Chinese Crested is World’s Ugliest Dog

Mugly is the most fugly of them all.

The 8-year-old Chinese Crested with beady eyes and wiry white whiskers was awarded the dubious honor of World’s Ugliest Dog at the 24th annual contest held in Petaluma, Calif., on Friday.

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

Along with a trophy, Mugly received a $1,000 cash prize from the Sonoma-Marin Fair. He also gets a photo shoot, a VIP stay at a local dog-friendly hotel and a year’s supply of dog cookies.

The tiny pooch from the UK had a rough start in life. According to the Sonoma-Marin Fair website, the rescue dog was “viciously attacked in a park by a group of thugs a couple of years ago.” Mugly now works with children as a therapy dog, and raises money for rescue charities via online dog pageants.

Among the 29 competitors in this year’s World’s Ugliest Dog contest were homely hounds with unfortunate names like Creature, Rue, Icky, Spam-O-Rama and Mouse.

Chinese Cresteds seem to have the lock on this title. Last year’s winner, Yoda, was a Chinese Crested-Chihuahua mix who weighed less than 2 pounds. Yoda crossed the Rainbow Bridge in March.

PHOTO: Mugly’s Facebook Page

Laura Goldman

Laura Goldman is senior social media writer for i Love Dogs, Inc. She does love dogs. And elephants and turtles. Along with writing about the loves of her life, Laura likes to play with her two pound pups and tell anyone who’ll listen just how awesome Pit Bulls are.