CHICAGO — This dog belongs on the catwalk.
Meet 6-year-old Chango Leon, an Albany Park pit bull better known to his fans as Chango the Handsome Pittie.
"He's really patient. He'll just sit there and let me put whatever on him," owner Evelyn Ramirez Landa said. "Whatever" has been everything from a fedora and leather jacket to a robe and Cookie Monster slippers.
Chango's popularity — he has 26,000 followers on Instagram and 5,000 on Facebook — recently earned him $500 through the animal photo-sharing app Dogly to give to the charity of his mom's choice.
For Ramirez Landa, 29, there was no question where the money would go: Chicagoland Bully Breed Rescue.
"We were so happy because they do so much for the breed," she said.
The negative stereotype of pit bulls as aggressive fighting dogs is one that Ramirez Landa is hoping to help dispel.
"People become scared of these dogs without even knowing them," Ramirez Landa said. "It's really sad, because pit bulls are the majority in the shelters, and they're really amazing dogs."
The idea to put clothes on Chango first came to Ramirez Landa when she walked him around the neighborhood and noticed people crossing the street to avoid him.
"In my mind, if a dog's wearing a hoodie or has something cute on, he would be less intimidating to those people," she said.
Chango's repertoire of hoodies quickly expanded, and now his reach for changing minds about pit bulls goes further than the pedestrians on his block.
Ramirez Landa said fans send messages to her that seeing one of his portraits improves a bad day.
"We do it to spread some love and make people smile," she said.
But the mission is even bigger than that — Ramirez Landa fosters pit bulls from Chicagoland Bully Breed Rescue, so foster dog photos on Chango's page can reach a lot of potential adopters.
"It's good for what we’re tying to do for other dogs," she said.
Chango himself was rescued by Ramirez Landa and her boyfriend from a man who was on his way to the shelter to give up the then-3-month-old, 30-pound puppy.
Now, Chango Leon weighs almost 75 pounds, and doesn't let his body shape get in the way of styling human clothes.
"He's really short, but he's a little meaty," Ramirez Landa said.
When he's not rocking a NASA spacesuit or lounging in Bears gear, Chango loves a good belly rub and anything jerky flavored, Ramirez Landa said.
"I'm thankful for him every day," Ramirez Landa said. "I feel so grateful that he's able to make people smile and try to change the perception that people have of this breed."
The dapper dog isn't without his limits, though.
"He'll wear anything except a fake mustache," Ramirez Landa said. "No matter how many treats I give him, he won't keep it on."
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