Tag Archives: World’s Ugliest Dog

2016 World’s Ugliest Dog – SweePee Rambo

Owner of SweePee Rambo, the blind Chinese crested who took home this year’s crown, has hit back at reports judge gave ‘extra points’ for an oozing sore

In the end, it all comes down to a little bit of pus.

Whose leg it graced, however, is a matter of controversy. Did it ooze from SweePee Rambo, the shivering little hunk of canine flesh crowned 2016 World’s Ugliest Dog? Or Neal Gottlieb – ugly dog judge, ice cream entrepreneur and one-time competitor on the reality show Survivor?

The answer could be, “Yes”.

The flap began Friday afternoon in the northern California town of Petaluma, where 16 homely hounds were carried on stage at the Sonoma-Marin Fair by their proud human companions. They were vying for the ugly crown, $1,500, international recognition and an all-expenses-paid trip to New York.



SweePee was the hands-down favorite, having reached the ripe old age of 17. The minuscule Chinese crested is blind. Her arthritic hind legs are permanently bowed, her spine bent at a 90-degree angle, her teeth mostly missing. She is often incontinent. Other than the sprig of hair the breed is named for, SweePee is bald.

She won.

This is how the Santa Rosa Press Democrat, newspaper of record in Sonoma County, described SweePee’s victory: “Judge Neal Gottlieb seemed particularly impressed with a sore on SweePee’s leg, noting dogs get extra points for ooze.”

Four days later, a scathing email arrived at the Press Democrat, and at the Guardian, which published the Associated Press story, which quoted the Press Democrat story, which paraphrased Gottlieb. “Extra points for ooze.”

“I am horrified!” began the unsigned email addressed to the Guardian. “You wrote that my dog, SWEEPEE the winner of the worlds ugliest dog has oozing sores! That was not my dog. There was a dog there that had terrible sores but that was not my dog! This kind of lie makes me look like an irresponsible pet owner.

“People are commenting about how horrible I am online !!!” it continued. “And really has taken away a really cool thing for me and makes me embarrassed. I want this fixed immediately and want an apology. Where did you get this bad information from?!?!?!”

Whoever sent the email did not respond to a request for comment. Jason Wurtz, SweePee’s owner, said the email had been sent by a friend. Reached late in the day, he insisted that the pus was a case of mistaken identity.

Wurtz said the open sore belonged to a dog appropriately named Icky: “Icky had acne real bad, and the owner popped it on stage on the judge’s table and it grossed everyone out.”

Gottlieb did not respond to several phone calls. But contest footage replayed on Good Morning America Saturday shows him clearly saying, “There’s an open wound on this dog.” It is not, however, possible to see which dog he’s talking about.

The founder of Three Twins Ice Cream was himself brought down by an open sore. He was kicked off of Survivor: Kaôh Rōng, which aired in 2016, because of a raw, red wound with a wet looking, white center.

“It first came up like a pimple on Day 15, but then it just took on a life of its own,” he said in an item on the Survivor website. “I had this big open wound, but there was no knee pain.”



On Tuesday afternoon, the Press Democrat reached Gottlieb and pressed him about his on-stage comments. The judge back-pedaled a bit. “Sore” was changed to “scrape” in the online story. And an editor’s note was added:

“A judge who inspected the winning dog, Sweepee, said he noted a wound on the dog’s leg during the contest. The judge said ‘scrape’ is a better description of the wound than ‘sore.’ The story has been updated to reflect the judge’s assessment more precisely.”

Asked about the controversy, Press Democrat managing editor Ted Appel declined to comment.

And laughed.
[source: /www.theguardian.com]

2015 World’s Ugliest Dog – Quasi Modo, Deformed Pit Bull-Dutch Shepherd Mix

Quasi Modo, whom the owner claims has a back too short for its body, walks on the stage at The World’s Ugliest Dog Competition in Petaluma, California on June 20, 2015.

Quasi Modo, a 10-year-old mutt, was crowned this year’s World’s Ugliest Dog. The contest was held Friday night at the Sonoma-Marin Fairgrounds in Petaluma, California.

The pit bull-Dutch shepherd mix — whose spinal birth defect left him a little hunchbacked — and his owner reportedly received $1,500 prize at the contest, which is in its 27th year.

“My appearance can be a little unsettling to some (I have had grown men jump on top of their cars to get away from me because they thought I was a hyena or Tasmanian devil) but once they get to know me I win them over with my bubbly personality,” Quasi Modo’s biography said, according to the contest’s website.

Quasi Modo was abandoned at an animal shelter because of his “strange looks” and was later adopted by a veterinarian in Loxahatchee, Florida, according to his biography.

Twenty-four dogs, including Quasi Modo, participated in the contest and the winner was decided by a three-judge panel. The dogs are scored on their imperfections, and several categories, including natural ugliness or unusual attributes.

Sweepee Rambo and Frodo — two Chinese crested Chihuahua mixes — took the second and the third prizes in the contest, respectively.

