After two days of judging and over 2,500 dogs, Affenpinscher Banana Joe was named Best In Show on Tuesday night at the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show.
Banana Joe won the 137th running of the event and will hold the title until next year. "He speaks German, Dutch, Spanish and English," co-owner and breeder Mieke Cooijmans offered to the Associated Press.
The five-year-old dog came close over the past two years, but 2013 was the perfect storm for the dog to win, taking his 86th best in show title overall.
"He's won a lot of big shows, but not like this one," handler Ernesto Lara said.
The runner up of the event was Bugaboo's Picture Perfect, an old English sheepdog only 20 months old after judge Michael Dougherty selected Banana Joe.
"He was presented in immaculate manner," Dougherty said. "He was on the minute he walked in.
"He's in perfect condition, perfect body," he added.
Banana Joe was selected as the best of the seven breeds, including out of hound, toy, non-sporting, herding, sporting, working and terrier. The best of seven at the end also included a range of other solid options, including a German wirehaired pointer, an American foxhound, a Portuguese water dog, a bichon frise and a smooth fox terrier.
Banana Joe was part of the past two Westminsters, finishing second in the toy group twice before being names the top dog. The official name is Banana Joe V Tani Kazari and the dog will have its own silver bowl that is given to the top winner.
The event had 187 different breeds, including two new ones in the treeing Walker coonhound and the Russell terrier. Banana Joe beat out nearly 3,000 dogs and will have some pricy breeding fees in the future.
"It would humanize the breed," Westminster Kennel Club president Sean McCarthy said. "A win for the Doberman would be an acceptance of that breed."
The most entries this year geography wise are from New York for the third straight year in a row followed by California and New Jersey. The event was memorably spoofed and parodied in the film "Best In Show", which was directed by actor and writer Christopher Guest in a mockumentary style that followed a number of contestants at a similar type show called the "Mayflower Kennel Club Dog Show."
