Wiener Dogs Shine in Muddy Race at New Orleans Fairgrounds

New Orleans Fairgrounds Racetrack has a history of making memories. We've probably all lost a dollar or two at the track but we only remember those times when we won a dollar or two, right? The Fairgrounds is also home to the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. That is coming up sooner than you'd expect but right now the focus at the Churchill Downs-owned racetrack is horse racing, and wiener dog racing too.

The track is just a few weeks away from one of its biggest races of the year. That being the Louisiana Derby. The race is set for March 23rd. The race itself is one of the premier qualifying races for the prestigious Kentucky Derby which will be run on May 4 this year.

The Louisiana Derby has placed two horses in the winner's circle for the Kentucky Derby in Louisville, Kentucky. Those mounts were Black Gold who won the Louisiana and Kentucky Derbies back in 1924. And in 1996 Grindstone won in New Orleans and then won again in Kentucky. Risen Star won the Louisiana Derby in 1988 and failed in the Kentucky Derby but went on to win the Preakness and Belmont. So, you can see horse racing has a rich tradition at the Fairgrounds.

A more recent addition to the track's repertoire of fan-favorite fun includes wiener dog racing. This past Saturday the Fairgrounds hosted 48 purebred Dachsunds in a series of heat races. The pup that managed to work out a win over the heats and the 30-yard course would win their share of $1,000 in cash and prizes.

Here's how the final race turned out.

The winning dog was Du Du Brown the Number 9 dog. Du Du broke fast from the outside and never looked back. Du Du defeated defending champions Dolly Parton Favrot and nine other pups in the process. Du Du is owned by a man who identified himself to reporters as Hollywood. Du Du's owner and race controller suggested that he and his pup would be heading for "happy hour" following Saturday's grueling event.

If you'd like to see how the rest of the heat races unfolded or you just enjoy watching small short-legged little dogs run in the much, you can see the heat races and some other videos from Saturday's fun on the Fairgrounds Instagram Account.