The old saying "beauty is in the eye of the beholder" was loudly celebrated in the Californian town of Petaluma on Friday.
Nineteen mutts went jowl-to-jowl for the right to be crowned "the World's Ugliest Dog".
The winner of the dubious title was Scamp the Tramp, taking home $15,00 (€1,350) in prize money, a trophy and a future appearance on the "Today" show on the US television network NBC.
Many of the dogs have been rescued from shelters and puppy mills. The winning dog is a therapy dog and volunteers at his local airport, primary schools, libraries and senior centres.