Meet Pumpkin, the wrinkly, lovable winner of Drake University's Beautiful Bulldog Contest

Have you ever heard of a beauty pageant known for its wrinkly contestants? Drake University sure has.

Since 1979, Drake, whose mascot is the bulldog, has bestowed the title "Most Beautiful Bulldog" to 44 dogs. This year, another bulldog has been named the most beautiful: Pumpkin, of Oakland, Iowa, winner of the university's 45th Annual Beautiful Bulldog Contest. The contest is among the festivities celebrating Drake Relays week.

"Her humans and her furry siblings and foster siblings have always known that she is the most beautiful bulldog, so we are honored and still somehow surprised," Pumpkin's mother, Shawna Anderson, told the Register. "I’m excited for the opportunity to get to take her to different events, which will help us to be able to teach people about the breed and teach people about the importance of rescue and how many great bulldogs are out there looking for homes."

Pumpkin strutted her stuff on the blue carpet during the pageant portion of the contest, wearing pearls and a royal red cape trimmed in a white edging with black polka dots. As the winner, she traded her red cape for a blue one and a crown, while sniffing the behinds of the other top contenders, Thor and Prince Charming of Wrinkleton.

Pumpkin has helped her foster siblings learn to love and accept love, her pageant description says, and she has helped her parents learn to love, too.

"After losing our American bulldog mix, Bowser, a few years ago, I got Pumpkin as a surprise to help heal my husband‘s broken heart, and she has done just that," Anderson said. "She has taught us to love this breed so much that we have opened our homes to foster for the Goodlife Bulldog Rescue and that has been one of the most amazing things that my husband and I have been able to do in order to give back to our community."

In Drake contest, beautiful bulldogs come with beautiful costumes

Drake's Beautiful Bulldog Contest brought scores of entries but narrowed the playing field to 30 via lottery.

Those 30 bulldogs wore their most extravagant costumes at Drake Univerity's Knapp Center on the big day.

The contest had multiple awards aside from the grand winner of the most beautiful bulldog. Those awards include the Drake Spirit Award, the Rescue Dog Recognition Award and the Porterhouse People's Choice Award.

The event was emceed by Steve Berry, a Drake class of 1983 alum, who read each contestant's description.

Here are the 2024 winners of each award:

Most Beautiful Bulldog Award: Pumpkin

"Pumpkin is an amazing foster sister to all of the foster bulldogs that come through our home," Pumpkin's description says. "She is great at teaching new fosters how to just be a dog and accept love."

Drake Spirit Award: Louie

"Louie is your average bulldog (sometimes)… he loves to nap in the sunshine and snores louder than an old man in a recliner. However, he's still a pup and has a crazy side to him! He loves playing soccer in his backyard, parkouring off of furniture, and lounging in his turtle-shaped swimming pool," his description reads. "He's a friendly guy, and never passes up the opportunity for a pet. His weirdest, and most lovable quality is that he must be held in 'the upside down' (on his back between your legs) in order to fall asleep at night!"

Rescue Dog Recognition Award: Cassy

"Cassy is adopted from SNAFU Rescue in Omaha, NE," says her pageant description. "She was heartworm positive when she entered the rescue in 2018. She embodies resilience, strength and beauty: all things bulldog! She loves going for long walks in the park, a good car ride and a pup cup!"

Porterhouse People's Choice Award: Winston

"Winston is the most loving bulldog you will meet. Everyone is a friend to him. He is full of personality though and is so stubborn, at times. He loves to throw his stuff-babies around, he loves snow like so much love and wants to be outside 24/7 no matter what the temp is," his description says. "I got him after I experienced a life tragedy and I always wanted an English Bulldog and even had a song for the bulldog. He saved me and brought happiness back into my life. He does share his home and me with his 7-lb. yorkie sister, Zelda. They have a typical sibling relationship even though she is the size of his leg. He is protective of her though."

How can I enter my bulldog in the 2025 Beautiful Bulldog Contest?

While it's still too early to register for next year's Beautiful Bulldog Contest, it's never too early to know how to do it.

This year, registration was open from Feb. 11 to March 11. Registration is free, but contestants must have proof of up-to-date rabies, distemper, parvovirus, and bordetella (kennel cough) vaccinations.

To stay up to date on all Beautiful Bulldog matters, check out the Beautiful Bulldog Contest Facebook page or find frequently asked questions and a list of previous winners on the Drake University website.

Kyle Werner is a reporter for the Register. Reach him at kwerner@dmreg.com

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Meet Pumpkin, Drake University's 2024 Beautiful Bulldog Contest winner