Shocking canine news out of England today: Jagger, the beloved three-year-old Irish setter who took top prize at this year's Crufts Dog Show in Birmingham, died Friday after being fed a steak laced with poison, possibly at the show.

"An autopsy has revealed he was poisoned," Dee Milligan-Bott, Jagger's co-owner, said to Reuters. "The timings from the autopsy make it clear the only place this could have been given to Jagger was while on his bench at Crufts." (The "bench" Milligan-Bott is referring to is a waiting area where dogs sit before entering the ring.)

Some background on the show from the Associated Press:

The contest was founded in 1891 — 14 years after New York's Westminster dog show — by Charles Cruft, a traveling salesman turned dog-show impresario. Run since 1948 by Britain's Kennel Club, it now calls itself the world's largest dog show. This year more than 21,000 dogs competed in the four-day event. Competitors came from 43 countries, including Brazil, Canada and South Korea.

Jeremy Bott, Jagger's other owner, has a theory as to who might have poisoned his pooch. "I would imagine it was somebody who has a grudge against dogs or Crufts show," he told the Independent.

Crufts brass, meanwhile, appear to be blaming the victim's owners, stopping just short of calling them negligent. A Crufts spokeswoman told the Telegraph, Whilst every measure is in place to protect dogs at the show, it is important that owners remain vigilant and avoid leaving their dogs unattended on benches, which is in fact stated in communication that is sent to all exhibitors before the show."

A toxicology report on Jagger, also known by his pedigree name, Thendara Satisfaction, is expected to be released next week. A Scottish terrier from Russia won Crufts Best in Show Sunday.

[Image via MSN]