Tulip the toy poodle looks a pretty picture as he poses in the winning Crufts trophy.

The beautiful mutt, whose real name is Claude, squared up to bulldogs Winnie and Mabel as he prepared for the prestigious dog show, which starts on March 9 at the NEC in Birmingham.

Tulip, owned by Sandra Martin, from Runwell, is just one of 22,143 pedigree dogs of 170 breeds registered to compete for the best in show title and a further estimated 3,330 non-competing dogs will be on display.

Also at the launch, in Green Park, central London, on Wednesday was a Tibetan terrier called Tibby, owned by Julie Hindle, from Leigh, performing his trick of covering his eyes with his paws.

Paws for thought - Tulip guards the Crufts show trophy with bulldogs Winnie and Mabel

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