The Town of Newtown recently recognized Harlow, a four-year-old Great Dane mix, as Newtown’s #1 dog for 2025.

In late July, Town Clerk Debbie Aurelia Halstead once again had the honor of drawing a registered dog tag out of a bucket. She just so happened to pull out Harlow’s tag, making her the lucky winner.

Harlow and her two owners, Peg and Bob Foran, visited Pleasant Paws Pet Center on August 1 and met Halstead to celebrate the special occasion.

Halstead presented several prizes to Harlow and her family, including a trophy, a blue #1 dog tag, and a small sign that reads “#1 Dog Harlow!” She will also send them a Pleasant Paws Pet Center gift card at a later date.

Newtown Animal Control Officer Suada Likovic and Municipal Animal Control Officer Emily Whittaker also stopped by to meet and congratulate Harlow.

While it was all smiles at Pleasant Paws Pet Center, perhaps the happiest of them all was none other than Harlow herself. The black and white rescue dog excitedly wagged her tail as people and pets walked through the door, greeting whoever came in with a big grin on her face.

That playfulness is par for the course when it comes to Harlow, according to Peg. She is a rescue who they got several years ago, and has been a friendly, happy-go-lucky joy in their lives ever since.

When they got Harlow, Peg said the veterinarian assessed she was between 6-8 months old. Peg and Bob decided she was 7 — a perfect middle ground between the two options.

This put her birthday in late August, meaning Harlow kicked off her birthday month by being recognized as Newtown’s #1 dog.

“It’s funny, my whole life I either had Boxers or Great Danes. I eventually started doing rescues … so I had a DNA test done for [Harlow] and she came back exactly 50 percent Boxer and 50 percent Great Dane,” Peg explained.

She said Harlow has the Great Dane looks, but that her playfulness is “very Boxer.”

Dog owners are automatically entered in a random drawing if they register their dogs in the Town Clerk’s office by June 30 every year.

The annual contest, sponsored by the Town Clerk’s office, is an incentive for residents to comply with state regulations and license their dogs by the annual June deadline.

After being drawn, Harlow gets to wear the #1 dog tag for the rest of the current registration season.

Reporter Jenna Visca can be reached at jenna@thebee.com.