Campaigning for World’s Ugliest Dog
. . . and for adoptions just generally!
She’s genetically deformed because of bad breeding. But Cuda doesn’t care; she’s a healthy, happy pit bull, full of life and energy.
And Cuda is heading across country from Raleigh, North Carolina, to compete in the World’s Ugliest Dog Contest at the Sonoma-Marin County Fair in California on June 24th.
Cuda was adopted four years ago by Debbi Cochran, who hosts adoption days for homeless pets at her Cameron Village store.
Cuda has all the characteristics of backyard inbreeding, according to one of her fans, local animal control officer Julie LeRoy. Her hind legs are weaker and shorter than her uneven front legs. Her spine is curved and her neck and vertebrae are fused, limiting head movement. Her shoulders jut forward and her teeth do, too. She snorts like a pig, walks on flat feet, wiggles ears that point in opposite directions and tucks a seemingly ill-placed tail.
“It’s an ugly little secret, this inbreeding,” LeRoy said, adding that Cuda’s vet assures her she’s in no pain. “These dogs are bred to look like that and then it becomes a big joke. Cuda was born this way. It’s a miracle she got out of whatever she was in.”
The miracle continues. Cochran doesn’t simply want to win the big prize at the ugly dog contest later this month; it’s an opportunity for her to give Cuda a soapbox where she can promote the inner beauty of all homeless pets, wherever they come from.
“Cuda is a wonderful spokesdog,” Cochran said. “She draws a lot of attention to herself, which brings awareness to backyard breeding, and that ultimately what we’d like to stop. I fell in love with her instantly.”
What do you say? Have you adopted an “ugly” homeless pet with tons of inner beauty? Let us know in a comment.