Meet Wild Thang, officially the 'world's ugliest dog'

A dog named Wild Thang has taken home the crown as the world's ugliest dog.

It's been a journey for the eight-year-old Pekingese from Coos Bay, Oregon, who after five previous tries finally won the bizarelly prestigious competition at the 2024 Sonoma-Marin Fair in Petaluma, California.

At just 10 weeks old, Wild Thang was diagnosed with canine distemper which has stunted the growth of his teeth and has also caused muscular disorder in one of his legs.

Eight dogs were up for the title on Friday (June 21), and a lot of them previously came from dog shelters before getting adopted.

2024 winner of the world's ugliest dog, Wild Thang.YouTube/KTVU FOX 2 San Francisco

On this year's judging panel was NBC News correspondent Gadi Schwartz, human rights advocate Linda Witong Abrahm and California’s state treasurer, Fiona Ma.

While Wild Thang may have been voted the world's ugliest dog by a panel of judges, his owner Ann Lewis will take home a handsome $5,000 for the win and make an appearance on NBC’s Today show.

For nearly five decades, organisers have held a World’s Ugliest Dog competition and on their website described the event as "fun and entertaining" but also noted how "the contest speaks to the importance of advocating for the adoration of all animals and the benefits of adopting."

In second place was a 14-year-old pug named Rome, and then a white-coated mixed-breed 14-year-old dog named Daisy Mae who was rescued at the age of two and has lost her teeth, hair and vision came in third place.

There were also some chihuahua mix entrants, including a 14-year-old brussels-griffon/pug mix named Freddie Mercury who made his debut at the event and is also the official mascot of Petaluma’s local ice-cream truck.

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