in the summer.

"From the moment Peggy arrived, she's been a beloved addition to our family," said Holly.

"She has grown up alongside our two boys and is the most loving, laid back and gentle dog we could ever ask for."

Chief judge Matt Dahan said: "We all absolutely adore Peggy.

"When we launched this contest I never once thought we’d find a dog like her who manages to be both ugly and so, so cute all at the same time."

Peggy's prize for winning is a pamper session at a "doggie spa", a makeover and a professional photo shoot and canvas print of herself.

Holly hopes Peggy's new-found fame will inspire other people not to dismiss dogs that look a bit different to normal.

"We didn’t set out to get a quirky dog, an underdog. I hope it encourages people to overlook the little oddities of those dogs left on the shelf," she said.

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