2014 World’s Ugliest Dog – Peanut

PETALUMA, Calif. (AP) — It’s that time of year again when dogs with unusually large heads, hairless bodies and other oddities compete to be the World’s Ugliest Dog.

This year’s winner? A 2-year-old mutt named Peanut, whose wild white and brown hair, bulging eyes and protruding teeth belie his sweet, energetic personality.



Although Peanut is healthy now, his owner, Holly Chandler of Greenville, North Carolina, says he was seriously burned as a puppy, resulting in bald patches all over his body.

Chandler hopes Peanut’s victory will help raise awareness about animal abuse.

“We’re trying to use him as a poster child for what can happen to animals who are abused,” she said.

She plans to use the $1,500 prize to pay for other animals’ veterinary bills.

The contest, held at the Sonoma-Marin Fairgrounds in Petaluma, California, is in its 26th year.

The dogs are scored by a three-judge panel in several categories, including special or unusual attributes, personality and natural ugliness.

The past five winners have included a duck-footed beagle, boxer and basset hound mix with a waddle, a Chinese crested and Chihuahua mix with a protruding tongue and short tufts of hair and a Chihuahua with a missing eye and a camel’s back.

[http://www.huffingtonpost.com]

2013 World’s Ugliest Dog – Walle

A huge-headed, duck-footed mix of beagle, boxer and basset hound was the upset winner at the 25th annual World’s Ugliest Dog Contest.

Walle (WAHL-ee), a 4-year-old mutt from Chico, Calif., who was entered at the last minute, was judged Friday as the most unsightly of 30 dogs at the Northern California competition.



“This dog looked like he’s been photo-shopped with pieces from various dogs and maybe a few other animals,” judge Brian Sobel said.

Walle overcame the dominance in recent years by nearly hairless Chihuahuas, Chinese cresteds, or combinations of the two.

Owner Tammie Barbee got the dog when he was three months old.

“People come up to me and say that dog is not right,” Barbee said, “but I love him.”

Judges said they were especially impressed by Walle’s bizarre waddle of a walk.

Walle wins $1,500 and will make several network TV appearances next week, including NBC’s “Today” show and ABC’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live.”

The contest at the Sonoma-Marin Fairgrounds gets worldwide attention, with media from around the world traveling to Petaluma, about 40 miles north of San Francisco.

Organizers say the dogs are judged for their “natural ugliness in both pedigree and mutt classes.”

[http://www.huffingtonpost.com]


2012 World’s Ugliest Dog – Mugly

Mugly, a Chinese crested dog, owned by Bev Nicholson of Peterborough, England won the title of “World’s Ugliest Dog” at the Sonoma-Marin Fair in Petaluma, California, on Friday, June 22, 2012.



The votes have been counted and a winner has been declared one of the highly anticipated elections of 2012. That’s right, the World’s Ugliest Dog of 2012 has finally been crowned.

Mugly, an 8-year-old Chinese Crested pooch, won the crown, beating out a tough field that included past winners such as 2002 champion Rascal and Princess Abby, a 4-year-old Japanese chin mix that won in 2010 – not to mention perennial contenders such as Icky, who has competed in three past competitions.

According to the contest’s website, Mugly is a rescue dog from the United Kingdom and was “viciously attacked in a park by a group of thugs.”

Mugly is now a “therapy dog working with children,” according to the website.

“I couldn’t speak when they announced Mugly’s name. I didn’t know which way to look. I was shaking as much as the dog,” Mugly’s owner Bev Nicholson said in a news release.

In addition to bragging rights, a trophy and a $1,000 prize was awarded.

Mugly also received 1,236 of more than 3,400 online votes, although the votes do not count towards the winner, which was decided by a panel of judges. The World’s Ugliest Dog Contest is held annually at the Sonoma-Marin Fair in Petaluma, Calif.

[http://abcnews.go.com]

2011 World’s Ugliest Dog: Yoda Of Hanford, California

Yoda’s short tufts of hair, protruding tongue, and long, seemingly hairless legs were enough to earn it the World’s Ugliest Dog title at a Northern California fair.

The 14-year-old Chinese crested and Chihuahua mix won the honor Friday night at the 23rd annual contest at the Sonoma Marin Fair.



Owner Terry Schumacher of Hanford, Calif. says the 2-pound dog has come a long way since she was found abandoned behind an apartment building. Schumacher says she first thought the pooch was a rat.

Yoda’s distinction comes a year after a one-eyed Chihuahua named Princess Abby claimed victory. A pedigree Chinese crested won in 2008 and another Chinese crested and Chihuahua mix was the ugliest in 2007.

In past years, the winner’s owner has received a $1,000 check.
[TheHuffingtonPost]

Update Mar 15, 2012: Yoda, 2011 World’s Ugliest Dog, died on March 10. Yoda, the world’s ugliest dog, died last weekend at age 15, it was reported today.