Posted: June 20, 2008, 5 a.m. EDT
Who is the ugliest dog of all? Animal Planet travels to the Sonoma-Marin Fair in Petaluma, Calif., for the 18th Annual World’s Ugliest Dog Contest.
Model-actress Beth Ostrosky, also involved with North Shore Animal League America, hosts the competition that gives ugly dogs from across the United States a chance to prove that beauty is truly in the eye of the beholder. Ostrosky will get up close and personal with the hairless, toothless, and otherwise unsightly mutts as their owners vie for bragging rights and the prestigious title of the 2008 World’s Ugliest Dog.
Many of these dogs were abandoned because of the way they look. However, their owners keep them happy and healthy. These canines serve as ambassadors for ugly dogs everywhere as they put their best faces forward to show the world that it’s OK to look different.
The winner receives $1,000 in prize money, and will most likely follow in the paw prints of its predecessors to become a media darling. Previous winners have appeared on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno,” “The View,” “Geraldo,” “Inside Edition,” and various morning news shows.
The contest takes place today, June 20, during the Sonoma-Marin Fair in Petaluma, Calif. The event is being filmed for a programming event that will premiere later this fall on Animal Planet (exact airdate in October to be announced).