A dog adopted from the Santa Cruz SPCA in 2008 will make her television debut this month.
Coco and her owner, Rafael Torres-Gil, are scheduled to appear on the popular variety show Sabado Gigante on Univision on April 24. They will fly to Miami to compete in the "Dogs Who Look Like Their Owners" contest.
Coco is described as a slightly overweight, miniature "Porkie" - half Pug, half Yorkie. She was adopted as a special needs dog because of her age and medical condition.
"At first I wasn't very flattered that my wife entered us in this contest since Coco is obese, with bulging eyes, a Mohawk, wiry gray fur and makes little pig-like snorting sounds," Torres-Gil said in a statement. "But she's a great little dog and now I'm excited to go."
Sabado Gigante is the world's longest running variety TV show and is watched by millions of viewers each week.
But this will not be Coco's first taste of fame. She was also featured as Toto in Cabrillo Stage's advertisements for their production of The Wizard of Oz in 2009.
She is also a muse and model for myfavoritecouture.com, a company that turns designer fashions into dog clothes.
Bay City News contributed to this report.
