Meet Mr. Happy Face, Voted The Ugliest Dog In The World

After a hiatus of two years due to the pandemic, the World's Ugliest Dog contest has returned to the Sonoma-Marin Fair in Petaluma, California. The fair will closed last week, and the newly-crowned winner of the World's Ugliest Dog contest is a Chinese crested/Chihuahua mix named Mr. Happy Face. He may be ugly, but Mr. Happy Face is very much loved by his human, Janeda Banelly. She adopted the 18-year-old dog last year, even though he has health problems and wasn't expected to live long. He had been at the shelter for quite some time after being rescued from a hoarder situation.

"When I first met him, he was the happiest creature that I had ever met. He hobbled up to me and chose me. I vowed that day, he would be so loved that he would never remember how awful his previous life had been. Love, kindness and mommy kisses have helped him defy the anticipated short life that we all expected him to have with our family."

Read the stories behind Mr. Happy Face and several other finalists at the contest page. It's deplorable that these dogs are disfigured or unhealthy because of poor breeding techniques and/or abuse, but at least these few have found loving homes.

Note: 4 years ago we talked about this contest:

https://www.boredpanda.com/worlds-ugliest-dog-zsa-zsa/

https://www.sonoma-marinfair.org/worlds_ugliest_dog_2019_home/

https://boingboing.net/2022/06/25/meet-mr-happy-face-the-first-post-pandemic-worlds-ugliest-dog.html

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/25/us/worlds-ugliest-dog-mr-happy-face.html

More info: sonoma-marinfair.org | Facebook | twitter.com

Mr. Happy Face joined our family in August of 2021. He was adopted from a shelter in Arizona. During the pandemic, I had hoped to either have a baby or adopt a dog. Since having a baby would have been an act of god, I opted to adopt a dog. When I arrived at the shelter, I asked to see a particular dog that, fortunately for me, had just been adopted. I asked if there were any other dogs that were similar to that one. There was in fact, another dog there who was much older and had health issues and I was warned could be inbred because he was so ugly. The shelter staff tried to prepare me for what I was about to see. I saw a creature who was indeed old, needed a second chance and deserved to be loved. Mr Happy Face was born into our family at the age of 17 years old. The shelter had this particular dog for quite some time. He came from a hoarder’s house where the conditions were deplorable. He was a survivor of abuse and neglect. I remember reading about the home where he had been rescued from. Dogs had survived off of anything that they could. Mr. Happy Face came to us with the veterinarian letting us know that adopting him would be an act of hospice for this decrepit old dog who would need life long medication. The veterinarian had suggested that because of his tumors and multiple conditions that we might only have him for a few weeks, maybe a month. When I first met him, he was the happiest creature that I had ever met. He hobbled up to me and chose me. I vowed that day, he would be so loved that he would never remember how awful his previous life had been. Love, kindness and mommy kisses have helped him defy the anticipated short life that we all expected him to have with our family.
His hobbies are being fearlessly adorable, invoking his elder privilege amongst his 4 legged and three legged fur siblings and eating stinky things. Mr Happy Face’s goals are to have a longer tongue than Gene Simmons and a more dashing snarl than Billy Idol.
He dislikes climbing stairs, wearing diapers, sharing a bed, not being the center of my universe and mommy kisses. His hobbies include sleeping, snoring, woofing in his sleep and making odd sounds when he is happy. He sounds just like a Dodge Ram diesel truck reviving an engine when he is elated. I believe that this humble soul is also being an example, in subtle ways, to help humans realize that even old dogs need love and a family too.

I am a distemper survivor. At 8 weeks old, and only had my first set of shots, I caught distemper from a puppy my mom saved from a puppymiller. Sadly, thousands of dollars later she, Amber, lost her battle. But I survived with many vet visits and around the clock care. But it left my with handicaps. My paw paddles 24/7 and my tongue hangs out because there are no teeth to hold it in. Other than that, I am a healthy happy active dog who loves people.
This is my third try at winning the World’s Ugliest Dog contest because my friends tell not only do I have a chance at winning but I need to continue to pass the message that it is critical to get your dogs vaccinated. No dog should endure the emotional loss of a fellow pet as well as live with any damage it may cause them. I survived for a reason and this is my purpose.

