DES MOINES, Iowa — If at first you don’t succeed, wipe the slobber off and try again.
Just ask 4-year-old Huckleberry, who was crowned Monday as this year’s “Beautiful Bulldog.”
Huckleberry competed for the title in 2010, only to walk away empty-pawed.
That changed this year, when he strutted down a blue runway at Drake University in Des Moines dressed in a beige suit as the main character from the movie “Forrest Gump.”
“He’s just a lover,” said his owner, Stephanie Hein, as Huckleberry sat next to his miniature basketball toy and a suitcase similar to one owned by title character Forrest Gump.
The contest, in its 34th year, is held ahead of the annual Drake Relays track-and-field meet. The university’s mascot is a bulldog, and each year’s winner becomes the mascot for the relays event.
Huckleberry beat 46 other bulldogs to don the crown and cape, and competition was stiff. There was a bulldog dressed as a “Thing” character from Dr. Seuss, and another wore an eye patch and fake hoop earring to match his pirate-dressed owner.
