Blue ribbon wrinkles: Long Beach’s annual bulldog pageant

By Melissa Heckscher | Correspondent

At this beauty pageant, wrinkles were in. Drooling, underbites and panting? Also all good.

More than 60 English bulldogs took to the red carpet Sunday for the 19th Annual National Bulldog Beauty Contest at Rosie’s Dog Beach in Long Beach.

They snorted. They let their tongues flap out. They smelled each other’s rears. In other words: They delighted throngs of onlookers the way only bulldogs can.

“When people look at a bulldog, they see wrinkles and smashed faces,” said Justin Rudd, organizer of the event and founder of Haute Dogs, a Long Beach-based nonprofit that aims to help inspire better dog ownership practices and get homeless dogs adopted. “Some people don’t think that’s attractive, but I do, and a lot of other people do.”

Entrants to Sunday’s contest paid $10-20 to enter, and the winners received gift bags from the local dog food company, Red Barn. All proceeds benefitted Rudd’s Community Action Team, which organizes events including monthly beach cleanups and the Interfaith Blessing of the Animals.

“I just love the celebration of people with their pets,” said Rudd, who was also instrumental in founding Rosie’s Dog Beach in 2003(it was named after his first bulldog). “When I get to bring people and their pets together at an event like this, that makes my heart smile big-time. They’re like proud parents.”

As for the contestants, each was as stubby and wrinkly as the next:

There was Hoagie and Milkshake. Stella and Butters. Margo and Chubz. Betty Boop and Sugar Belle. They all strutted their short, stocky stuff in front of an adoring crowd.

But this year’s first prize went to a 2-year-old rescue named Max. A hunk of a dog at 64 pounds, with thick white folds above his nose and a gaping open mouth that looks like a smile, Max is no stranger to admiration.

“People are always like, ‘He’s so gorgeous,’” said Max’s owner, Katie Rivezzo of Moorpark, who adopted Max from Southern California Bulldog Rescue. “But to me, every bulldog is amazing; they all look like they should win.”

In addition to the bulldog contest, there were 11 other categories at Sunday’s pooch fest, including Best Senior Dog, which went to a sandy golden retriever mix named Charlie; and Best Siblings, which went to a pair of bullies from Las Vegas.

“We’re bulldog people,” said Riley Cohen of Las Vegas, whose dogs, Fendi and Chanel, took home Best Siblings. “It’s a fun event: You get a mix of beach and bulldogs, you can’t go wrong.”

Jackie Nanfro gets some photos of her bulldog Stevie as they wait for the 19th Annual Bulldog Beauty Contest to begin in Long Beach, CA, on Sunday, Feb. 18, 2024. (Photo by Tracey Roman, Contributing Photographer)

Other categories included Best French Bulldog, Best Mutt, Best Small Dog, and Best Large Dog. Various winners and photos will be posted on Rudd’s Facebook page.

The judges weren’t technically dog experts—they included Miss Teen Long Beach Eden Dunn; Miss Teen Southern California Valery Plata; Ms. Southern California Dani Chung; Ms. Long Beach Raelynn Franklin; and Mrs. Long Beach Terese Parkin—but they didn’t have to be.

“We’re judging them not only by what they look like, but also their personalities,” 15-year-old Dunn said. “We have to take into consideration how old the dog is and how they’re acting for their age. It’s almost like judging a pageant; it’s really similar.”

And while the event was a celebration of all breeds, it began as an ode to the bully.

“We think that they’re beautiful and that’s why this contest is a hit,” Rudd said. “We want to celebrate them as they are.”

To find out more about Haute Dogs and the Community Action Team, go to www.justinrudd.com.