Crufts Scandal Deepens: Winner’s Animal Cruelty Conviction Puts Channel 4 Under Scrutiny
On Sunday night (8 March 2026), Lee Cox was crowned the winner of Crufts after his dog, a clumber spaniel named Bruin, won Best in Show.
Soon after his win, it emerged that Cox, a long-time dog breeder from Somerset, had been convicted of animal cruelty in 2001. Cox was fined £5,000 for causing ‘unnecessary suffering’ to a spaniel named Adam who he used for breeding for years, and then neglected to the point that his ear was so chronically infected it had to be removed. He was conditionally discharged for three years.
The Kennel Club, which runs Crufts, has brushed off criticism of Cox’s crime, describing it as an ‘isolated incident’. Channel 4 bosses haven’t yet commented on the incident, and PETA has rushed a letter urging them to cut ties with Crufts, just as the BBC did years ago.
There appears to be no robust system in place to ensure that individuals with histories of animal cruelty are prevented from being celebrated at the dog show. Viewers also have no way of knowing the extent of the suffering of dogs bred and exhibited within this system.
Crufts Is Cruelty
It shouldn’t come as any surprise that a convicted animal abuser has won Crufts. The dog show glamourises breeding dogs with such severe deformities that they live with chronic health issues. The deeply unethical breeding practices prioritise appearances and characteristics humans desire, to the detriment of dog health.
The clumber spaniel, the dog breed Cox bred and was crowned the winner, is predisposed to eye conditions like entropion, where the eyelids roll inwards and cause irritation, due to their drooping eyes, and ear infections, due to their floppy ears. Like many ‘pedigree’ dogs, they are also at risk of hip and elbow dysplasia, where joints develop abnormally. This leads to instability, pain, and an increased likelihood of arthritis as the dog ages.
Crufts and Breathing-Impaired Breeds
Competing against the clumber spaniel for the ‘Best in Show’ prize was a Cavalier King Charles spaniel, one of the most unethical dog breeds in existence. These dogs suffer so much that Norway banned breeding them back in 2022. In addition to being a flat-faced breed, meaning they often struggle to breathe properly, Cavalier King Charles spaniels have brains too big for their skulls. This can cause a condition named syringomyelia, where fluid-filled cavities develop in the spinal cord close to the brain. As well as causing significant and sudden bouts of pain, it leads them to obsessively scratch themselves.
Other flat-faced dogs like French bulldogs and pugs also competed at Crufts, and a PETA supporter who went undercover this year was told that these animals are often inbred and must undergo caesareans by greedy breeders. Imagine what a toll that must take on them.
Channel 4 Must Cut Ties with Crufts
So much of this cruelty goes on away from public view, and Crufts viewers are unwittingly supporting it by tuning in. As PETA points out in its letter, Cox’s conviction alone should be enough to end Channel 4’s promotion of Crufts.
If a known animal abuser can be crowned the winner of the show, what other horrors go on behind the scenes?
You can help our campaign to get Crufts off Channel 4 by emailing bosses today:
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