--- title: Meet Bono, Westminster Dog Show's Most Diminutive Rock Star description: Bono the Havanese is the most winning dog in his breed's history — and continued his streak at the Westminster Dog Show this week. canonical: https://time.com/5782390/westminster-dog-show-bono-the-havanese-dog/ author: Raisa Bruner article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2020-02-12T02:23:16.000Z article:modified_time: 2023-12-12T19:35:40.000Z og:title: Meet Bono, the Westminster Dog Show's Most Diminutive But Persistent Rock Star og:description: Bono the Havanese is the most winning dog in his breed's history og:url: https://time.com/5782390/westminster-dog-show-bono-the-havanese-dog/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt619b1802e44b1f3c/698a0a2316d8841922c37b70/bono-havanese.jpg?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Inside The 143rd Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Meet Bono, the Westminster Dog Show's Most Diminutive But Persistent Rock Star twitter:description: Bono the Havanese is the most winning dog in his breed's history twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt619b1802e44b1f3c/698a0a2316d8841922c37b70/bono-havanese.jpg?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # 'He Looks Into Your Soul When He Looks At You.' Meet Bono the Havanese, the Westminster Dog Show's Most Diminutive Rock Star With the 'It Factor' to Go the Distance ## Video: Top Dogs Compete in the 144th Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show [Watch (HLS stream): Top Dogs Compete in the 144th Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/bmJu42BR.m3u8) (1:52)  _Published 2020-02-12. Welcome to the Westminster Dog Show, where the size of the dog in the fight has nothing on the level of confidence, preparation and genetic perfection of the dog._  by [Raisa Bruner](https://time.com/author/raisa-bruner/)  ## Raisa Bruner Updated: Dec 12, 2023 7:35 PM UTCPublished: Feb 12, 2020 2:23 AM UTC  A Havanese named Bono is seen after winning Best in Toy Group at the 143rd Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show in New York, U.S., on Monday, Feb. 11, 2019. A Havanese named Bono is seen after winning Best in Toy Group at the 143rd Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show in New York, U.S., on Monday, Feb. 11, 2019.Bloomberg via Getty Images—© 2019 Bloomberg Finance LP  by [Raisa Bruner](https://time.com/author/raisa-bruner/)  ## Raisa Bruner Updated: Dec 12, 2023 7:35 PM UTCPublished: Feb 12, 2020 2:23 AM UTC Welcome to the [Westminster Dog Show](http://time.com/longform/wkc-dog-show-2019/), where the size of the dog in the fight has nothing on the level of confidence, preparation and genetic perfection of the dog. This week, a small but mighty canine named Bono took charge of the AstroTurf, handily walking away with a win in the toy group against his fellow diminutive dogs, sending the floppy-haired, inquisitive little Havanese to the final Best in Show round against six fierce — yet furry — competitors: Bourbon the Whippet, [Siba the McDonald’s fuel-ed Standard Poodle](http://www.startribune.com/superheroes-rock-stars-good-boys-girls-rule-at-westminster/567739212/), Conrad the Shetland Sheepdog, Daniel the golden retriever, Wilma the boxer and Vinny the wire fox terrier. (Siba would [ultimately win](https://time.com/5782524/westminster-dog-show-2020/) the Best in Show title.) But Bono, who is all of two years old, wasn’t pressed by the excitement. In fact, just a few hours before taking to the Madison Square Garden’s grand stage, he could be found on a tucked-away perch in the crowded hallway next to his fellow group winners and human team. Around him, eager fans and spectators shuffled by shoulder-to-shoulder as though queuing up for a celebrity sighting, camera phones outstretched, cooing over the collective din. But like his veteran rock star namesake of the band U2, Bono was lounging calmly under his long hair, oblivious to the chaos and reserving his energy, it seemed, for the big show to come. It didn’t hurt that he’d just received a special canine massage from an animal chiropractor earlier that afternoon, as his handler Taffe McFadden told TIME. “A little spa treatment. I would have liked to have one!”  A Havanese named Bono win the Toy group at the 2020 Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show in New York City at Madison Square Garden on February 11, 2020. Anadolu Agency via Getty Images—2020 Anadolu Agency He has earned the treat: Bono (named because his littermates were each given the moniker of a [rock star musician](https://time.com/4571166/bono-accepts-glamour-award-donald-trump/), like his sister Adele) is the most winning Havanese in the breed’s history, racking up 90 Best in Show titles in his short career so far — although not the prestigious Westminster one. “When you get to this level, it’s like an athlete. They kind of go inside of themselves, and somehow just process this,” McFadden explains. McFadden, who was at 220 dog shows last year, was equally calm. “This is the most important dog show of our year,” she admits, “but I’m very relaxed. I have a great product, and I believe in him. I just hope everybody else does.” They’re gunning for a clean 100 wins before Bono retires, although nabbing a Westminster title would have been the final cherry on top of an already quite illustrious career. But why _this_ dog? “The most beguiling thing about him is he looks into your soul when he looks at you,” McFadden says of her charge. She chose him out of a litter at just eight weeks. “He had the It factor,” she says. “He’d stop, and I’d talk to him, and he’d cock his head and he’d stand in a perfect pose. I could never take my eyes off him.” Judges have been on the same page: “When I put him on the table and the judge approaches, he never takes his eyes off them. He turns to look at them, and he commands their respect.” That said, McFadden isn’t keen on his tendency to sneeze when they’re in the ring, messing up his hair. But “other than that,” she concedes, “he’s usually pretty good.” “Pretty good” was not quite enough to make the final judge select him as Best in Show. But no matter his small stature, Bono still elicited some of the crowd’s loudest cheers of the night from the nosebleeds to the floor seats, crowning himself one of the fan favorites. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5782390/westminster-dog-show-bono-the-havanese-dog/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5782390/westminster-dog-show-bono-the-havanese-dog/"},"headline":"'He Looks Into Your Soul When He Looks At You.' 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