“I think dogs are little ancient souls that keep coming back to teach people about unconditional love and compassion. They are very special beings, and you’re lucky if you have a dog that loves you and accepts you. Keep them in your life because they will teach you lessons all the way to the end.”

Linda Elmquist

Meet Linda Elmquist

Linda Elmquist started doing animal rescue work 20 years ago, and in that time she’s fostered over 100 dogs. She is the founder of Southwest Hairless Rescue, as well. Poised to retire in May after working for 50 years as an RN, one of the first things Elmquist plans to do next is trek with gorillas in Africa. The woman is a force!

She spoke with me about The World’s Ugliest Dog, the lovely people who adopt the less adoptables, and the way our dogs help us cope with mortality.

Roxanne and Dolly, mother and daughter Chinese Cresteds. Lennon, a Xoloitzcuintli or “Xolo” (pronounced “show-low”) on the orange blanket.

Linda Elmquist loves hairless dogs.

She has a hairless cat, too.

“I only have four (dogs) right now that are hairless,” she pointed out. “I lost five dogs in the last couple of years because of old age. They grew up with me, slept with me every night, and died in my bed.

“They have terribly short lives, but they can teach us about loss and moving on,” Linda continued, speaking easily on a subject many people can’t. “I’m 74 and thinking I have maybe 10 years left, and about what death means to me. If I do any more nursing, I think it might be with Hospice work, and that’s all from the dogs. I understand more about that kind of loss, grief, and passing because of them. They have really impacted my life in that way.

“Looking at my own death coming up isn’t something horrible,” she said thoughtfully. “People say. Oh no, don’t think about that. Well, you’ve got to or it’s going to creep up and bite you in the ass.

“If I have 10 years left, that will be really a blessing. So what do I want to do in the next 10 years? One of the things I want to do is to prepare for my end. People think that’s morose. I think it’s healthy.”

Share

Stragglers

“I’ve fostered a lot of hairless dogs because that’s my specialty,” Elmquist went on. “But I’ve started leaning towards seniors and dogs with special needs, because I feel so bad for the ones that get kicked to the curb once they have something wrong with them.”

She began fostering with Cherished Tails Senior Sanctuary (CTSS) in 2022 and it turned out to be a good fit.

“I was interested in fostering those kinds of dogs,” she recalled, “even though they’re harder to place. I was also happy about the people that are interested in these older dogs. It’s a different type that wants to adopt dogs that are less desirable, and it’s been a joy to get to meet those people. Seniors are amazing, dogs that have lived their life deserve to go out of this world in peace, comfort and love.”

Elmquist is looking forward to having time to get more involved in rescue work after she retires. She’d like to become part of the CTSS transport team, which ferries dogs to and from the local vet, and also travels to shelters in other parts of Arizona and southern California to pull dogs that are listed for euthanasia.

Linda made a point of telling me why she chooses to volunteer with Cherished Tails.

“I’ve been around rescues for a long time, and I think Pauline (Haas-Vaughn, Executive Director) is doing a great job,” she emphasized. “She doesn’t hesitate to get medical care, she does a lot of fundraising, and she’s super transparent. CTSS takes in dogs with issues, she doesn’t pick and choose only dogs that are going to move quickly. There’s something to be said for that doing that, of course, you want to get healthy dogs adopted. But I love that Pauline is picking up these stragglers that are headed for the euthanasia pen.”

Left is Suleiman, a Chinese Crested. On the right is Diva, Linda’s Sphynx.

Imperfect Hunds

I had no idea when we sat down to talk that Linda Elmquist has the distinction of having had the World’s Ugliest Dog!

For 10 years, Linda and her dog Josie competed in The World’s Ugliest Dog Contest, an annual event at the Sonoma-Marin Fair in Petaluma, California. They won Second and Third places, taking part from 2012 through 2021. Then, after Josie passed, Elmquist still had another ugly dog.

“Scooter was a hairless, and a lot of the dogs that have won have been hairless, with no teeth and the tongue hanging out,” she explained. “Scooter was born with his hind legs on backwards, so they were useless. He walked on his front legs.”

It was Scooter who snagged First Place in 2023!

“It’s a great competition because it brings people together from all over who are looking for dogs that aren’t perfect,” Elmquist elaborated. “It showcases what wonderful animals they are, and brings more awareness to the public.

“I was whisked off to New York city and we were on the Today Show,” she told me, still sounding pretty thrilled. “It was a wonderful experience because I got to do my spiel for the less adoptables!” That was the start of their “world tour”. Linda and Scooter made Zoom appearances in Ireland and Australia, and they were on Good Morning America.

“Scooter made front pages all over the world,” Elmquist said happily. “It was really fun to be able to get him out there. Every little bit helps, I think.”

After she lost Scooter, Linda decided to throw in the towel.

“I don’t have any ugly dogs now,” she said definitively.

Scooter and Linda at NBC Studios

Watch the video of Scooter and Linda on the Today Show:

Linda Elmquist and Scooter on the Today Show.

What would you like to say to people about dog rescue?

Linda dove into this last question without any hesitation whatsoever.

“The big thing I would say to the public about rescue is DON’T BUY DOGS!

“I know people want purebred dogs, but you can find ones that have been put up for adoption, or have been abandoned. Just keep looking. Go to rescue organizations and keep looking.”

That’s no dog, I said. Same love, she said.

Share

Leave a comment

Read the CTSS newsletter here:

CHERISHED TAILS MAY 2025 NEWSLETTER