Shannon Ratliff
When it comes to animals, being called ugly isn’t that much of a travesty. People still take photos and ooh-ahh over the ‘ugly’ pet in question. In the case of Zsa Zsa, a 9-year-old English bulldog, it only made her more endearing. However, Zsa Zsa has taken her place across the rainbow bridge in the sky and joined doggie heaven where she’ll no doubt enjoy her title for eternity.
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Owner Megan Brainard told Today that her pup, named the World’s Ugliest Dog just last month, passed away at the age of 9 in her sleep. The family calls the passing of Zsa Zsa devastating. The Brainards, including their 15-month-old daughter Mareslie, held a special goodbye ceremony in her honor. The family of Anoka, Minnesota, may have shared Zsa Zsa with the world for a period of time, but they cared for the sweet pup her whole life.
Megan Brainard told Today of their goodbye,
I picked Zsa Zsa up and took her outside and laid her down in the grass. We were all saying our goodbyes and Mareslie went right over and gave her a kiss. It was sweet. She was waving at her.
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The pup with a floppy pink tongue and crooked teeth took home the prize and the judges’ hearts at the Sonoma-Marin County Fair in Petaluma, California in June in the World’s Ugliest Dog Contest. Named after actress Zsa Zsa Gabor and decked out in a pink manicure on the Today set, the world’s ugliest dog didn’t always have an easy life before a rescue group found her.
She spent the first five years in a Missouri puppy mill until her forever family found the bulldog mix, underbite and all. Our thoughts are with the Brainards during this sad time, and as for the World’s Ugliest Dog, it’s unclear who will take the title in the next annual contest.