Monkey is a 12 year old Blue Factor Brussels Griffon. She like just about everyone and everything, except bath time. She was rescued from a hoarding situation 11 years ago and is living the best life a dog could have ever since. She’s getting a little older now but still goes everywhere and loves to meet new people. Kids are her favorite. She is very gentle and patient with all kids regardless of age. She is a very unique looking dog being mostly hairless on her back le and legs. We are constantly stopped so people can take a picture with her. Best dog anyone could ever ask for and I have been the lucky one to have her!

Oyo como va?
Morita is NOT a hyena or a mandrill baboon but a Mexican hairless, and strangely enough, has silky tresses of an Afghan. As Lady Gaga sings, she was Born This Way!

A Santa Rosa rescue organization, Compassion without Borders, founded by vet Dr. Christie Camblor, also has 3 vet clinics in Mexico where her network of foster parents rescues street dogs of Mexico.

Morita was found in Puerto Peñasco, Mexico and was brought, along with 33 other Mexico street dogs, to Dr. Christie’s Muttopia rescue facility in Santa Rosa, a safe space for homeless dogs from Mexico & the Central Valley to recover both medically and emotionally prior to adoption.
We think she wagged her tail so much during her ride to the U.S., that half of her tail hair fell off!
Morita is bi-lingual in English & Spanish and offers a little French kissing too! She knows Mexico well, her favorite cantinas for tacos & margaritas (virgin, of course) & wags her tail to mariachi music.
This bonita Señorita is gentle, good-natured and gives great hugs! Morita loves long walks on beaches, watching seagulls, and is a good playmate with people & dogs.
If you are interested in adopting this blonde beauty, please contact Compassion Without Borders in Santa Rosa.
Morita is happy to be an American DREAMer & a trophy would even be better than a taco!

This senior pup couldn’t make the trip for health safety but is still eligible for the “People’s Choice Award”!
Liberace is a rescue success story. He spent his first 8 years living in a cage and being used by a bad breeder/puppy mill. When we rescued him, our vet didn’t think he would last 2 months – he had more acute health issues than we can list here. Fast forward almost 5 years, he has a great life full of naps, walks, food and cuddles. He is a happy, capable dog but he is blind, has no teeth, is allergic to everything and has alopecia. Somehow, he knows when it’s time for his walks, and he only likes falling asleep in front of the television (particularly to any of the real housewife series). Everyone in the neighborhood knows him as he has a stroller for part of his walks – and he likes to bark and greet neighbors when they come up to pet him.

Boo is a two-year-old black Chinese pug. He lives with his family of two humans, three other doggies, two kitties, two birds, two Beta fish, and a Desert Tortoise in Santa Rosa, California. His owner passed away and Boo was in the home for about a week until a neighbor found him and brought him to the Sonoma County Animal Shelter. They notified Pug Rescue of Northern California and my friend Michelle, who works with them, fostered him at The Pug Hotel Senior Sanctuary. We had just lost our sweet Ozzie, and Boo was in need of a family. We met him and fell in love with his jovial personality, and loving spirit. We brought him home on April 13, 2022. Boo loves to chill with us on the couch, always with some of his pink tongue peeking out, he will drag his bed around and squeal with pleasure. Sadly Boo sometimes suffers from seizures, which could be from epilepsy, but we have him on medication that greatly reduces these events. Proof that dogs with seizures can be rescued and live a full loved life, This is Boo’s first year in the World’s Ugliest Dog Contest. We think his impressive underbite and gorilla-looking head deserve to be seen. We have entered former dogs Grove, Kaiya, and Ozzie in the Ugly Dog Contest since 2008. We also are volunteering to help with the event this year.