California canine Scamp the Tramp dubbed World's Ugliest Dog

June 24 (UPI) -- An aesthetically challenged pooch named Scamp the Tramp was crowned the World's Ugliest Dog after previously coming in second.

Scamp, who has competed in the competition at the Sonoma-Marin Fair in Petaluma, Calif., four times previously and was the runner-up in 2018, defeated a field of 18 other unsightly canines to take this year's title.

"Scamp the champ now. We had to change his name," owner Yvonne Morones told NBC's Today show. "Well, I think the audience got to know him beforehand and they saw all his community volunteer work."

Morones adopted Scamp from a shelter in 2014, just one hour before he was scheduled to be put down. Scamp has since been working as a therapy dog for seniors at the Sebastopol Senior Center and first-graders learning to read at a California school.

Morones has an uncanny eye for unusual dogs -- Scamp is the third dog she's owned that has taken the World's Ugliest Dog title. One of her previous pooches, named Nana, was a six-time champion from 1996 through 2002.