The World's Ugliest Dog is picked

Yes, we have a new "World's Ugliest Dog." A one-eyed, three-legged Chinese Crested was crowned, so to speak, yesterday at the Sonoma-Marin Fair in Petaluma, Calif. The Santa Rose Press Democrat reports:

It was hard to deny the fact that Gus -- a one-eyed, three-legged hairless Chinese crested with skin cancer -- wasn't exactly a looker. It didn't help that he spent most of the three-hour event sleeping in a baby blanket in owner Jeanenne Teed's arms with his tongue hanging out. Or that he sometimes bites when folks get too close.

But that turned out to be a winning combination for the crowd favorite and ultimate winner of this anti-beauty pageant for pups held each year in Petaluma at the Sonoma-Marin Fair. Consider it a nod to the underest of underdogs.

"Big buckets of drool get extra points," said emcee Brent Farris of radio station KZST, during Friday's event. "So do missing limbs."

Not that Gus didn't have some serious competition for the pug-ugliest pooch on the planet. This year's contest included 15 pups at various levels on the "yikes" scale, from Princess Chelsea, a blind Chinese crested (a popular ugly dog breed), whose hairless condition only accentuated the strawberry-sized growth on her leg, to Buster, the bug-eyed Chihuahua mutt.

The event will be televised on Animal Planet in October.

Photo: Crista Jeremiason/Associated Press

Comments

[Harrison von Steiff]

How old is Gus?

[Rob]

I've seen uglier. They must not have seen pictures of my wife.

[Rob]

I've seen uglier. They must not have seen pictures of my wife.

[Mary Ann]

Beauty (or ugly, in this case) is only skin deep. I'll bet he has a lovely disposition

[John Smith]

you people are mean!

[Stuart]

I love him already. Gus has the same attentive and intelligent look of our Jack Russell, Moxie. We would adopt him in a minute. I have seen uglier dogs . . . and much uglier people.

[Unknown]

The poor dog. He has only one eye, three legs, and has skin cancer. While this dog is suffering, the owner is parading him to get the award of having the ugliest dog? Is this what people resort to for entertainment? Pathetic.

[unknown 2]

I agree that it's pathetic they parade this poor dog that isn't feeling well, has had terrible pain in his little life with losing an eye and a limb AND suffering from cancer around. And now they made him the uglist dog. How sad. Dogs have feelings too!

[Devin Olson]

They should change his name to "Lucky".

[Merj]

Poor dog! I don't think he's so ugly.

[Brien Comerford]

The dog is ugly and absolutely priceless.

[kdawg]

Keeping a dog with skin cancer and other ailments alive for your own amusement is unthinkably cruel. The poor thing should be put out of its misery.

I mean, everyone loves to laugh at ridiculous-looking pets - myself included - but if they're unhealthy just it's blatent animal cruelty.

[maria]

you people are evil, how could you categorize a dog who has that many problems in his life the ugliest dog...thats just cruel how would you feel if you had those conditions and you were named the ugliest person in the world...have some sympathy

[John Clarke]

Are these people trying to prove the simple truth in Andy Rooney's remark that "“The average dog is a nicer person than the average person”?

Some moronic MC says "Big buckets of drool get extra points," "So do missing limbs." Gee Brent, was it the skin cancer that put Gus over the top?

To paraphrase Andy, "Little Gus is far better-looking than the ignorant chumps who waste everyone's time staging this sort of mean-spirited nonsense".

[shane]

True ugliness is being critical of another's misfortune. This is a shamelessly cruel and exploitive article. Next up from the LA Times--movie star cellulite.

[Rik]

Dogs are a faithful and loyal species and are usually very happy with the attention given them. With so many fawning over Gus I'm sure he felt special and had no realization of the disrespect shown by so many humans. As long as he wasn't being mistreated, which I'm sure he wasn't, he was in dog heaven. I heard today that Gus died from his infirmities and I'll bet he was still happiest when serving his owners. He's in the real dog heaven now and let's hope he had some memory of that time when he became special to so many.