ls local dog the Cutest Mutt Alive?

4:13 PM EDT, March 11, 2009

A mixed-breed dog, Shelby, owned by the Pysher family of Upper Milford Township, is a finalist in an inaugural national competition, Cutest Mutt Alive, organized by an animal rights organization, the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, or PETA.

Shelby, the only Pennsylvania finalist, is one of 10 mixed-breed dogs vying for top mutt status. Shelby is cared for by 12-year-old Carley Pysher. PETA is promoting the contest on its Web site, www.PETA.org and in the organization's national magazine, "Animal Times." Voting ends Friday. The winning dog will be featured on the group's Web site and in the national magazine. Carley, daughter of Lori and Marshall Pysher, attends the sixth grade at Eyer Middle School in Emmaus.

Shelby, who is part-Spitz and part-Shetland sheepdog, likes to "go for walks. That's her favorite thing," says Carley. Shelby and Carley walk in their neighborhood and also in Lock Ridge Furnace Park in Alburtis, Shelby's favorite park. "She likes to climb on things," says Carley.

Carley a vegetarian, stopped eating meat about 17 months ago, after watching a video on YouTube, which offered viewers 30 reasons not to eat meat. "I didn't really think about where [meat] came from. I just watched it and saw the undercover videos of what happens."

Carley has two older siblings, Casey, 25 and Jordan, 23. The Pyshers also have another mixed-breed dog, Cooper, a 3-year-old that is part-Chihuahua and part-Jack Russell terrier. Both were adopted from the Lehigh County Humane Society, says Carley's mom.

PETA is organizing the contest to emphasize its objection to pure-bred dogs, a process that involves inbreeding to help maintain characteristics associated with a breed. Mixed-breed dogs are typically healthier and tend to live longer than their purebred cousins, PETA contends.

At the recent Crufts Dog Show, in Great Britain, the largest dog show in the world, the effects of inbreeding also became a concern. Breaking a long-standing tradition, the BBC, Britain's national television network, decided not to televise the four-day show, citing the health effects of breeding purebred dogs.

-Reporting by Tim Blangger The Morning Call