Miss P, Canadian-owned beagle, Best in Show at Westminster

With much tail wagging, Miss P became America's top dog Tuesday night by winning best in show in a big surprise at the Westminster Kennel Club in New York City.

At four years old, Miss P is related to Uno — in 2008, the immensely popular hound barked and bayed its way to becoming the only previous beagle to win at the nation's most prominent dog show.

Miss P, however, didn't let out a peep in the ring.

Instead, it was the packed crowd at Madison Square Garden that seemed to loudly gasp when judge David Merriam picked Miss P in a dog show world shocker.

The dog is owned by Lori and Kaitlyn Crandlemire of Enderby, B.C., along with American Eddie Dziuk. It was bred by Lori Crandlemire.

Miss P also earned a full day Wednesday — appearances of morning TV shows, a meeting with Donald Trump, lunch at prominent Manhattan restaurant Sardi's and a walk-on part in the Broadway hit musical Kinky Boots.

It was the 20th best in show win in the United States for the Canadian-born Miss P. The animal's name is short for Peyton, and its official champion's name is Tashtins Lookin for Trouble.

"She never let me down. She didn't make any mistakes," handler Will Alexander said.

The best-of-seven final ring was full of favourites.

Matisse, a Portuguese water dog that's a cousin of President Barack Obama's family pet Sunny, was the top-winning male in show dog history with 238. Swagger the old English sheepdog finished second at Westminster in 2013 and clearly drew the biggest cheers.

A Skye terrier came in second this time. A standard poodle, a shih tzu owned by Patty Hearst and an English springer spaniel also made it to the last ring.

There's no prize money for winning Westminster. Instead, there's prestige forever in the dog circles, plus the possibility of lucrative breeding rights.

Merriam is a retired California trial-courts judge. He has spent more than 50 years with dogs, but this was the first time he had judged a best in show.