Puppy Bowl V, February 1 2009; part of Super Bowl action

by Amy Judd | January 28, 2009 at 01:07 pm

2701 views | 9 Recommendations | 14 comments

Puppy Bowl V 2009 takes place this Sunday February 1 to accompany all the Super Bowl 2009 action.

Hosted by Animal Planet, this years Puppy Bowl has once again earned the American Humane Association's 'No Animals Were Harmed' disclaimer at the end.

This year, the line-up will consist of 54 puppies, Pepper, the African grey parrot singing the National Anthem, and 15 kittens providing the 'half time show'.

The main action is really just puppies rolling around and playing together, but all dogs and cats can be adopted and come from shelters. You cannot adopt Pepper however.

"Because of five years of experience and planning, this year's 'Puppy Bowl' was one of the smoothest, most fun programs that we've ever done," Buck said. "It was a busy day, with more than 60 animals in the same place at once, but it worked out perfectly!"

There is even a referee to call penalties, such as a "Unnecessary Ruffness." The adorable lineup was carefully monitored to achieve a good mix of cheerful and playful puppies on the field at once. All of the dogs and cats came from shelters and rescue groups that can be found on the national PetFinder.com website. The majority of the animals are of mixed breed.

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MajorConfusion

at 14:30 on January 28th, 2009

Bailey was just a puppy then and we were surprised when she picked up the football we were throwing and carried it around.

The football was nearly her size! I had to run and get the camera for this. As it turns out, she chews anything she can get her mouth around.

MajorConfusion has contributed a photo to this story.

slpiesche

at 14:48 on January 28th, 2009

Scooby is a rescue that came at the right time. He needed love and we had lots of love to give. He is learning to play and be a puppy now and loves his football the most!

slpiesche has contributed a photo to this story.

Amy Patience Flood

at 15:07 on January 28th, 2009

My brothers will play football with the dogs just like this almost everyday. They form one unit and the dogs are the opposing team!

Amy Patience Flood has contributed a photo to this story.

158

at 16:35 on January 28th, 2009

Interesting but what about the Bud Bowl.

infiltrators

at 19:54 on January 28th, 2009

Darby is ready to watch her fave on the big screen!

infiltrators has contributed a photo to this story.

We Love Dusty

at 20:43 on January 28th, 2009

Tucker loves playing ball and a football is just about the only thing his teeth don't destroy instantly! He was just a puppy here, and the ball was much too big, but you blame a pup for trying.

We Love Dusty has contributed a photo to this story.

caj1

at 21:49 on January 28th, 2009

I'll take Echo, the puppy carrying around her bowl in the photo!

Huggingthecoast.Com

at 22:59 on January 28th, 2009

When our dog Penny was young, she had so much energy that my wife and I would wear our arms out throwing the ball so she could run and fetch it.

I'm really enjoying all these dog photos!

RinaBHawk

at 08:32 on January 29th, 2009

This is Sam. He was about 8 months old in this photo and loves playing catch in the backyard.

RinaBHawk has contributed a photo to this story.

ccrowley1023

at 10:30 on January 29th, 2009

This was taken shortly after we brought Dante home. He's only about 6 weeks old here. He was so tiny I had to lay down and put the camera on the floor to get this shot.

ccrowley1023 has contributed a photo to this story.

Birdfreak.com

at 10:43 on January 29th, 2009

Arizona loves playing football but I don't think he'd be allowed in the puppy bowl... he would never give up the ball :)

Sandy Mittle (not verified)

at 13:48 on January 29th, 2009

Love that most of the puppies are mixed breed ...way to go, Puppy Bowl! My husband and I will be watching you!

hwoodruff

at 13:42 on January 31st, 2009

Kirby, our 9 yr. old Wire Fox Terrier, got a squeaky football for Christmas. He won't let Finnegan, our 19 week old Welsh Terrier, near it.

hwoodruff has contributed a photo to this story.

kuuva

at 07:28 on February 3rd, 2009

i didnt get to see the Puppybowl, but I am glad to read

"All of the dogs and cats came from shelters and rescue groups that can be found on the national PetFinder.com website. The majority of the animals are of mixed breed."

Everyone I know now gets their pets from the shelters. it seems so much more humane to adopt an animal that is just going to get put to sleep.