It's that time of year again when dogs with unusually large heads, hairless bodies and other oddities compete to be the World's Ugliest Dog. This year's winner? A 2-year-old mutt named Peanut, whose wild white and brown hair, bulging eyes and protruding teeth belie his sweet, energetic personality. Peanut's owner, Holly Chandler of Greenville, North Carolina, says he was seriously burned as a puppy and she wants to use her pet to raise awareness about animal abuse. She plans to use the $1,500 prize to pay for other animals' veterinary bills. The contest, held at the Sonoma-Marin Fairgrounds in Petaluma, California, is in its 26 year. The dogs are scored by a three-judge panel in several categories, including special or unusual attributes, personality and natural ugliness.

In collaboration with Pet Stylist Ruben Santana, Sophie Gamand has photographed dogs as they are being washed before grooming. The way the water plays with their hair, and their facial expressions as the water is poured on them creates striking portraits that resemble famous humans or important characters.

A dog wearing a Captain America costume, walks on a leash at the “Blocao” dog carnival parade in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Saturday, February 18, 2023. (Photo by Silvia Izquierdo/AP Photo)

Prince Dudeman stands on Ryan Thor's head at the 14th annual Helen Woodward Animal Center “Surf-A-Thon” where more than 70 dogs competed in five different weight classes for “Top Surf Dog 2019” in Del Mar, California, U.S., September 8, 2019. (Photo by Mike Blake/Reuters)

A dog jumps into the pool during the Flying Dogs competition in Kamnik, Slovenia, September 10, 2016. (Photo by Srdjan Zivulovic/Reuters)

People participate in a pillow fight to mark International Pillow Fight Day in the Heroes' Square, in central Budapest, Hungary, Saturday, April 2, 2016. The Pillow Fight Day attracts tens of thousands people in more than 100 cities all over the World each year. ((Photo by Zoltan Balogh/MTI via AP Photo)

Iraqi Kurdish female fighter Haseba Nauzad looks through a pair of binoculars during a deployment near the frontline of the fight against Islamic State militants in Nawaran near Mosul, Iraq, April 20, 2016. (Photo by Ahmed Jadallah/Reuters)

“These photographs show the food chain in action as a hungry lion braved a river full of crocodiles to try and sink his teeth into a dead hippo. The photos were taken in the Maasi Mara nature reserve, in Kenya and show hungry lion braving a crocodile-infested river to get to an upside down hippo, which had died overnight of natural causes”. – Caters News. (Photo by Richard Chew/Caters News)