DES MOINES, Iowa: Flat, squished nose, bowed legs, protruding underbite, bloodshot eyes and wrinkly skin. These are not the traditional criteria for a beauty contest - unless you're competing in The Most Beautiful Bulldog competition.
Held each year by Drake University, the search for the world's most 'beautiful' bulldog is a national tradition and is actually carried out for a reason - to find the university's official mascot for the 98th Drake Relays - one of the oldest and most respected track and field athletic events in the US.
As beauty pageants come and go, the Most Beautiful Bulldog is both out of the ordinary and extremely familiar. Just like the winner of the Miss Universe pageant being seen anywhere and everywhere, the Most Beautiful Bulldog competition winner will represent the school in every sporting event held that year.
Paws down, the runaway winner of the Most Beautiful Bulldog is no other than 'Riggs', a three-year old male pooch who defeated 51 other hopefuls for the much-coveted title. The voluptuous and very healthy 68-pounder had all the right flabs in all the right places. He wowed the crowd by confidently wobbling ever-so-gracefully on the catwalk (or should that be dogwalk?), ensuring that his alpha-personality trademark shone through.
Proudly wearing Drake University's official colors and apparel, Riggs donned a glitzy blue-and-white body-hugging shirt which perfectly displayed his winning form. Other contenders came from Midwest states, with 20 being first-time-contestants aging from three months to 11 years old. Ready to fight for the prestigious title, all were all dressed in imaginative costumes such as grass skirts, frilly dresses and snorkeling gear. Contenders included Sir Grizwald Snorzalot, Napoleon Underbite and Crazy Legs Da Moose. While last years' winner gave Riggs a scare, in the end Riggs' personality and perfect demeanor won through.
While few people would be prepared to admit that a bulldog is physically beautiful, in this contest what is more important is the personality and temperament of the contestants. These dogs have oodles of character and they certainly have that look which only their mothers and owners will love. Master of ceremonies Dolph Pulliam told 9News.com: "This competition truly gives new meaning to the saying, 'Beauty is indeed in the eye of the beholder'".
Hahaha! This is funny. Bulldog ... beautiful?? You know, they are indeed kinda cute. Their faces are really ugly that it makes them so cute!
congratulations Riggs! i hope you enjoy your reign as Ms. Bulldog Beautiful 2007!
this is interesting.. bulldogs arent exactly the first dog breed that come to mind when you say beautiful but yeah.. beauty is in the eye of the beholder..
i can't imagine those bulldogs all wearing different costumes. how cute can that be! at least these bulldogs have more to offer than those brainless bombshells in beauty pageants.
LOL. the picture reminds me of this actress my gal watches on Tv.. Ugly Betty. Yeah. haha! That's the one! Nice picture! Surely made me wanna read the story!
LOL. good golly, what an insanely funny picture! this is cute. the pet owners love their bulldogs so much that they really do think that they are beautiful! I can't blame them. we once had a really ugly dog. it was given to us. she looked so generic - plain and unadorable. but we loved her to bits!!
i can't believe that there is really a most beautiful bulldog competition and it's being held every year! although bulldogs do look cute in some angles. lol
Hey! nice that people finally see the beauty in these dogs! i love dogs with squished noses like bulldogs, pugs, pekingese. i find them really adorable! they look so "imperfect" but you can't help but love them!
I'm more of a cat lover but i'm tellin' ya, that picture really got me! LOL! really, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. love makes people blind! lol! but yeah, when you love your pet, they become the most beautiful thing in the world!
i love that picture i have it on my desktop..
My son has one she is so loving But** so ugley she is cute. I tell him all the time she needs braces. your stories are so lovely & funny. I can't see Red leting my son dress her so. Good job folks.
bulldogs are beautiful! the poodles and the shih tzus are overrated.. lol!
hold it ryt der! i got a beautiful shih tzu and dey are not overated..
I love flat-faced dogs with super squished noses that they snort when they breathe! Their "ugliness" has that appeal that turns them to adorable dogs you can't help but love!
i wish women would say the same of men.. 'i love your squished nose.. i love that you're short..' lol!!!
Lol. what would that do to the tall and handsome men like me? We would be out of business.. Lol
I'd love to have a buldog. I think they are really beautiful! But their beauty is only true for their species, and not for any other species if y'know what I am sayin'.
women (atleast as far as im concerned) look beyond physical beauty but ofcourse a handsome face and some chiseled abs never hurt anyone.. lol!
I see it as a form of double standards.. When it comes to our pets we look beyond their imperfection and love them but when it comes to people around us we are very critical.. Well a pet is a pet and an ugly bf is just well, what it is, an ugly bf. =)
haha! :) that picture you used with the article actually reminds me of someone. it's really unmistakable. lol
not a lot of people can love a bulldog. but i for one am smitten by the bulldog. they're a little like camp(y) - they're so bad, they're gooooooood! they've got a face only a momma could love and for them, i'll be their momma (not the momma part but the love part)