MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (WBOY) — “Monkey Business,” a 12-year-old, award-winning Coton de Tulear dog represented his breed and home state of West Virginia at the 2023 National Dog Show in Philadelphia.

His owner and breeder, Adrianne Dering of Hopecrest Cotons in Morgantown, said that Monkey—as he is called at home—is a seasoned veteran when it comes to the show dog circuit. Back in 2014, Monkey was the first-ever Coton to compete in the National Dog Show, and he has received multiple American Kennel Club honors, including All Breed AKC 2014. In total, he has more than 80 Best in Miscellaneous Show wins, according to Hopecrest’s website.

Monkey is the oldest of more than 1,700 dogs of 204 breeds that competed at the National Dog Show on Nov. 16-19, which airs on NBC at noon on Nov. 23 after the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.

“Monkey has not only shown himself to be worthy as a young dog but at 12 years old, has proven that well-bred dogs can remain healthy and vibrant for their lifetimes and can continue to produce dogs who retain the signature characteristics of a breed and produce that health and vitality generation after generation,” Dering said.

Monkey’s decedents now include four generations of AKC champion Cotons, according to Derling, and his daughter “Sasha” is even making her National Dog Show debut this year in the 9-12-month puppy class.

Last year, T-Pup, another Coton de Tulear from Hopecrest, represented the breed in the National Dog Show and won three awards.