Snowball was basically a celebrity on Sunday afternoon. To the tune of “Ice, Ice Baby” he landed his second blue ribbon of the day.

Approximately 250 dogs and their owners took over the Johnson County Fairgrounds Sunday for the eighth-annual Paws for a Cause Walk-a-thon.

Snowball took part in several competitions but made quick work of the Bag of Tricks contest, in which Vanilla Ice’s song supplied the background music. The Iowa City Animal Center held the event to raise donations for Friends of the Animal Center Foundation, an organization that works to support animals when procedures they need aren’t covered by animal-shelter funds.

“I’ve had a lot of homework, but I’ve tried to spend an hour a day training [him],” said Jamie Halverson, Snowball’s owner.

Snowball won the contest by collapsing to the ground on Jamie’s signal. Minutes before that, the dog won first-prize in the Spot On Dog & Owner Look-a-Like contest. The fluffy, white American Eskimo pooch struck an uncanny resemblance to its 11-year-old master, who has poofy blonde hair.

Some of the funds may also go toward rebuilding the Animal Center, which was damaged in the 2008 flood. The Federal Emergency Management Agency awarded the organization $1.6 million for that purpose, but Animal Center Foundation Executive Director Liz Ford said the final project will require more funding.

Ford said the organization had a record day for the event, and it netted more than $18,000.

Larry Akin, who volunteers at the Animal Center, said helping pet owners get their animals fixed is one service Animal Center Foundation funds go toward.

“It’s a very simple thing to have them spayed and neutered,” he said. “If people don’t have the money for it, they can get help if they call the center.”

One of the event’s vendors, Heidi Goeken, an art teacher at Penn Elementary, sold portraits of pets from the Animal Shelter’s website for $3 apiece. Her fifth- and sixth-grade students had constructed the artwork after looking at the animals’ pictures online.

“At first [the students] didn’t believe anyone would buy their art,” Goeken said. “But last year, they made around $200.”

The well-being of canines is something all her students are passionate about, she said.

“Pretty much every kid cares about animals, and this shows them they can do something about helping animals without homes,” she said.